I tried one once with little success... I didn't have enough stuff to really draw a crowd. These days I hate to keep anything around that is unnecessary, so I get rid of things on a monthly basis so it never really accumulates enough for a sale. Plus I volunteer at a really great thrift store, so my unneeded stuff goes to a great place!
We had a huge yard sale in January, right before moving across the country. We got rid of so much stuff, it'll be a long time before we have another one!
Re: 90s - I still remember getting a call from a Certified Financial Planner who recommended prudence in theory but nevertheless offered my husband and me the chance to get in on a tech mutual fund before it closed to new investors. We politely declined. The bubble then was largely due to overpriced stocks for companies that were not yet reporting earnings (okay, many of those never earned any money, they just blew through investor cash).
Heck, I remember when Microsoft was referred to as a "small-cap" company because of its newness to the stock exchange despite having the country's highest market capitalization. The point being that tech is grown up even if it took awhile.
For this article, I studied how celebs invest: many have invested in tech-related companies that never made it anywhere and some invested those that have grown substantially in value. The idea is not to buy high flying stocks as in the 90s but to consider buying those that may grow in value over the long-term. Thanks for reading!
To have a successful yard sale you really have to put in prep time to:
1) Label everything with a price (colored stickers for different amounts help (alternatively, you can group similarly priced items on different tables).
2) Set up tables the day before the sale so that on the day of the sale you can just pull them out of the garage (or house).
3) Have a cash drawer with plenty of change
4) Have bags/boxes for people to take items home in
5) Have an electrical outlet handy (or extension cord) for testing out any electric items
6) Advertise a couple days in advance, either in the local paper or an online neighborhood listserv, and posting signs on the nearest busy streets with balloons or other eye-catching bling helps!!
I hold a yardsale about every two years. It's a fun community experience. And things that aren't good enough to sell I put out with a big "free" sign. It always gets snapped up.
I clear my clutter and make enough money to put toward my vacation.
I haven't hosted a yard sale in years, because they never seemed to produce enough money to make them worth my time. However, I shop at yard sales frequently in the summer and at thrift stores in the winter.
I try to share things I don't want or need with friends. Then I donate the goods that are left (that I might sell in a yard sale) to a local thrift store that offers coupons in trade for donations.
I re-sell books to 2 local shops. I use a consignment shop for my nicer clothing and also go to quarterly "naked lady" parties where a bunch of ladies trade clothes, accessories and more.
We had a yard sale in June, right before moving from our 1200 square foot rented duplex unit, to our first purchased home (1800 square foot). We got rid of SO MUCH stuff... didn't make a whole lot of money, but what we didn't sell we gave away (before we packed it into the car for the Goodwill trip, though, we had a couple of hours where everything was free. That was fun!). The best reward was getting rid of unnecessary items, lightening our move and decreasing our stuff-per-square-foot ratio in the new house!
A friend and I just had a yard sale outside my house on Saturday. It went well, and was the time we spent. EVERYTHING we didn't sell, we packed into her car and drove straight to Goodwill. So, we each get a tax break for charitable contributions on top of the $ we made.
Invest in tech? Are you kidding? Was this writer not around for the dot-com bubble in 2000?
There's nothing wrong with a little tech, but you have to diversify. Sink all your money into one sector and you'll end up like the people who lost millions when that bubble burst. Sure, you might pick the next Skype--but you're much more likely to pick some piece of junk that totally fizzles and does nothing. Remember Boo.com and Pets.com? You don't, because those were total losers. People put their savings in those companies and they went bellyup, despite being hoity-toity internet stocks. You can and will pick a loser.
Bad advice on this one. Stick to diversification. If you want to invest in tech, you have got to do your research and know the industry inside and out--and even then you'll probably lose.
We have had several. All with good results. Last year we used signs that we posted around our area and we put the info on Craigslist. We made over $400. We were very happy with the results.
