Pricing Garage Sale Items...lots of Questions!

People at garage sales want CHEAP prices. I would guess that you could not get more than $30 for a high chair no matter what the original cost or condition. I would not price any baby clothes for over $5 unless it is something like a perfect Christening/ holiday outfit in mint condition in a hanging bag. That pretty much goes for adult clothes too, maybe up to $10 if it is a fantastic, in style find. If you want to fetch higher prices AND you don't want to haggle - Ebay it. Otherwise you are asking for a lot of hassle with disappointing results. People go to garage sales and think, "could I get an item that functions like this one at Wal-Mart?" regardless of name brand.

Girl, if you bought things new do not even bother with a yard sale. People want stuff really cheap there. For a high chair people will not pay more than $10 at the yard sale(no matter how much it was new) I sell big items on Craigslist and brand name cothes on EBay . I leave "junk" for yard sales:)

I've never had good luck at running my own yard sales and came to the conclusion that no one ever wanted to pay what items were tagged at, so what's the point of tagging?
I've mostly started giving my children's clothes away to someone I felt needed them or would make good use of them. When I was a single, cash-strapped mom, I took my son's nicer clothes to a resale shop and the rest to goodwill and took the tax deduction. I'd try individual listings on craig's or ebay as others have suggested. It may seem to be more effort, but yard sale people really are looking for DIRT CHEAP prices and you won't make a load of cash unless you truly have higher quality items that people will be willing to pay more to have. My last yard sale was a break even affair, I advertised, and tried offering coffee and donuts to bring in the crowd, but the weather was too cold and the treats not as big a draw as I hoped. My teenager sold an old game system, an old bike and some other toys and made more money that I did!! I still have the boxes of the leftovers in the basement! LOL

Here's a link to garage sale pricing: http://www.garagesalesource.com/articles/garage_sale_pric...

For the most part, people who buy at yard sales (like me) don't care what you paid for it. Try thinking of it this way: you're having a yard sale to get rid of your stuff, and the money is a bonus. If you're that attached to the high chair and clothes, maybe you should keep them. If you think you'll have more children, that would be a very good idea. However, if you're trying to get rid of stuff so there's less to move, that's another consideration. Bottom line: you bought this stuff to use; you've used it; if you're going to move on, move on! It wasn't an "investment" -- it was a purchase. You thought it was worth $100 when you bought it, and now you don't want it any more, so let it go.

Get on your local "cheapcycle" network or craigslist or something, and offer this stuff for sale. You usually get a bit better price than at a yard sale. Most people who go to yard sales are going to haggle a bit -- some people will haggle over everything (my husband tells the story about his grandma who haggled over a quarter!); others are going to haggle because they like your stuff, but they know that next yard sale, or next week, or next month they're going to see the same type of thing for less, and they want to save money. If you ask too much to start with and refuse to haggle or come down, you may just end up boxing everything back up and taking it inside. Bottom line: You have to think about whether you'd rather have this stuff gone or if you'd rather have your stuff. Once you make that decision, it's easier to part with stuff you spent a lot of money on. For myself, I tend to buy stuff to start with at yard sales, so if I part with it for less than I paid for it, I still end up with a high percentage of my initial purchase price. When you buy something at full price and sell it at a yard sale, you can almost never do that.

A., I have been doing consignments etc.. for a long time and people show up an hour earlier than the time you listed and you may still be putting things out.. Garage sales are the lowest of lows, meaning people are expecting next to free...What I mean is over this summer I went to a yard sale and they had a lot of DVD's priced as low as $3 I scored a Ratatouille Movie, BRAND NEW sealed for $3....

If I may suggest you put it on your local Recycle Yahoo group or Craigs List (with that said, you always meet someone out in public and never at your home for pick up)
Especially if you want the best deal on your items.
This way the price is firm and you can do it on your terms without a lot of time consuming issues that a yard sale may generate.

Good Luck!

