Take Advantage of this Yard Sale Season to Save Money – Not to Buy More Stuff You Don’t Need

The yard sale season is about to move into full swing here in upstate New
York – finally! That means it’s prime time to get bargains on all sorts of
things. In the hope of helping you find the best deals, I’m about to share my
favorite tips. But first, this important proviso:

If you didn’t need it yesterday, why do you need it now? Buying something you don’t need and didn’t even know existed five minutes ago is no bargain, no matter how low the price.

If you’ve never gone “yard-saling,” you’re going to be amazed at how cheap
everything is. Folks often just want to be rid of their stuff, and if they make
a few hundred off their collection of junk, they’ll be happy. Unfortunately for
them, that often means they’re almost giving things away.

As Dr. Lori, a certified antiques appraiser, recently wrote:

“I regularly attend yard
sales, discover valuable objects for sale for mere pennies and tell the yard
sale host to bring that valuable work of art or antique back in the house.

I told Marlene to bring
a $175 antique planer back into the house when she had a $10 price tag on it. I
surprised Gayle and her family with the news that she was only asking $2 for a
valuable oil lamp at her yard sale which was actually worth $95. I informed Dan
that the antique lighting fixtures that he removed from his early 1900s fixer
upper house priced at $25 at his yard sale were actually worth $1,000 to
$2,500.”

Twelve Tips to Money-Saving
Yard-Saling

1. Look
   items over carefully before you buy them. Even though the price may be right, if it’s broken, stained, and/or won’t fit, keep looking. Sooner or later, you’ll find
   your equivalent of the brand-new black silk jacket I got for just a few bucks.
2.  Keep
   a hobby-collector-gift idea list and bring it with you. The shopping you do this spring and summer will save you money and time during the holiday season. If Uncle Bob
   likes to fly-fish, you might want to buy someone’s beautiful collection of
   homemade lures. If Grandma collects pink Depression glass, keep your eyes out
   for nice pieces. (Be sure there are no chips!)
3.  Make a
   deal with the kids.
   Figure out what their bare bones back-to-school clothing needs are and what your
   budget will be for each child. Agree that the money they save by choosing
   perfectly fine clothes at yard sales can be spent on
   things they don’t absolutely need, even if they’re purchased at the mall. If
   further bribery might prove useful, you can offer to use the extra money on
   family excursions, say, to their favorite amusement park.
4.  Make a deal with yourself. The same logic applies when
   it comes to yours truly. I’m a sweater hound, and although I certainly don’t need another one and wouldn’t buy one retail, if it costs less than
   $3.00, if I love it, if it will fit, and if it’s cashmere, I gladly let myself
   go for it. You can reward yourself for wearing and using great garage sale
   finds, too. But I’m sure you’d rather use the money you save to pay down your
   credit card balances, right?
5.  Bring a
   family list along, too. Jot down whatever you’ve gotten the kids to agree to, and also
   add anything you need for the house. This year, I’m looking for a stainless
   steel or Pyrex fat separator. If I don’t find one by the fall, when it’s time
   to make chicken soup again, I’ll spring for a new one, but I’ve got months ‘til
   then. (Feel free not to be quite so practical!)
6.  Cast a
   wide net.
   Given the price of gas, it doesn’t pay to drive around aimlessly looking for
   sales on a Saturday morning. Check the classifieds in the local newspapers. (I
   can view the ads online for free, even in the paper with the smallest circulation around
   here.) Also keep your eyes out for signs as you go about your chores and
   chauffeuring during the week. Look for yard sale ads on supermarket bulletin
   boards as well as on any online bulletin
   boards and the Craigslist near you. Plot a
   route that takes in some sales as you do your errands on Saturday mornings.
   You’re also bound to see some signs, which brings me to the next tip:
7.  Remember to drive carefully. When you see what
   seems like a nifty sale, there’s no need to slam on the brakes or leave
   the car halfway on the road. If you get hurt, injure someone else, or wreck the
   car, yard-saling will lose its charm. Signal, pull off safely, walk a little, and you’ll live longer.
8.  All other things being equal, go to moving sales, first,
   as opposed to plain ordinary yard, garage, tag, or rummage sales. They often
   have the best stuff – things that are in perfect shape but unnecessary in the
   new house or too bulky to take along. If you’re in the market for bigger ticket items, like furniture,
   televisions, rugs, and refrigerators, these are definitely the sales to focus on.
   Just be sure you have a plan for how you’ll get your loot home.
9.  Be prepared! We usually have rope, a blanket or two,
   cardboard, and some tools in the trunk. You’d be amazed by the number of things
   we’ve brought home on the roof of our car from yard sales. One time, someone was giving away a
   metal shed – for free! It was already disassembled, so all we had to do was
   pile the pieces onto the car. I think it took two trips, but it was well worth
   it. We used the shed for awhile, and when it began to fall apart, we used the
   pieces to kill weeds outside our vegetable patch.
10.  Decide if you want to be an early bird. I am not a
    morning person, and accept that I won’t get the best selection. But if you’re
    up and at ‘em on the early side, go yard saling first thing. There is an
    advantage to shopping later in the day, though – the prices are usually lower
    and sellers are often much more inclined to hondle
    (negotiate).
11.  If you have the kids with you, make yard saling into a fun treasure
    hunt. If they don’t enjoy themselves, they’ll have negative associations
    with bargain-hunting, which is very bad news for your pocketbook! In the car, talk about
    what they’d like to find. While you might say NO! to a new toy or trinket at a
    store, at yard sale prices, you can afford to surprise them by saying YES! without
    a fight – either to an inexpensive pre-owned find or to a set budget of a few
    dollars that they can spend as they see fit.
12. Have your own yard
    sale. You’d be amazed at how much money you can make, how many people you’ll
    get to see, and how much fun you’ll have. Plus, there’ll be a lot more room in
    the house and a lot less clutter.

Let us know your yard-saling secrets and
successes. How much money do you save (or blow) at them?

Nancy Castleman – Co-author of
"Invest in Yourself: Six Secrets to a Rich Life" and founder of Good Advice Press. Nancy has spent
the last 23 years teaching people how to get out of debt, save money, and live
better on less. She writes on all these subjects for CreditBloggers.com.

Nancy Castleman