Yardsales and such...
So to recap my summer: have big Yardsale, make half hearted attempt to get songwriting career moving, get thwarted by musical partner's new job (yay!) and by 100°+ temps that made me feel sick (boo!), help brother consider homebuying, actually get sick with a virus, nephew gets sick, nephew starts school (at 3, Montessori rocks!!), grandfather goes into hospital/rehab (coming home tomorrow), update Cafepress Shop, start a new writing project, grandmother selling house (get elected to price/sell her antiques/vintage items), get sick again, nephew gets sick again, start planning fresh yard/estate sale.
Yardsales are a great way to get yourself to clean out junk you no longer use and hopefully turn it into a bit of cash. They also function as a form of recycling. Larger sales tend to attract more customers, so it's a good idea to combine forces with friends, family, or neighbors. For apartment bound singles, this may be necessary to borrow someone else's yard...or you might be able to talk management into organizing a community sale.
Pricing for yardsales can be a bit tricky, but I try to price items with a balance of "how much is it worth?" and "how bad do I want to get rid of it?" When possible it saves a lot of time and headaches to price things by groups. For instance at my last couple of sales all clothes, christmas ornaments, and small toys are 25 cents each. Probably not worth bothering with things you would price for less than a quarter, just stick them in a free box.
A free box can also be a nice way to get rid of scrap items.
Resale value can vary based on the type of item, but I think about 1/2 the cost of the item new is a good starting place.
I'm a little intimidated by the upcoming sale since I'll be selling for my grandmother and some of her stuff is old enough to actually be classified as antique or vintage...she has hundreds of very interesting salt and pepper shakers...all of which need to be researched/priced individually. Thankfully she's not in dire need of cash, but still her means are modest. I'd like to get the most for her that I can.
I'm hoping to get enough traffic for the yardsale to move a lot of my grandmother's collectibles, etc. that way. It'll be a lot simpler than trying to sell them individually through ebay or craigslist. I've located a local antique dealer who'll make house calls and would be interested in buying. While I won't get the best price per item that way, it may help me sell a larger quantity of stuff.
Craigslist has proved a great way to help drum up traffic for yardsales btw. I've developed the habit of posting a general sale notice and then taking pictures of some of the higher ticket items and posted them seperately.
Different neighborhoods have different rules about signs, so learn what's okay for your area...but signs help buyers find your sale.
I'm pretty sure my area allows a maximum of 2 yardsales per year, but that's something else to consider. Too many yardsales can result in fines and angry neighbors.
My favorite part of any yardsale may be shopping my own stuff or my family's...it's fun to see what you forgot you had and realize you have a use for it. Even if you don't go to the trouble of a sale, it's still a good idea to go through your closets every six months or so if for no other reason than to take inventory and avoid redundant purchases.