Hi A.,
I live in Wilmington, NC, but I once relocated to Fayetteville for thirteen weeks on a travel assignment. Although I didn't have the time to go "garage saling" as much as I would have liked, I went to some sales in Fayetteville while I was there. I noticed that the prices in Fayetteville were higher than what I would normally find in Wilmington.
I also noticed that at the end of the day, the sellers still had more stuff left over than I find in Wilmington.
You need to go around to several yard sales a day for a few weeks to get a feel for them.

Consider your purposes for having your sale. Are you trying to:
-make money?
-get rid of stuff? Empty out your storage spaces?
-help others who can barely afford to feed their families?
-recycle items and keep them out of the landfills?
-All of the above?

What are your plans for your leftovers?
-Are you planning to keep what you don't sell? My sister in Ohio saves her leftovers in a shed from sale to sale. What doesn't sell today may sell in 6 months.
-Are you planning to drive them over to Goodwill, Salvation Army, or a church/domestic violence resale shop?
In Wilmington, we have several "Vintage Values" stores, which support our local Domestic Violence Shelter. We also have a Rescue Mission, who brings a truck to pick up even small donations, whereas Goodwill and Salvation Army will only send a truck to pick up larger good-conditioned items.

Who are your customers most likely to be?
-I've had "early birds" show up at 4:00 am. Early birds are most likely to be dealers, looking for valuable items-charge them whatever you want, but they are likely to be professional buyers. Families and/or parents can't usualy get out that early.
-I would expect the majority of your clientele in Fayetteville to be young military mothers like yourself, university families, or Hispanic families. Rarely, can any of these groups afford a high chair for more than $20. They are looking for inexpensive functional items. The original cost is irrelevant.

Have a heart.
I had a $20 price tag on a girl's trundle bed. A wealthy-feeling grandmother was interested in it for when her granddaughter slept over. She didn't pay me first, but she left to get a truck to haul it with. Meanwhile, a Hispanic family came by with several kids. They offered me $15 and I accepted (a bird in the hand...). While they were tying it down to the top of their sedan, the grandmother returned and was furious that I hadn't held it for her. It would have been different if she had already paid me.
Besides, this would have been the second bed for her granddaughter. This probably became the primary bed for several children to sleep in together.

When I was pregnant with my (now) 22 y/o son, my husband was in med school and we could barely afford food. I had told the ultrasound tech I didn't want to know the baby's gender. Shortly before I delivered, I found myself at a (Friday) yard sale where they were getting rid of infant and toddler boys' clothes in excellent condition - $5/big box. I called the doctor's office and asked my baby's gender from their house.
That box clothed my 22 y/o son, my 19 y/o son, my now 18 y/o nephew, and who knows who my sister-in-law passed those clothes on to.

"What goes around, comes around."
I believe that yard sales are a way to provide kindness and get reimbursed a few bucks for it at the same time. That kindness is always returned. You don't always know how, when, or where it will come back.

Good luck!

A yard/rummage sale can be lots of fun or it can be a REAL hassle! You have to remember that people are different and they have different incomes, attitudes, needs, and purposes.

While someone will think that something is a 'super deal', another person sees everything as an 'opportunit to haggle' (and they'll try to 'talk you down' on your price just to test the effectiveness of their power of persuasion!)

First, you need to decide if the purpose of your sale is to 'make money' or to 'get rid of things'. FIRST, I mean, 'cuz if your goal is to 'make money', you'd probably be better off donating the small stuff and clothes to a thrift shop (I live near a fairly small town and they have 5 different shops -- Goodwill, a Mission, the Humane Society, Salvation Army, and another ministry operation plus one church with a 'free clothes' policy) and selling the big stuff through advertisement!

If you want to get rid of stuff, put a price and then negotiate according to how you see the potential buyer (are they the type to take care of things but have little income -- I have always fallen into this category. They usually are quite choosy)? Are they just haggling to see if you'll 'bend/break'? Are they the type to buy all KINDS of things (and you wonder what horrible demise your 'stuff' is going to come to)? Do they have plenty of cash yet are stingy with it? Etc.