I have a yard sale about once a year or at least every other year. It definitely is a lot of work in planning and prepping for a yard sale (getting all the items together, pricing them, then strategically laying them out on display, etc). However, I definitely feel that the pros outweigh the cons. I enjoy making money (it gives me a rush!) and I always make sure I have a friend around to keep me company throughout the duration of my yard sale, so the time becomes more enjoyable and bearable. The cons of a yard sale can be the people sometimes. When I advertise for my yard sales I always make it a point to state no early birds, and it never fails, people show up about 30 minutes prior to your yard sale acting like savages and asking you for your gold, silver and other high priced items. I think it is so rude to show up that early. I do not mind people coming to my yard sale looking for treasures (although I pride myself on not being stupid and I know exactly what I am selling) but I find that most of them are rude and abrasive in their demeanors and often when I do not have what they want I find they give me an attitude like it is my problem. Other than that most of the other people are very friendly and respectful.
When I want to get the word out I advertise on craigslist and I usually google other ways to advertise yardsales and some independent websites come up that will allow me to post an ad. I also use signs on the day of my yard sale in my neighborhood. Luckily, my town does not have any ordinances that prevent me from doing so and there are no restrictions in having yard sales (yay).
The most I have made was about $400 which made me so happy because I usually sell small things at yard sales, I leave the big things (like furniture) to Craigslist and sell them separately on there.
We used to do yard sales but it didn't get much foot traffic where we live. We made $50 on a Sat. and I didn't think it was worth it with all the work and lost of a Sat. Then we used to haul our stuff every 3rd Sat. of the month at a local college. We had to pay for 2 parking spaces, for about $20, but we sold more there in one day than in front of our yard. We did that for about 3 months in a row (Summertime) and made about $300-$400 each time. My husband had to keep going home and bringing stuff from our shed to the college flea market, since we were selling so much stuff. and our goal was to empty the shed. We stopped when Summer was over and then we tried to do another yard sale at home a few years later but didn't do good. Made like $50. I think it really depends on your location because you need lots of foot traffic. We made huge signs on everywhere too and hung it on the main roads. I do love going to yard sales since there are lots of great deals to find there. Now, I unload stuff through online and get way, way, way more customers and interested people that way.
I don't have yard sales. It's tedious to stand outside all day. It's easier to list items for sale on Craigslist and then sell certain other items (books & clothes) at secondhand thrift shops. Quick and easy with no haggling.
We did some major purging two years ago and had a big yard sale that was done at the same time as our neighborhood sales. Joining in with the neighborhood sales was key. We publicized on Craigslist, listing specific items, and we did Friday and Saturday. (Friday was busier.) We also had some signs.
My 7 year-old niece had her first lemonade stand, which I thought was a good chance for her to learn that $ can be earned.
Tip #1 - Got any friends who want to sell one big or sough-after item? Including it in your Craigslist ad can help you both, as it will increase traffic to your driveway. (Just be sure to remove it off of Craigslist when it has sold.)
Tip #2 - "All unmarked items a quarter." This saved TONS of time pricing and was a good marketing tool.
Tip #3 - All unpurchased items go directly into the car to be donated. (Ok, I kept some fabric....) Don't spend too much time sorting through it all again!
Tip #4 - The first day is the biggest regardless of whether it is Thursday or Friday. If you are doing a Saturday sale, try "Saturday Only" on your signs so people know they aren't getting the dregs.
That said, a yard sale is way more work than it is worth if you value your time. (I took in $311, mostly in quarters and I spent a week working on it.) However, if you are a thrifty-frugal person OR you have bigger stuff like furniture, it can be worth it. Me? Not doing that again until we are going to sell everything and move to Croatia!
I did a yard sale at my friend's house once. We paid $5 for a permit, then placed an ad in the local paper. We both did really well. I was surprised at the items that were a hit. Even our kids had fun selling cold drinks. Maybe I'll do another one in the Fall.
Unfortunately, I live in an apartment and can't have yard sales. I do see signs for yard sales at houses in my neighborhood. When I was younger and my parents would have yard sales, they would sometimes make a couple hundred dollars during a particularly good sale.
