5 Reasons Garage Sales Don’t Thrill Me

Posted on September 4, 2008
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Many people enjoy holding garage sales, and why not? You get to spend time outside, you can get rid of a lot of clutter, and you can generate a little spending cash. Some people enjoy them so much that they become serial Garage Salers. When I was growing up, the neighbors across the street would shop garage sales for 3 or 4 weeks, then use all the stuff the bought to hold their own. They had at least 5 or 6 garage sales every year.
There are some good tips to follow if you want to run a successful garage sale, and if you’re just doing it for fun, I guess it’s not a bad way to spend a Saturday. However, from the stand points of getting rid of clutter and earning some money, I don’t think a garage sale is a good investment of time. Here are 5 reasons why I think garage sales aren’t really all they’re cracked up to be:

1. Your market is limited. Every city is different, but where I live, getting 50 – 80 visitors to your garage sale is having a really good day. If you’re hoping to sell all your stuff, that is not a lot of customers, unless you’re selling really cheap or it’s all really desirable stuff.
2. You don’t have much control over the process. When you do a garage sale, one of the first things you’ll notice is that some people will show up early. Not just a little early, but 5:30 AM early – even if your add specifically states “No Sales Before 8:00 AM” or something like that. I guess you cant blame them, they just want to get first crack at any bargains, but is the extra hassle worth it to you? After the sale, you’ll probably get people coming by late, looking to score something extra cheap that didn’t sell during the advertised sale time. I’ve even had people come knocking on my door on a Sunday morning when the add explicitly stated Saturday Only.
3. They tie up a lot of your time. I value my time at $20.00 per hour, so for a 5 hour garage sale I’d have to net $100.00 to make it worth my while. If I count the time sorting, pricing, setting up, and cleaning up afterwards, $200.00 is probably more like it, and it’s not likely that I’ll net that much.
4. Buyers are looking for bargains, not value. Besides having a limited market, most of the customers you do get will be looking for fantastic bargains, not looking to pay a fair price for fair value. For example, an RC airplane that may be worth $50.00 might only sell for $20.00 or less at a garage sale. A lot of stuff just won’t sell at all unless you’re practically giving it away.
5. They put you at risk of being a crime victim. I hadn’t thought thought of this before, but one of the commentators on the garage sale tips relates an interesting story. The risk might seem small, but by having a garage sale, you’re giving every interested burglar in your area the perfect opportunity to “case” your house.

So are garage sales a waste of time and energy? It depends on you. If you enjoy the social aspects, then holding a garage sale might be worth the time and effort. If you are looking to get rid of a lot of junk and maximize the money you get for it, you might be more satisfied with other alternatives such as Craig’s List or sell it on EBay. As for myself, I can think of ways to spend 5 hours on a Saturday that are a lot more enjoyable and profitable than hosting a garage sale.

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