Just about anything you buy new and then resell (even if you haven't used it), you'll need to cut the original price in half. I'd say ask $50 for the high chair and if you're sentimental or adamant about getting 'so much' (whatever amount) out of it, don't negotiate. You can always save it for another family member. I bought a high chair (NEW at K-Mart) for $15 in 1978 and it stayed at my parents' house for probably 22 years and served 6-10 grandkids quite well when they visited!)

One of the cutest stories I ever read was (I think in Reader's Digest -- which is ANOTHER joke) and this couple were talking together after their yard sale:

She: Did you see that poor old man in the raggedy sweater? He was looking at (something) and considering it, so I went over and told him he could have it for half price. He was so appreciative!

He: Did you see that lady with the big flashy diamond ring? She was trying to haggle over prices on several things -- AS IF she couldn't afford them!

She: Well, honey, she bought that big 'diamond' from me for a dollar. It was fake!

He: Well, I saw your 'poor gentleman' drive away in a new Mercedes!

(Now for the other joke:
Q: If a lion comes upon two folk in the jungle and one's a reader and one's a writer, which one will he choose to eat?

A: The reader, of course. We all know that 'writer's cramp' and 'readers digest'!

Ahhhh, Ha Ha Ha!

In the current economy, people are looking for bargains. If you price your items with tags in advance, it tends to cut the haggling somewhat, but not really. People associate that kind of negotiation with a yard sale. If you have bigger items like the high chair, perhaps it is better to list on Craigslist at a higher value. As to the clothes, I always donate mine to charity and take the tax write-off. It is more than you will get at a yard sale and a lot less work.

I just read an article in Better Homes & Gardens that said when pricing a garage sale, none of your prices should be higher than 10% of the original costs...

If you want/need more than that, maybe a consignment store is the way to go...

I hope that helps!

Hi A.. I've had lots of garage/yard sales. I've noticed when I travel to another state that prices are much lower than prices in my state.....and I thought my prices were low. So my pricing advice will comes from my area and experience. Your pricing also depends on if you don't want to pack your stuff back up, which I do and save it for my next sale. After a while you will see what sales and what doesn't. When I get down to the stuff that doesn't sell, I keep what I want of it and donate the rest of it.

children's clothing. I've seen those go from .25 cents to $5 depending on the condition and designer. I have to tell you that most of children's clothing I've seen is .50 cents to $1, $1.50. When you have it that low you will get rid of it.

For the high chair, even though you paid that much for it, you will have to price it very low to get rid of it. That's just the way it is with yard sales.

In regard to not wanting folks to haggle the price, that's what yard sales are about - finding good bargains, dealing. There are items I put in my sale that I know I will take less for and am ready for an offer. If it is something I don't want to take back in the house or store, I will put a price on it but will also put "OBO", which means "or best offer". If it is something I won't take less for I write the price and "FIRM" on the ticket.

If your sale is in a garage, be sure to put big items outside to attract folks. Folks drive by and if they don't see interesting items, they keep on going.

If no one is at your sale, get up and walk around, like you are a customer. This always pulls folks in because they think there's good stuff there because there are customers there. If someone is helping you, get them to walk around also.

I find that hanging up adult clothes sell better and children's clothing do too but have had folks go thru heaps on a plastic table cloth on the ground. Don't get upset if they mess it all up because they will. For set, safety pin them together.

One sale you will have folks asking for pet carriers, the next time they will ask for tools, the next time glassware, jewelry, etc. Then the next time you think you have what folks are looking for and no one wants it!

If you have toys, don't get upset if children play with them, because parents sometimes just let their children "go" while they are at yard sales.

I use to pay for an ad in the newspaper but now I put it on Craig's List which is free and make signs. That will do it! Ads just take away your profit. Keep your money with you or have it sitting with someone who's not moving around. I wear an apron with pockets or clothing with pockets. The apron works better because i can also carry a pen/tags for writing/pricing, coins and cash. If you need to go to the bathroom or whatever, you can take the apron off and let the person relieving you put it on. That way everything is all together.

