The biggest frustration with running your own garage sale or estate sale is the planning and organization. It can be time consuming, you may have a lot of sentimental value tied to the items you want to sell, and you have likely accumulated a lot of items. Use this guide to help you get started and keep the headaches at a minimum.
The 12 Steps to Plan & Organize Your Sale
- Set Clear Goals
- Create an Inventory
- Choose a Date
- Check Local Regulations
- Gather Supplies
- Delegate Tasks
- Price Items Clearly and Fairly
- Advertise Your Sale
- Plan Your Layout
- Prepare for the Day
- Consider a Pre-Sale Setup
- Stay Flexible
1. Set Clear Goals
Determine what you want to achieve. Are you looking to declutter, make money, or both?
Setting simple and realistic goals will help you in the long run. If you are looking to declutter your home then the idea of haggling goes out the window.
Buyer: Will you take $5 for this $8 item?
You, wanting to declutter your home: Yep!
Decluttering is the best goal to have because it simplifies the pricing process, the haggling is almost non-existent, and you have already severed any sentimental ties you have with your items.
However, if you want to make money at your sale then be prepared to put in the work. Be equipped to haggle like a pro. Price your items fairly, let people know what items have a firm price, and be prepared for people to walk away (meaning you make $0). All of this is good if you stick to your goal of “making money”.
Decide which items you want to sell and which you want to keep.
Don’t wait until the day before your sale to figure out what can go and what has to stay. This is a recipe for a disaster. Have a clear idea of what items in your home will help you achieve your goal. The worst thing you can do is to sell an item that in a week’s time you actually really need. Be thoughtful about what goes into your sale.
Some goals you can use for your upcoming event. Make them specific to your situation. It is best to have 1-2 goals for an event:
- Make Money: Generate $600 by selling as many items as possible at fair prices.
- Declutter the Home: Clear out the garage to park at least one car in the garage easily and reduce the number of toys in the kids’ room by 50%.
- Sustainable Disposal: Prioritize selling items to keep them out of landfills and promote recycling and reusing.
- Community Engagement: Use the event as an opportunity to meet and engage with neighbors and build a sense of community.
2. Create an Inventory
Create a grid of your home and list the items you want to sell.
💡 Use this helpful worksheet to plan your inventory.💡
One of the heaviest lifts of your event is actually inventorying all of the items you could sell. Instead of carving out massive amounts of time in the evenings or weekends to do this effort we recommend doing a little bit (up to 30 minutes) a few days each week leading up to the week of your sale.
You will list out every “room” of your house (i.e. master bedroom, master bedroom closet, master bathroom, linen closet, etc.) Then, you’ll tackle 2-3 rooms 2-3 times a week. Once a room is done, you don’t go back to it and second guess yourself. Once it is done, you mark it off your list and move on to the remaining rooms. Listing closets as rooms will allow you to catch items you forgot about and ensures you are covering every inch of your home.
Categorize items (e.g., clothing, electronics, furniture) to streamline setup and pricing.
Identify a space in your home to store your the items you want to sell. As you complete each room of your home, you are also adding each item to a worksheet. This is your inventory list. We will price these items on a different day than your “tackling” day. See below for these details.
Having the inventory list will make the pricing process a lot faster and more efficient. It will also help you visualize how many items you will have in your sale. Additionally, it will assist with the layout on the day of the sale so you can place your biggest ticket items correctly and hard to sell items will be more enticing for potential buyers.
3. Choose a Date
Pick a date that doesn’t conflict with major local events.
Seems like a no-brainer but don’t schedule your sale on a holiday weekend, when construction crews will be working on your road, or any number of things that could negatively impact foot traffic to your sale.
One of the pieces to consider is the amount of available parking in your area. If you are near a shopping mall, church, school, or any place that has ample parking GREAT! However, if any of those businesses are having an event the day you want to host your sale then your parking goes down the drain and foot traffic dwindles.
Consider holding your sale over a weekend to attract more shoppers.
Depending on how many items you have to sell, the ideal day for a second-hand sale is Saturday. Start early to beat the heat as well as get ahead of weekend activities people may already have planned. If you need to do a two-day sale, aim for a Friday-Saturday or Saturday-Sunday.
