Sunny Weekend? Have a Yard Sale!

If you are about to move or have moved recently, you probably have a few boxes (or tons) of things that you consider clutter. Sunny summer weekends are a great opportunity to hold a yard sale and make some extra cash off of things you can do without. Think yard sales are a thing of the past, now that eBay and Craigslist are popular? On the contrary, if you host a yard sale properly, you will be surprised how much traffic you'll get. Here are some tips for turning your trash into cash:

• Check the weather report in advance. For obvious reasons, your sale will be a much bigger success on a rain-free day. If you have a garage or a canopy, even better.


• Check with your local government to see if you need a permit to hold a yard sale.


• Clean the items you want to sell. No one is going to buy a dusty blender, no matter how new it is.


• Price every item or group items by price into labeled boxes. This will avoid confusion for both the customer and you.


• Spread out your stuff and organize it nicely. Give the appearance that you have a lot of nice items for sale and people will be more likely to stop and check it out.


• Don't sell broken items--give those away for free. You will be surprised how willing people will be to take free things off your hands.


• Advertise your sale the evening before. Place bright, easy-to-read signs around your neighborhood, and post a listing on Craigslist if possible. Be sure to include the hours of your sale. Place balloons in front of your home so you can't be missed.


• Make sure you have lots of small change, and plenty of grocery bags to bag up items. If you are selling breakables, have newspapers on hand to wrap them in. You'll also want an apron to put cash in and a calculator.


• Don't sell anything you will regret later, such as your children's toys. If you are having trouble letting go of a sentimental item, take a picture of it--a photo will take up far less space than those


• Make sure the area where you are having the sale is clean and free of any debris, such as dog doo, clumps of leaves, or glass.


• If you are selling clothing, remember that people won't be able to try anything on, so you will want to keep prices low. If you have nice clothes, you will be better off selling those at a consignment shop.