It's a lot of work, sometime it pays off big and sometimes not. I only have yard sales from 7a till noon....unless folks are still coming.

Hope you sell it all and make a lot of money!!! C.

I just had a yard sale this weekend. I had my baby stuff marked at 1/3 what I paid for it and you know I had people complain that it was to much money. I have a $250 arms reach co-sleeper prices at $35 and people said that was to high! You just never know. I was selling gymboree clothes bought new last winter for $3 and they didnt sell cause it was too high. I think it might depend on where you live and who comes to your sale but I know I didnt do very well. Im gonna list my gymboree stuff on ebay this week. You best bet would be to price it at what you want maybe 50% and see if it sells and maybe after a couple hours mark it down after you listen to what people are saying or their facial expressions.

If you don't want to haggle I suggest you sell on craigslist and list items separately or in lots with a "firm" price on it instead of a yard sale. The people who go to yard sales want bottom dollar for your stuff because they know if you want more for it you would use craigslist. If you advertise as no haggle you will get very few people to come. I know it's more work but if you want more money for your items that is the only way you will get it. If you were selling the high chair at a yard sale you wouldn't get more than $45 for it (if you were lucky). On craigslist you could get $50-$75.

you will be lucky to get a third of what you paid for it, even if in excellent shape. No haggle is not worth having a garage sale. That is what people come for! Price high and take offers. Some people dont want to haggle either, so you may get what you ask! Good luck and God bless.

A.,
You have already gotten some great advice on here about pricing clothes, etc.

I've had quite a few yards sales. I have learned that having a yard sale is the best route to go when you simply want to get rid of stuff and make a few dollars, too.

There seem to be two kinds of people who have yardsales - the kind who want to get as high of a return on their items for sale and the kind who just want to get rid of it. Generally, the "pros" are the kind who want a higher return. You'll see them many times throughout the year holding their yard sales selling a lot of the same items over and over, until they finally get what they are asking for or close to it. I don't tend to drive much of a hard bargain. I practically give my stuff away sometimes, because I just want it gone.

As for the types who go to a yard sale, just about everyone who goes to a yardsale is looking for a bargain - not a pretty good price, but a DIRT CHEAP price. Bear that in mind when you are pricing. There are people who would see a $114 high chair and be willing to pay at least half price for it. But most would want to pay less than that. There are also a lot of flea market dealer types who will try to bargain you down to almost nothing for stuff. Beware, unless you don't mind giving it away. Sometimes they know that something you have is more valuable than you realize (old furniture and jewelry).

Times are tougher financially for most these days, and the last few yard sales I had I did well because I marked the stuff lower than I would have a few years ago. And I sold (or practically gave away) almost everything.

You might want to consider this: Put your items in three categories: 1) Too nice to sell at yard sale prices. Either sell on eBay, craig's list, amazon or at a consignment store - OR give to someone very special to you who might need it.
2) Yard sale items - nice enough that people would want it, but you know that you probably won't get a lot of money for it or a very high return
3) Goodwill or throwaway items - items that you don't want, but doubt that anyone else would pay very much for - old blankets, pilled, old clothes, etc. Don't give stained items to Goodwill, though - if you wouldn't want them, no one else would either. Also, whatever you don't sell at the yard sale you can give to Goodwill, as well, and get a tax deduction receipt.

Good luck and blessings to you with your yard sale!

Your best bet is to advertise it on Craigslist. You will want to take a picture of the "stuff" as that will sell the item better. Items don't sell for their worth at a yard sale. Clothes at the church sale I work at go for $1-5 depending on theirquality and wear. Consignments don't always get you what you want as you have to pay a cut to the store. I would suggest you just do Craigslist in your area. With all that being said, I don't price yard sale items. I let the buyer give me what they think it is worth. I make out better on some things and not so hot on others so it evens out. My value of "stuff" could be a quarter when someone is willing to pay a dollar. So it saves me time and effort pricing. I have made about $50 when I had not too terribly much but nickel/dime stuff so I think it was pretty good. Clothes also don't sell well at yard sales. Good luck!

