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Are you clearing the clutter in your home and you are thinking there are some good things that you could sale and make a little money? Here are 9 tips from a professional organizer on how to organize a successful garage sale.

With the temperature heating up outside now is the time to sell your guilt by clearing the clutter in your home. The saying is “one man’s junk is another man’s treasure”. You can start organizing clutter and make money at the same time.  The way to do this is to have a Sizzling summer garage sale. If you can, have a street or neighborhood group sale that is even better.

It is very important to figure out why you are having a garage sale while clearing the clutter.

·Is the goal to make as much money as possible so you can take your dream vacation?

·Or is the goal to get rid of as much stuff as possible to make some spending money for your vacation?

Your goal should be one or the other to have a really successful garage sale as these two goals aren’t necessarily compatible with each other.

Okay you have been busy going through your home organizing clutter now it is time to have the sale and get rid of it:

1. Have everything prepared and ready to sell the night before. The morning of the sale is too late to prepare because people will be there bright and early to start buying.

2. Advertize well, if you live in a small town advertize in your local paper, also Craig’s list and other places on the internet.

3.  Make good signs directing people where the sale is:  Make them Big and Bold, only put the address and arrow pointing the direction to the location on the posters.

4. Identify who is selling: wear a bright apron, hat, or a tag saying “I Work Here”.

5. Price EVERYTHING People don’t like to have to ask how much something costs. Buy colored dots and put dots on everything. If you are selling everything in a certain area all for the same price—on a table or in a box have a sign saying “everything in this box is 50 cents”.  If you don’t want to put the price on every sticker make a BIG poster with the color of sticker and the corresponding price. Have a couple of these posted in prominent places.

·(yellow sticker) $1.00
·(blue sticker) .25 cents
·(green sticker) .50 cents 

6. Have some free items to give away. My friend got some free magazines which she enjoyed looking through one evening so you never know what someone will take.

7. If you are selling clothes—hang them up or at least separate them out on a tarp on the lawn. You could hang them between two sturdy, heavy ladders that have a clothes line strung between them or string a clothes line between trees.

8.  Don’t over price items. Price to sell-- Don’t guilt the buyer. Never say “it’s never been used”—people don’t care—don’t price based on sentimentality. The buyer doesn’t care that it is important to you. Don’t be a stalker—don’t follow customers around.

9. Have plenty of change! Start the day with $10.00 in quarters and $20.00 in one dollar bills, 5 $5 dollar bills and 4 $10.00 bills. You can keep your money in a cash box, or a shoe box, but if you do someone should watch it at all times. A fanny pack could be used for money instead.

10. A good time to hold the sale is from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm.  It is really busy the first couple of hours. After 2:00 traffic really drops off. Anyone who shows up after 2:00 tell them prices are slashed to 75% off. Or make everything free, or give them a grocery bag and tell them everything they can fit in the bag is only $1.00.  You may get rid of everything but for sure will have less stuff that you have to cart off to your local charity.

Have fun, visit with the people who come and reap the rewards from clearing clutter. Click here to learn more on organizing and how to declutter.