Do you want to host the best yard sale in your neighborhood? And make your neighbors and friends wonder how you made so much money just getting rid of your junk? Check out this post – it has all the tips & tricks you need to have the biggest (and the best!) yard sale ever!

Host the Best Yard Sale in the Neighborhood

It’s spring, my friends! And you know what that means…it’s time for spring cleaning! Why not de-clutter and make a little extra money with a yard sale?

That’s what I’m doing this spring!

When we moved to Vermont 2 years ago, I swore I was going to minimize and get rid of a great deal of “junk”, unfortunately, it didn’t work out that way.

When we came back home last year, I brought it back with me! As embarrassing as it is to admit…a lot of it is still in the boxes that we packed to move to VT in 2014!

So, yeah…it’s really time to get rid of some stuff…

However, I have a terrible habit when I’m de-cluttering. I usually end up getting in a zone and I just start chucking. I’ve actually thrown out, given away or sold things in the past that I really regret now.

At the time, it didn’t seem like such a big deal, but looking back, I’d love to hold onto those things just one more time. I don’t want to repeat that mistake again and I’d hate to see you do the same thing, because it really just sucks.

So, I’m organizing and planning ahead of time this year!

Come along…hang out with me while I go through (and get rid of!) all my junk!

Here’s how I’m going to do it –

Organizing Your Junk

Pick a room…any room.

Just pick one!

Get 2 {large} empty boxes and walk to the farthest corner from the door. Start digging! You’re looking for anything and everything that you don’t use, don’t want and don’t need.

Come on now, you know what I’m talking about…who needs 78 pairs of shoes? Get rid of any that are covered in visible dust. There is no way you’ve worn them all this past year!

The same goes for the clothes hanging in your closet…if there is dust on the shoulders of shirts or the fold of pants (or skirts!)…get rid of them. It’s pretty obvious you don’t wear the clothes, so why not make some extra money from them?

Label each box as follows –

Box 1 – Free –

Everything that you are willing to giveaway, put in the free box.

Box 2 – Sell –

Everything that you want to sell goes in the sell box.

Continue doing this throughout the house.

I’m sure you’ll need more boxes, I know I’ll be packing up at least 2 from every one of the rooms in my house! But each time you add new boxes, make sure you label them!

Marketing Your Yard Sale

Place an advertisement in your local newspaper, your local section on Craigslist and any penny saver papers in your area. You might also consider putting up posters on bulletin boards at your local supermarkets, hardware stores and pharmacies.

Yard Sale Sign Kit with Pricing Labels and Wood Sign Stakes – $21.98

But the best way to advertise for your yard sale is right in your own neighborhood!

Hang bright and bold signs with arrows pointing your way, from the closest main road, all the way to your house.

Get Help

Ask friends and family to come and hang out while you’re sale is going on. It’s hard to pull off a large yard sale on your own and you really need all the help you can get! Offer to make them dinner or have a small BBQ after your sale is over as a thank you.

Timing is Everything

Plan to host your yard sale early in the month. Perhaps, the 2nd weekend. At the end of the month, money is tight for a lot of people…they’ve just finished paying bills and they’re thinking about paying next months bills.

Start your sale early in the morning, too. Have your stuff set up and ready to go no later than 8:00 am! The early-birds are out and ready to shop. You don’t want to miss out on these people because they are your true shoppers. Anyone out after noon is just looking for something “to do” and they aren’t likely to spend as much money.

The early bird gets the worm!

And the early morning shoppers are on a mission. Don’t ignore them if you truly want to make money with your yard sale.

Draw Attention

FILL your yard with tables, hanging racks, boxes…whatever!

The more full your yard sale looks, the more people will stop.

If you’re set up with just 1 small table, people are going to keep on driving!

Neatly arrange things on each table by category and you’ll be surprised at how many tables you can actually fill with a small variation of junk.

For example: Place t-shirts on 1 table…sweatshirts go on another…jeans on another….and so on! Do the same thing with every “category” you have and you’ll realize you need more tables than you have available!

Hang balloons on every available tree or post in your yard. If you have a fence, hang a huge banner or poster that screams “YARD SALE”.

You might also want to have some music playing in the background. Not too loud, your customers want to be able to hear, but loud enough to make it seem like a fun party.

And if your music taste is a broad as mine, you’ll be playing music from every generation back to the 1930’s, so everyone will enjoy the jams!

Provide Refreshments

Back to the party idea….you want to make people comfortable, that way they stay longer.

Because the longer they stay and “browse”, the more they will buy!

Make a couple pitchers of Country Time Lemonade and Iced Tea. Have some bottled water available, too.

Bake a few batches of cookies or pick them up from the supermarket. (Most grocery stores offer large platters of mixed types of cookies!)

Have a table set up with your refreshments, conveniently located near where you have your”checkout” for your customers.

Offer Bags or Boxes

Have a variety of different sized boxes and bags available to offer customers.

Customers are more likely to buy more if they don’t have to lug everything around, individually, in their hands. It also makes it easier to carry it all into their own homes.

Start Selling!

Be friendly, offer package deals and discounts. While you want to make a bunch of money, you also want to get rid of your junk…so don’t be greedy!

Just sell it!

This should be your yard sale mantra – keep saying it to yourself all day.

Some money is better than no money, right?

I hope these tips help you host the best yard sale ever and may you make a ton of money!

Still Need More?

Have a Great Day!

Vanessa Hamlin

Vanessa Hamlin is the owner and founder of Food Life Design and VLHamlinDesign. With her passion for frugal living and homesteading, Vanessa loves to write about easy recipes, making money, gardening, home remedies and everything else that a good life entails! When she’s not writing for Food Life Design or creating products for VLHamlinDesign, you’ll find Vanessa reading, drawing, gardening, cooking or spending time with her family.