Plan a Garage Sale

Rather than discarding items you think of as "junk", try selling them at a garage sale. A garage sale can be a

profitable and fun way to make sure items are reused.

Check with friends, relatives, and neighbours to see if they would like to join you in holding a garage sale or if they have anything they would like you to sell for them. More sellers mean less work, and a larger inventory means more buyers. Also, advertising expenses will be lower with more people to share the cost.

Promote your sale

If you have a community newspaper that is delivered to every household in your area, advertise your garage sale in the paper’s classified section. Otherwise, advertise in the newspaper that is read by the most people in your area.

Put up lots of signs in your neighbourhood a few days before the sale. Make sure the signs are large and, if possible, waterproof. Most newspapers will provide you with a garage sale kit when you advertise with them. This kit usually includes a few signs.

On the day of your sale, put a large sign and a bunch of balloons at the intersection closest to your house.

Important! After your sale, remember to take down all your signs, under certain by-laws, you may get fined for abandoning your signs in certain municipalities..

Be organised

If you get a garage sale kit from the newspsper when you advertise with them, read the list of tips it contains about how to hold a successful sale. Being organized is essential.

If possible, plan to set up your sale items in a covered area so that you can still hold the sale if the weather is bad.

Have each family at a group sale mark all their items with a different colour of dot to prevent mix-ups later.

Make sure every item is priced and laid out in a secure area by at least the night before the sale. You will have no time to do this on the morning of the sale because many buyers come early.

Price your items fairly, but keep in mind that some people will want to bargain, so don’t make your prices too low to begin with.