Yard Sale season is in full swing now that it's officialy Summer! Try to get out around your town at least once, you've got nothing to lose and everything to gain. Don't think things like "I'll never find anything" or "Those guys are just lucky", because you too can get in on the fun!
Here are a few tips to get you started:
Yard Sale tips (thanks to all contributors)
-Expect to be out from 8-1 ish.
-If you hate getting up early, and if you have a hard time going to bed before midnight then go to CVS and pick yourself up some
Simply Sleep (non-prescription, made by Tylenol, relatively cheap, completely safe/non-addictive and knocks you out).
-Definately do Saturday, with optional Sunday or Friday (if you don't work or go to school). Saturday is the main day though.
-Find websites for all of the news papers in your area (or get the papers themselves). Compile a list of yardsales-of-interest.
-More on the above point: Look for buzzwords like "Toys", "Games", and "Multi-Family" to help your chances. Alot of the time you'll see multi-family or community yardsales, which are a bunch of sales in one location.
-After you compile your list (anywhere from 20-40 sales), go to mapquest or yahoo maps and get directions from place to place. Plan out a route for the day.
-If you don't like the list method, then you can try driving around your surrounding towns looking for signs and sales. Try to stay in suburban areas (they usually have the best stuff).
-Never just "drive by". Most of the time, games are in boxes and aren't visible from the car.
-Try to get somebody to go with you, so you can have a driver and a navigator.
-Always have a bunch of 1's, some 5's, a bunch of quarters, and a checkbook (if you find a huge score).
-Cash in Face technique (CIF) If someone gives you a price on something that's not what you're wiling to pay. Walk around and look a little more get the cash ready that you're willing to pay and stick it in the persons face and say will you take (whatever price) for it? Sometimes when the cash is in their face, they opt to snatch up your offer.
(Use at your discretion)
-(More on the above tip) The cash in face method is basically lowballing them - and as a tactic you basically hold out the money - and when they see the money being offered to them *held out as close to their face as possible without being rude about it* they'll usually accept. For example, if they're asking $10 and you offer them $5 while holding out a $5 dollar bill, their instincts might tell them to just take the money that they can physically see.
-(More on the above tip) When using the Cash in Face technique, group your bills together in your pocket or pockets. I usually put 5 or 6 fives folded in half and 20 singles folded in half in one pocket. This allows me to easily prepare with one hand my cash in face offer. Although the CIF technique is not always a success the element of suprise I beleive is the catalyst behind many successful transactions.
-Never give up. Most of the time you'll find shit at 38/40 sales and gold at 2/40. You never know what you'll find and when you'll find it, it's 100% random with no rhyme or reason.
-Always haggle, and always give an offer (the worst they can say is "no"). Also keep in mind what you would be willing to pay, but don't be
too frugal.
-Always have the money to pay for your stuff with you. If you say "I'll come back and pay later", you could lose the sale!
-If something isn't marked, don't make the first offer. Always ask them what they want before you offer them anything!
-It doesn't hurt to be visibly nice when walking up to a sale. You never know if they'll have anything, and people are less willing to cut you a deal if they don't like you.
-Examine your items carefully before purchase - most cart games tend to need a serious cleaning
-If items do not have a price and you have to ask how much and the person hesitates with a response - just blurt out I'll give you a dollar or whatever.
-Multpile item purchases tend to get bigger discounts
-Always look in boxes - even boxes that look like they might not contain games and stuff.
-If you don't see any games or games stuff, always ask "Do you have any videogames" For whatever strange reason you tend to see a lot of spaghetti strainers and pie plates while the real goods are left inside. I think the majority of these sales are put together by women, and most of them don't even thing about busting out hubbies old video games
-Some people are insanely unreasonable and really believe some one will buy 10 yard fight for $5
-Some people are extremely knowledgable on the value of their stuff and will be fair but not stupid
-Some people will price things so reasonably you may just want to pay tha asking price because it really is a bargain
-Some people are stupid and really want to get rid of those old boxes of games etc. The thought of making $20 or $30 on a box of stuff or multiple items appeals to them much more then " will you take a quarter on this salt shaker?" (these are the kind of people I like)
-Remember the deals are out there and more often then not you need to be patient. You may not score anything one week but score multiple items the next
-(At your discretion) Sometimes you can knock a few bucks off of their asking price by pointing out the flaws of what you're buying (if a system is missing its hookups, for example).
