Avoid These Garage Salesby Mary Ann Romans | More from this Blogger 19 Jun 2008 01:54 PM
I have a hard time thinking about giving these sales up, though, because although garage sales can be hit or miss, they usually do pay off in the long run. So how do you minimize the cost when gas prices are so high? Here are some strategies. Avoid the perpetual yard sales Perpetual yards sales are those sales that appear week after week and resemble more of a business than an actual yard sale. The folks who put these sales on go and shop at other sales or go dumpster diving and curb shopping to collect items for free or for as little cost as possible. Then they turn around and sell the items in a "garage sale." You'll learn to spot these types of sales because they appear over and over again, are usually held in a garage or a barn instead of on the lawn, and contain a lot of rusty stuff. These sales charge more to make a profit, and are already picked over. Watch out for multi-family sales You might think that multifamily sales are a good thing, right? The more families the more stuff. But I have found that multifamily sales can be deceiving. Usually it is a sale of two friends who don't have enough stuff to hold a sale alone, or it is a mother-in-law and her family or two roommates. Skip the multifamily sales and look for community sales instead, where there are multiple houses offering yard sales, and you can walk down a block or two that are laden with sales. Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, technology in the Computing Blog, and creating a home in the Home Blog. Starting June 1st, don't miss her articles in the Baby Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here. Related Articles: 3 Ways to Save Money at a Garage Sale Learn more about Mary Ann Romans  Mary Ann Romans is a freelance writer, wife and mother of three children. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, the kids and a 16-pound cat. Relevantfrugal tags User Comments Tashi (1013) 19 Jun 2008 06:26 PMYes! There's a house I've seen hold garage sales all the time! I started to think, "Hmmm..." MegfromAllAboutAppearances (330) 19 Jun 2008 09:56 PMI don't get up early enough to be a frequent yard sale shopper, but the conclusion I've come to is that when I do go to yard sales I get great deals on stuff I don't need. I probably could get some stuff on my shopping/wish list, but it wouldn't be worth the gas, time, and money spent on impulse buys. Plus, I prefer to research things online before buying them. Now, I did make a good bit of money at a yard sale I had a couple months ago. It was the first of three that my husband and I held with some additions from our new roommate. Even though the last two had plenty of further additions from our roommate and my mom, we hardly made anything. The second yard sale's disappointing profits we blamed on it not being held on the first weekend of the month, but the last one was timed right in that respect. I think the gas prices here are just too high and people too broke.  Mary Ann Romans (26886) 21 Jun 2008 10:51 AMI agree Meg. People are being very careful about driving these days. Perhaps you could involve your community in a sale. That might bring in more people. Or maybe you could put flyers in the mailboxes of your neighbors announcing your sale. If you neighbors can walk or bike to your sale, they may come and check it out.  QueenAngie Central Illinois, USA (60106) 21 Jun 2008 12:42 PMRide your bike, walk, or push the baby stroller to area garage sales to save on gas! MegfromAllAboutAppearances (330) 21 Jun 2008 02:55 PMGood ideas Mary! I think I'm all yard-saled out for now, but perhaps next time. Mary Ann Romans (26886) 21 Jun 2008 03:49 PMMeg, I know what you mean! We donated our items and write them off on taxes. It works much better for us. Tashi (1013) 22 Jun 2008 07:44 AMI'm not sure, but I think that in my state, it's illegal to open or put anything in people's mailboxes -- except of course, if you're an official mail carrier. I could be wrong. The flyer idea is good, if it's legal in your state/municipality. Community Tags garage sales, multifamily sales, Tips, yard sales Discuss this article
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