4. Check Local Regulations
Research if you need a permit to hold a sale.
Several cities and municipalities require you to get a permit to hold a garage, yard, or estate sale. Most don’t require a fee to get a permit. It only costs your time and some paperwork. However, if you skip the permit you could be looking at fines and headaches.
Additionally, you should review your states sales tax requirements. For example, if you think you are going to sell more than $3,000 at your yard sale in Texas you likely will need to pay sales tax. Below that amount, you do not need to pay sales tax (as of 2024). Check your state's Comptroller website for information.
5. Gather Supplies
Preparation of supplies is going to save your bacon come the day of your event! Borrow as many of these items as you can. If you do need to purchase items we recommend these items to make your event successful.
Recommended necessary supplies:
We highly recommend a couple of items to protect you, your investment of time, and keeping your money secure:
- Money pin
- Bag to store money in (keep this on you throughout the day of your event)
- Inventory list with prices (in case price tags go missing)
Ensure you have enough small bills and coins for giving change.
A day or two before your event, go to your bank and get the money you’ll need to provide change to your buyers. If you don’t want to deal with coins then you may want to bundle items together so they equal a dollar. For example, 5 toys for $1. Or 10 shirts for $1. Always good to have some quarters on hand for change but you can get past the coin fiasco by bundling.
If you have large value items you plan to sell, you may want to consider accepting Venmo or Zelle to accept payment. These items usually require additional paperwork to transfer ownership so be prepared with the documents ahead of time. Always keep these documents in a secure place away from the public until you are ready to make the transaction.
6. Delegate Tasks
Involve family members or friends to help with various tasks like setup, sales, and packing up.
Get the family involved throughout this whole process. Have the kids help sort toys, enlist a friend to tackle the pricing of items with you, and definitely have at least one person to help you on the day of your event. You don’t want to leave your items unattended when you have a bathroom emergency.
Assign specific roles to ensure everything runs smoothly.
Have one of the kids help you keep the toy area of your sale tidy and looking presentable. Ask one of your friends to help fold or hang clothes that may have come undone during your event. Get a significant other to monitor the foot traffic in the garage and answer any questions people may have.
It is highly recommended only one person handle transactions and money during your event. The less your money moves from person to person the more secure it is and you can keep track of it.
7. Price Items Clearly and Fairly
Research similar items online or visit local sales to gauge appropriate pricing.
Pricing items can drain your energy so go into this process focused on getting a realistic price and then moving on. The best place to start your research is online with other second-hand sale sites like Facebook Marketplace.
If you are trying to sell a bike that you bought for $100 and you see someone on Facebook Marketplace in your area selling a similar bike for $75 then a good price to start with is $80. Your potential buyer may look at Facebook Marketplace while visiting your event and haggle down to $75. They are still getting a bargain because they can walk away right then with the item that interests them.
If you have a lot of similar items (toys, clothing, kitchen utensils) you may want to consider bundling them. 5 items for $1. Or do a wide sweeping price for each item ($0.25 for each shirt) and combine it with a bundle to move more product (10 shirts for $1). You won’t need to mark each item with a price tag by going this route.
Clearly mark prices on items to avoid confusion and constant inquiries.
Make sure you are indicating your prices on your inventory worksheet. If a price tag should go missing you’ll be able to reference your worksheet on what the price should be. Or if you feel like the wrong price tag ended up on an item you can go back to your records to indicate what you are willing to sell it for.
If you bundle items, create signs to indicate what the bundle costs. Make sure the signs are easy to see. You want to give people all of the info they need to make an informed purchase without having to stop you every 5 minutes to ask what something costs.
8. Advertise Your Sale
Promote your event online as well as physically in the community.
You may want to promote your event on your social media channels but this should not be the top priority. The goal is to get people who are ready and willing to come to your event and purchase your stuff. You friends and family already know what you have and if they haven’t already made a pitch to purchase your items then only posting to your social media channels isn’t going to suffice.
The caveat to this is any specific Facebook group (or similar online community) that you may be a part of. There are online communities where posting your event is appropriate and will get more buyers aware of your sale.