I disagree w/Ann T - Definititely put a price on each item. I've been to lots of yard sales and nothing is more uncomfortable than having to ask how much something is and being told to name a price. You don't want to put your customers in a postition of worrying about offending you or feeling cheap. As a general rule, don't ask for more than 40% of what you paid for an item new. So, the high chair would be $40 or less. Clothes are more like 20% of the new price at a yard sale. So, say a shirt that was $20 new, if it's still in near perfect condition, you may want to ask $4.00. I generally don't buy clothes unless their around $2 or less at a yard sale, though. Remember, it's about getting rid of stuff fairly quickly and easily. Don't sell what you're still emotionally attached to - hand it down to a relative or friend.

Hi A.,
As far as the no haggle policy, I'd suggest making sure that you have a sign at the garage sale that clearly states that all prices are firm and all sales are final.

Pricing can be tricky, especially since you don't want to negotiate with buyers. It's been a long time since I've bought anything like a high chair or baby clothes since my son is almost 9 years old.

One of my favorite kid consignment shops is called Once Upon A Child. You could check them out to see what kind of pricing they have for similar items and use that as a baseline. Another option would be to try to sell your baby things to them.

There is a store right in Fayetteville, too.
5075 Morganton Road Suite #10
Fayetteville, NC 28314

Here is a link to the site that shows the things that they buy - so you can expect to find this kind of stuff in the store if you go there to check out prices. When my son was little, I lived in Illinois and bought and sold things at Once Upon A Child frequently and used their pricing to give myself ideas for my own yard or garage sale.

http://ouac.com/whatwebuy.aspx

Personally, I wouldn't spend over $50 for a highchair at a garage sale, and even that's on the steep end of what I'd spend. Clothes - things like onesies (if you have a lot of them) you might have luck selling in sets (3 for $1.50 for example).

Also, if you are having your sale on base, you might want to check out other garage sales or yard sales on base to see what other people are charging for similar items and use that info to decide your own pricing.

Sorry I couldnt be much help for specific pricing, it's just been a long time since I bought that kind of stuff and don't want to give bad pricing info :)

I just had a yard sale myself. First, i advise putting clothing on hangers. People are more likely to look at it. Don't price children's clothing over $4. Most people won't even buy them if they are that high! The high chair I wouldn't put more than $50 on it.

I have had much better luck with consignment sales. Not consignment stores, but in our area there are several community or church organized consignment sales where you can sell your clothes. People that go to those are expecting to pay $5 or $6 for nicer name brand items. At a yard sale, people only want a deal.

If you still want to have the garage sale, price all shirts, shorts, pants, dresses, etc at the same price and then make a big poster stating the prices and just write "non-negotiable" on the poster. This saves you from people trying to bargain, and also saves you the time of having to go through and price every single thing. Good luck!

im afraid haggling is kind of what yard sales are all about lol. the high chair would ask about 30 dollars and clothes about 50 cents to a dollar im a yard sale queen lol. have fun!

I tried the 'no haggle' approach once and I barely sold anything. The garage sale buyers only want cheap stuff. I would suggest either consignment or even better, ebay. You can do Craigslist.com for local selling if you want to. Ebay will bring you the most money, consignment gives you 1/2 of what they charge. Some more, some less. At a garage sale you could ask no more than $25 for the high chair I would say.....depends on your area maybe. Clothing go for less than $5 each unless really nice, like dresses, designer, etc. Garage sales make me mad so I either do consignment, ebay or donate...even donating makes you feel better b/c you are giving it to those that need it and can use it toward your taxes. Good luck!

My husband has had great luck posting items for sale on Ebay. I don't know if you have or have access to a digital camera, but he would take pictures of what was for sale and put it with the posting, and it would sale within a matter of days. People bid different prices for your items on Ebay and you don't have to worry about pricing.

You could try Craigslist. Hope this helps.