It depends. If one dont have any guests (including family members) that is in the area or people sleeping over, then space is a luxury and many may be happy living in a closet sized space. Me personally even by myself, I probably need a little more space than some that can live in a one room space with three or four other people. One, I like my privacy, so apartments out of the question as it seems most do not have walls thick enough to prevent noise from tranfering back and forth. I dont want to disturb the neighbors and I dont want them to disturb me. Two, while a bean bag would suffice for me to chill, I can imagine when guest or other people live there and only enough space for a bean bag would not be sufficient. Not to mention I doubt grandma would appreciate getting stuck in a bean bag everytime she want to sit down. Three, my bathroom is my bathroom. Guest should be supplied with their own bathroom and for sleeping over their own bedroom. Thus, about 3 bedroom 2 bath is minimum or about 1000 at the absolute min. 2,000 being ideal space that I actually use personally and the occassional guest with no live in. Anything above that is extra gravy and for guest. And garage is a must. Sunlight and evironment is not too kind to paint jobs and the extra saving doing without is quickly done in by value lost in vehicle and paint jobs. Been in small spaces before and do not ever EVER plan on going back. Some people can deal with it just fine, but I'm not one of them. I beleive in living to be comfortable not to sacrifice comfort just to look down on those that actually enjoy comfort. And what is comfortable to me is a bit more space than a closet and privacy and space that I call my own. I did the room mate thing, another thing I will never do again especially in small places.
I used to have a garage sale every few years but, since moving to a home within an association community, I haven't had one. Here they are only allowed on the first Saturday in September.
Nope. Too much work for not enough return. Living out in the country it is different than the city. I usually just donate things to the Salvation Army and take the tax deduction!
Before I moved from the suburbs of Maryland to the middle of Philadelphia, I had lived in the same home for 24 years. My dad and I went through the entire house (he planned to move in the next year) and had a giant garage/yard sale. We cleared our garage and added tables for things and then lined the driveway with tubs of stuff.
We cleared out quite a few rooms of a 3-story 5bedroom 3.5bathroom home and made a little over $1,000!
Now that I live in Philly, I don't have the capacity to have a yard sale and don't really have a community that could do a block-long yard sale or anything. Luckily, I cleared most of my junk before I moved. Now when I have things that I might yard sale if I had the space, I give it to friends or take it to the Philly AIDS Thrift Store.
We do yard sales every once in awhile. We only need signs in our area, it attracts enough traffic but we also usually do a craigslist ad as well. We found out that in our area Fridays are the best days and Sundays aren't usually worth it at all.
I tried one once with little success... I didn't have enough stuff to really draw a crowd. These days I hate to keep anything around that is unnecessary, so I get rid of things on a monthly basis so it never really accumulates enough for a sale. Plus I volunteer at a really great thrift store, so my unneeded stuff goes to a great place!
We had a huge yard sale in January, right before moving across the country. We got rid of so much stuff, it'll be a long time before we have another one!
Re: 90s - I still remember getting a call from a Certified Financial Planner who recommended prudence in theory but nevertheless offered my husband and me the chance to get in on a tech mutual fund before it closed to new investors. We politely declined. The bubble then was largely due to overpriced stocks for companies that were not yet reporting earnings (okay, many of those never earned any money, they just blew through investor cash).
Heck, I remember when Microsoft was referred to as a "small-cap" company because of its newness to the stock exchange despite having the country's highest market capitalization. The point being that tech is grown up even if it took awhile.
For this article, I studied how celebs invest: many have invested in tech-related companies that never made it anywhere and some invested those that have grown substantially in value. The idea is not to buy high flying stocks as in the 90s but to consider buying those that may grow in value over the long-term. Thanks for reading!
To have a successful yard sale you really have to put in prep time to:
1) Label everything with a price (colored stickers for different amounts help (alternatively, you can group similarly priced items on different tables).
2) Set up tables the day before the sale so that on the day of the sale you can just pull them out of the garage (or house).
3) Have a cash drawer with plenty of change
4) Have bags/boxes for people to take items home in
5) Have an electrical outlet handy (or extension cord) for testing out any electric items
6) Advertise a couple days in advance, either in the local paper or an online neighborhood listserv, and posting signs on the nearest busy streets with balloons or other eye-catching bling helps!!
I hold a yardsale about every two years. It's a fun community experience. And things that aren't good enough to sell I put out with a big "free" sign. It always gets snapped up.
I clear my clutter and make enough money to put toward my vacation.
I haven't hosted a yard sale in years, because they never seemed to produce enough money to make them worth my time. However, I shop at yard sales frequently in the summer and at thrift stores in the winter.
I try to share things I don't want or need with friends. Then I donate the goods that are left (that I might sell in a yard sale) to a local thrift store that offers coupons in trade for donations.
