If you can’t find some of the merchandise you’re selling at local sales, a good rule of thumb is to charge no more than one-quarter to one-third of what a similar product would cost to buy new.

Visiting a couple of local thrift stores can provide valuable intel as well. Then stop by a couple to see what they’re charging for products similar to those you have to sell. If you aren’t accustomed to shopping at garage sales yourself, a little scouting trip can help you figure out what prices yard sale shoppers in your area are used to.įirst, check out websites like Yard Sale Search and Yard Sale Treasure Map to find local sales. Check Local Sale PricesĪccording to guides published by Real Simple and The Spruce, yard sale pricing varies widely by region. You stand a better chance of getting a fair price that way than at a yard sale, where shoppers expect rock-bottom prices. If you have a piece that’s worth a significant amount of money, hold it back from the sale and try to sell it online. Instead, consider printing out the record of an eBay listing for something similar and taping it to your lower-priced merchandise to show buyers they’re getting a good deal. However, don’t assume you can sell your valuables for their market price at a garage sale, where everyone is looking for a bargain. If you have really pricey merchandise, such as antiques or jewelry, it might be worth paying to have them appraised before setting a price. For high-value items like vintage clothing or furniture, check listings on sites like Craigslist and eBay to see what prices similar goods are fetching. To find the prices buyers are willing to pay, do some research. All they care about is whether the price is a good deal for them. Yard sale shoppers don’t care that you originally paid $200 for that designer outfit or that those china teacups were a wedding gift from your Great Aunt Louise. When setting prices for your yard sale wares, don’t make the mistake of thinking about what they mean to you. To walk this fine line, you need to research typical garage sale pricing in your area. You want to charge the maximum shoppers are willing to pay, but at the same time, you have to avoid chasing buyers off with too-high prices. However, if your main goal is to earn extra cash, then pricing your goods is a little trickier. You can achieve this goal most easily by pricing your wares dirt cheap - not just well below retail prices, but below thrift shop and flea market prices as well. If you’re trying to declutter your home - for instance, because you’re preparing to move or making space for a new family member - then your goal is to clear out as much stuff as possible. Which is more important to you: clearing out clutter or maximizing your profits? Know Your Goalīefore deciding how to price your merchandise, think about the purpose of your yard sale. Pricing your goods clearly while also leaving room for haggling can mean the difference between turning your clutter into cash and having to haul it all back to the attic. So while there are many ways to make your garage sale more appealing - from proper signage to ample parking - the price tag will have the most significant impact on your actual sales. It’s why they’re willing to spend hours of their weekend driving for miles to take in a promising sale or scouring their local neighborhood on foot for the best deals. How to Price Merchandise at Your Garage SaleĮvery shopper loves a bargain, and that’s doubly true for garage sale shoppers. To avoid this problem, you need to make all your prices clear upfront - and those prices should be attractive enough to persuade buyers to open their wallets. You can’t have a successful garage sale if you’re driving customers away with high or unclear prices. And since they obviously haven’t given much thought to pricing, it’s likely to be too expensive to bother with anyway. The goods will probably be poorly organized, and even if I manage to find something worth buying, I’ll have to hunt down the seller just to find out what it costs. And to me, one of the biggest red flags is looking around a sale and seeing no price tags on any of the merchandise.Ī lack of price tags tells me the seller hasn’t made much effort. I’ve probably been to hundreds of them over the years, and I’ve learned to size them up quickly to tell if a particular sale is a good one or lame one before I go sorting through everything.

Price tag games