People go to yard sales looking for a great deal, and in my experience (as an occasional, recreational yard saler) you aren't likely to get the prices that you want for your items, even if they are in great condition. Some yard salers are normal or even above-average income but very frugal (like myself), and some are literally "shopping" in their price range because they cannot afford retail. Either way, they are looking for bargains.

I've read in magazines before that to figure out how to price your items, go to yardsales in your area and see what the "going rates" are that people are asking (and see if their stuff is actually selling). In the same article, it said that typical stuff would go for about 10% of the retail price - probably not what you want to hear, though I'm sure for exceptional stuff you could get somewhat more (maybe 25%?).

For myself, I was yard saling a lot when I was pregnant with my second child (and we had a 6-figure income at the time - but we were/are frugal). People would get all excited when they saw me coming and try to force all their preg/baby stuff on me. I found nice maternity dresses, skirts, baby clothes (some name brand) for like $1 a piece (without haggling - I'm not much of a haggler; if the price is too high, I'm not interested). So for me personally, I don't have any desire to spend 50% of retail or whatever, when I really can find bargains like that. I obviously do buy retail often times, but I am just as frugal there, and would only buy at 50% off or whatever, so I wouldn't go to a yard sale and pay what I could in a store. I paid $10 for a high chair (that we still have) at a yard sale, which was the asking price.

Also, I didn't necessarily need a breast pump at that time, but would inquire when people had them for sale. They generally wanted about $150 for their nice Medela pumps. I just wasn't interested in paying that much, especially since I didn't really need one (had an old one that still did the job, but was dying, but I didn't need it much so it did the job). Then one day there was one, and the lady said she had used it less than 10x, and she was only asking $20, for the $350+ model. I certainly bought it.

So, I don't know that a yard sale is the right venue for you. I think you would hate it. The non-english speakers would be offering you like $5 for the high chair, and a quarter a piece for the clothes, and you would be insulted (which is ok).

I'm not sure where you are located, but we are stationed at Camp Lejeune, and there's a huge amount of business done on lejeuneyardsales.com. You can (for a fee) post pictures of your items. Also, there's craigslist.com, which is free, and you can post pictures there as well. There's the newspaper, but that can cost quite a bit. There's also ebay, but I'm sure it's a lot of trouble.

Anyway, I'm trying to say that people who are in the market to buy things second hand are often doing so to get a really good price. But, to some, half off retail might be a good deal, especially if they are looking for that very model or whatever. So, however you do it, I would recommend that you advertise how swanky your stuff is, to hopefully attract people who are looking for higher-end or name brand things, i.e. "top of the line *brand name* high chair in like-new condidtion", and "designer clothes" and be sure to list the sizes... Good luck!

A.,
It's the first I've heard of a 'no haggle' policy. There are professional garage salers that will always try to talk you down. Some do it to save money, others do it just for the fun of it. One lady came to my garage sale. Whatever she picked up she automatically demanded half the asking price. I was selling a brand new pair of denim shorts that I wore twice. They were in new condition. She wouldn't even pay a dollar for them because I wouldn't budge at $2. What I'm saying is that you're going to run into many people like this. If you're not comfortable with their offer, just tell them you're going to wait for a better offer and wish them well. I, too, take very good care of all my things and expect people will appreciate next-to-new items. It may be best to put your things in the consignment shop. Customers don't haggle there and you walk away with a check minus a percentage for their trouble.

50% off th price if like ne. You might get it. Non nam band clothes, $1.00. Name brand like new, depends on what you paid and if th ight people come.

I am gonna be completely frank with you ... nobody that yard sales cares what you paid for it... bottom line is you USED IT...and it don't matter how pristen the name brand tag sparkles...IT is USED... if the folks that yardsale had the money they would buy NEW... Please do yourself the favor if you are looking to make money ...Ebay it or consign it to one of the many shops in the area ( look it the phone book they are listed.) IF you are just looking to clean out the garage then by all means yardsale with a "make a offer sale"... because nobody wants to pay retail for your old stuff