I re-sell books to 2 local shops. I use a consignment shop for my nicer clothing and also go to quarterly "naked lady" parties where a bunch of ladies trade clothes, accessories and more.
We had a yard sale in June, right before moving from our 1200 square foot rented duplex unit, to our first purchased home (1800 square foot). We got rid of SO MUCH stuff... didn't make a whole lot of money, but what we didn't sell we gave away (before we packed it into the car for the Goodwill trip, though, we had a couple of hours where everything was free. That was fun!). The best reward was getting rid of unnecessary items, lightening our move and decreasing our stuff-per-square-foot ratio in the new house!
Do I have yard sales? No. Never. Yard sales creep me out. I don't like going to them, either.
A friend and I just had a yard sale outside my house on Saturday. It went well, and was the time we spent. EVERYTHING we didn't sell, we packed into her car and drove straight to Goodwill. So, we each get a tax break for charitable contributions on top of the $ we made.
Invest in tech? Are you kidding? Was this writer not around for the dot-com bubble in 2000?
There's nothing wrong with a little tech, but you have to diversify. Sink all your money into one sector and you'll end up like the people who lost millions when that bubble burst. Sure, you might pick the next Skype--but you're much more likely to pick some piece of junk that totally fizzles and does nothing. Remember Boo.com and Pets.com? You don't, because those were total losers. People put their savings in those companies and they went bellyup, despite being hoity-toity internet stocks. You can and will pick a loser.
Bad advice on this one. Stick to diversification. If you want to invest in tech, you have got to do your research and know the industry inside and out--and even then you'll probably lose.
We have had several. All with good results. Last year we used signs that we posted around our area and we put the info on Craigslist. We made over $400. We were very happy with the results.
I've had two yard sales, with moderate success. I would like to wait to have another one until I have a lot of stuff peole might want.
I have a yard sale about once a year or at least every other year. It definitely is a lot of work in planning and prepping for a yard sale (getting all the items together, pricing them, then strategically laying them out on display, etc). However, I definitely feel that the pros outweigh the cons. I enjoy making money (it gives me a rush!) and I always make sure I have a friend around to keep me company throughout the duration of my yard sale, so the time becomes more enjoyable and bearable. The cons of a yard sale can be the people sometimes. When I advertise for my yard sales I always make it a point to state no early birds, and it never fails, people show up about 30 minutes prior to your yard sale acting like savages and asking you for your gold, silver and other high priced items. I think it is so rude to show up that early. I do not mind people coming to my yard sale looking for treasures (although I pride myself on not being stupid and I know exactly what I am selling) but I find that most of them are rude and abrasive in their demeanors and often when I do not have what they want I find they give me an attitude like it is my problem. Other than that most of the other people are very friendly and respectful.
When I want to get the word out I advertise on craigslist and I usually google other ways to advertise yardsales and some independent websites come up that will allow me to post an ad. I also use signs on the day of my yard sale in my neighborhood. Luckily, my town does not have any ordinances that prevent me from doing so and there are no restrictions in having yard sales (yay).
The most I have made was about $400 which made me so happy because I usually sell small things at yard sales, I leave the big things (like furniture) to Craigslist and sell them separately on there.
We used to do yard sales but it didn't get much foot traffic where we live. We made $50 on a Sat. and I didn't think it was worth it with all the work and lost of a Sat. Then we used to haul our stuff every 3rd Sat. of the month at a local college. We had to pay for 2 parking spaces, for about $20, but we sold more there in one day than in front of our yard. We did that for about 3 months in a row (Summertime) and made about $300-$400 each time. My husband had to keep going home and bringing stuff from our shed to the college flea market, since we were selling so much stuff. and our goal was to empty the shed. We stopped when Summer was over and then we tried to do another yard sale at home a few years later but didn't do good. Made like $50. I think it really depends on your location because you need lots of foot traffic. We made huge signs on everywhere too and hung it on the main roads. I do love going to yard sales since there are lots of great deals to find there. Now, I unload stuff through online and get way, way, way more customers and interested people that way.
I don't have yard sales. It's tedious to stand outside all day. It's easier to list items for sale on Craigslist and then sell certain other items (books & clothes) at secondhand thrift shops. Quick and easy with no haggling.