There are also several online platforms where you can post your event.
Use creative signs to draw attention to your sale.
The signs that you use to promote your event should help differentiate your sale as well as attract potential buyers. Get creative and outlandish with your signs. Make sure you post them at the closest major intersections and any streets leading to your home. You must include:
- Street address (don’t need to include city, state or zip)
- Days of event
- Hours of event
Put the signs out the day before your event. This helps get potential visitors aware that there is a sale coming up and it will alert your neighbors of the event.
9. Plan Your Layout
Arrange items in a way that makes them easy to browse.
Think of your sale like your own retail shop. Place items at different eye levels so people can explore more items to purchase. Hang up clothes so buyers can view them better. Don’t allow clothes to pile up. No one wants to dig through a pile to buy a used item. This may also mean needing to rehang clothes throughout your event (very similar to retail work).
Place toys closer to the ground so kids can play with them before they buy them. If a child is playing with a toy it is almost guaranteed that the parent will buy them the toy before leaving your event.
Place valuable items closer to your home or in more secure areas.
This may be a no-brainer but keep your high-ticket items closer to you where you can keep an eye on it. Yes, items do get stolen at garage sales. If a pair of socks or a paperback book are stolen, no biggie. What you don’t want is a very expensive item to walk off without payment.
Group similar items together to create sections (e.g., toys, kitchenware, books).
Just like a department store, put similar items together. No need to have a lawn mower next to the pots and pans. If you have a lot of similar items consider segmenting even further. For example, if you have a lot of books you can create a “kids books” section and a “cookbooks” section. Again, put the kids items closer to the floor so the kids can reach them easier.
10. Prepare for the Day
Ensure you have a comfortable and secure place to keep your money.
Don’t laugh but a fanny pack comes in so handy for garage, yard, and estate sales. You keep it on your person at all times, carry extra cash/coins, and you aren’t going to set it down anywhere absentmindedly. A money box might seem like a good option but those have been known to disappear during a sale.
Have snacks, water, and a first-aid kit on hand.
Be prepared with plenty of water and ample nutrition for your event. It is a very long day! These snacks, water, and first-aid items are for you and the friends/family you have helping you out. You may want to keep these items out of the sales event area that can only be accessed by you and your crew.
If you want to provide bottled water to potential buyers you can. There is some gray area on whether you can legally sell bottled drinks or snacks. People who are well hydrated and not hangry tend to shop longer. If you want to “sell” drinks and snacks at your event consider bundling them with items you are actually selling. For example, get a free bottle of water if you buy 4 coffee mugs. This is a good tactic as foot traffic tends to die down in the afternoon.
11. Consider a Pre-Sale Setup
Set up as much as possible the night before to reduce morning stress.
Get your ducks in a row the day before your event. Ensure you have everything tagged accordingly, have your money bag ready to snap on in the morning, get your coolers stocked with drinks and snacks, and have a game plan for where and how you are going to setup the items. You don’t want to stress out the morning of wondering where your folding tables are or if you have enough hangers for all of the clothes.
Cover items with tarps or keep them in a secure place overnight.
Keep your items safe and protected before your event. There are plenty of early shoppers that will stop by before your sales event is actually set up and you want to deter them from moving your items around before you are ready to make a sale. Ideally, you want to keep all of your items indoors ahead of your event. But if you have items that are extremely large and heavy you may find that keeping them outside is your best bet. Use your best judgment in this situation.
12. Stay Flexible
Be ready to adjust prices and negotiate.
Garage, yard, and estate sales are known for haggling. Your prices are a starting point for shoppers. Know what you are willing to adjust your prices down to and keep your goals in mind. Again, if you are trying to declutter and a buyer throws out a price to you that means you have someone interested in your item. Sell it! If your goal is to make money then be prepared to negotiate to a price that the buyer is willing to pay.
Stay positive and friendly to create a pleasant experience for shoppers.
Create a fun environment for you and your potential buyers. Have fun music playing, greet everyone who walks up, engage in small talk, and keep your sales event tidy/clean.
By taking the time to plan and organize, you'll set the stage for a successful and stress-free garage, yard, or estate sale.