-If you find yourself with a few dirty systems or cartridges, pick up a box of
Mr. Clean's Magic Erasers. These things are cheap, ridiculously effective, quick, leave no residue, and don't damage what you're cleaning. They'll take off dirt, grime, marker, sticker glue, pretty much anything you can think of. You owe it to yourself to give these a try, you'll be impressed.
-It's a good idea to bring along USPS Postal Bins in your car. They are durable, free, and you can put stuff in them to keep it from rolling around in the back of your car (which often damages items). It will also make it easier to carry all your finds inside if you purchase a lot. If you find any cotton tshirts free or cheap, keep some in your trunk in the box to wrap glass or fragile items.
-If you have a cell phone, and you're spending a lot on your bill each month, look into getting a PDA style phone such as a T-Mobile Sidekick II. For $60 a month, I get 1000 minutes and unlimited Data plan. The phone is an invalueable research tool, and has saved me from making big mistakes while out on the hunt, and convinced me to purchase things I would have otherwise left at the Yard Sale or Thrift Store.
-It's always a good idea to keep some batteries and spare games in your car, so that you can test portable systems when you find them (GB/GG/GBA). Just make sure you take them with you at the end of the day if you intend to park your car in the hot sun!
-You might encounter some unspeakably filthy items in your travels, and with this in mind, it can be beneficial to keep a box of Baby Wipes or a bottle of Hand Sanitizer with you in your car. You never know
what you're touching! Also, make sure and wash your hands as soon as you get into your house.
-If you're short on Yard Saling funds, you might fix the problem by recycling some cans and bottles! A lot of the finds out there are dirt-cheap to begin with, and if you (or your friends/family) drink a lot of soda, you could easily kill two birds with one stone.
- Go to different areas several weekends in a row to learn good areas (sales common and with okay stuff).
- ALWAYS go to sales the weekend after the previous weekend was rained out. The sales planned for the previous weekend often get cancelled and rescheduled for the nice weather weekend. This means the number of sales are more numberous (i.e. easier to find stuff as it can't "all" be picked over).
- Get up early and go. Get to the areas you go about the time (if not right before) the sun comes up. Yes, the early bird does get the worm. Why go to a sale at 9am when someone else got there at 7am and purchased the stuff you would want. Granted, you can get lucky from time to time at sales later in the day, but most often it's the first one there who gets it.
- TAKE CASH. Go the ATM the week before you go to sales to have cash on hand. Break some of the larger bills at a grocery/convienant store. Having some smaller bills on hand makes it easier to purchase smaller items quick and get to the next sale (especially in the early part of the day with the people at the sale may not have change too).
- (At your discretion) It doesn't hurt to ask "What's your best price on..." It comes across MUCH more polite than "I'll give you $5 for this."
- Ask if the people at the sale have anything of the type you are looking for. Even if they don't have it out, they may just not have got to it, or didn't think someone would be looking for the stuff.
- Drive defensively. Some people that go to sales are IDIOTS when it comes to the way they drive. We saw a lady driving up a street with only enough room for 1 car that blocked 13 cars. She had to back up. But, instead of just backing up and over to the curb, she backed up INTO the connecting lane and blocked it's traffic. Let's just say some people lose their minds when going to sales.
- When at a sale, if you are interested in something, then pick it up and hold it. Do no put it down unless you are sure you do not want it. Someone else may be just waiting for you to put it down and "think" about it (while they pick it up and buy it).
-Unless you are in a really good mood, and not hurting for time NEVER take your grandmother. I've seen mine spend an hour at one sale that had only five boxes of dishes and she didn't buy a thing!
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OP:
Well, moiety and I decided that this year, we would start checking the yardsales around our neighborhood. We went out for the first time ever today, and checked out 4 yardsales. Here's what we found.
1 N64 System w/ Ram Expansion Pack + hookups (RF hookups though
)
3 official controllers
1 memory card
Paid: $5
1 NES (no hookups)
1 original gray Zapper
3 empty cases
Paid: $2
1 Resident Evil (GCN) complete
Paid: $2
So $9 total for the day, not too bad for our first outing. Post your own finds for the rest of the season!
icon to pop-up a window with pricing information.
)
The 'dots' are simply 4 yellow marbles and a bunch of white ones. You shouldn't have any trouble getting replacements, probably.