We did some major purging two years ago and had a big yard sale that was done at the same time as our neighborhood sales. Joining in with the neighborhood sales was key. We publicized on Craigslist, listing specific items, and we did Friday and Saturday. (Friday was busier.) We also had some signs.
My 7 year-old niece had her first lemonade stand, which I thought was a good chance for her to learn that $ can be earned.
Tip #1 - Got any friends who want to sell one big or sough-after item? Including it in your Craigslist ad can help you both, as it will increase traffic to your driveway. (Just be sure to remove it off of Craigslist when it has sold.)
Tip #2 - "All unmarked items a quarter." This saved TONS of time pricing and was a good marketing tool.
Tip #3 - All unpurchased items go directly into the car to be donated. (Ok, I kept some fabric....) Don't spend too much time sorting through it all again!
Tip #4 - The first day is the biggest regardless of whether it is Thursday or Friday. If you are doing a Saturday sale, try "Saturday Only" on your signs so people know they aren't getting the dregs.
That said, a yard sale is way more work than it is worth if you value your time. (I took in $311, mostly in quarters and I spent a week working on it.) However, if you are a thrifty-frugal person OR you have bigger stuff like furniture, it can be worth it. Me? Not doing that again until we are going to sell everything and move to Croatia!
I did a yard sale at my friend's house once. We paid $5 for a permit, then placed an ad in the local paper. We both did really well. I was surprised at the items that were a hit. Even our kids had fun selling cold drinks. Maybe I'll do another one in the Fall.
Unfortunately, I live in an apartment and can't have yard sales. I do see signs for yard sales at houses in my neighborhood. When I was younger and my parents would have yard sales, they would sometimes make a couple hundred dollars during a particularly good sale.
It depends. If one dont have any guests (including family members) that is in the area or people sleeping over, then space is a luxury and many may be happy living in a closet sized space. Me personally even by myself, I probably need a little more space than some that can live in a one room space with three or four other people. One, I like my privacy, so apartments out of the question as it seems most do not have walls thick enough to prevent noise from tranfering back and forth. I dont want to disturb the neighbors and I dont want them to disturb me. Two, while a bean bag would suffice for me to chill, I can imagine when guest or other people live there and only enough space for a bean bag would not be sufficient. Not to mention I doubt grandma would appreciate getting stuck in a bean bag everytime she want to sit down. Three, my bathroom is my bathroom. Guest should be supplied with their own bathroom and for sleeping over their own bedroom. Thus, about 3 bedroom 2 bath is minimum or about 1000 at the absolute min. 2,000 being ideal space that I actually use personally and the occassional guest with no live in. Anything above that is extra gravy and for guest. And garage is a must. Sunlight and evironment is not too kind to paint jobs and the extra saving doing without is quickly done in by value lost in vehicle and paint jobs. Been in small spaces before and do not ever EVER plan on going back. Some people can deal with it just fine, but I'm not one of them. I beleive in living to be comfortable not to sacrifice comfort just to look down on those that actually enjoy comfort. And what is comfortable to me is a bit more space than a closet and privacy and space that I call my own. I did the room mate thing, another thing I will never do again especially in small places.
I used to have a garage sale every few years but, since moving to a home within an association community, I haven't had one. Here they are only allowed on the first Saturday in September.
Absolutely! Great way to clean out and make some extra cash!
I do yard sales once a year. I post about garage sales on craigslist
Nope. Too much work for not enough return. Living out in the country it is different than the city. I usually just donate things to the Salvation Army and take the tax deduction!
Before I moved from the suburbs of Maryland to the middle of Philadelphia, I had lived in the same home for 24 years. My dad and I went through the entire house (he planned to move in the next year) and had a giant garage/yard sale. We cleared our garage and added tables for things and then lined the driveway with tubs of stuff.
We cleared out quite a few rooms of a 3-story 5bedroom 3.5bathroom home and made a little over $1,000!
Now that I live in Philly, I don't have the capacity to have a yard sale and don't really have a community that could do a block-long yard sale or anything. Luckily, I cleared most of my junk before I moved. Now when I have things that I might yard sale if I had the space, I give it to friends or take it to the Philly AIDS Thrift Store.
We do yard sales every once in awhile. We only need signs in our area, it attracts enough traffic but we also usually do a craigslist ad as well. We found out that in our area Fridays are the best days and Sundays aren't usually worth it at all.