10 Ways to Ruin Your Garage or Tag Sale

1. Book Prices for Everything

Go through the price and value guides and price your stuff accordingly. After all if it has a $100. price in a book, that's all you'll settle for.

Wrong strategy! Don't make this garage sale mistake. Book values are not garage sale prices and no one coming to a sale will pay those prices. If your item is in excellent condition and worth more than a few dollars, try selling it online. But still don't expect book values.

2. No Prices on Anything

Size up the customers as they come in and charge them what you think they can afford to pay or what you feel like charging at the time.

Another terrible strategy and big garage sale mistake. If nothing is marked, I usually just turn around and leave. It has to be something pretty darn special for me to bother asking the price.

3. Throw Everything in a Few Big Boxes

Don't bother setting up tables or clothing racks, instead just throw everything in a box and let folks have a treasure hunt trying to find stuff. Even better, mix it up with toys, books and clothes all in the same boxes.

If you're short on tables or racks, at least group stuff together. Books in one box, kids clothing in another and so on.

4. Don't Waste Time Cleaning or Washing

It's only a garage sale, so why bother cleaning and washing everything. People are looking for a bargain, so they can buy as-is. If there are a few bugs, blow them off the figurine.

Better Option:[br] One big garage sale tip is to take a few minutes and make your items clean and shiney!

5. No Packing Materials

By the time you need packing materials or sacks, the money has already been made. So does it matter if you've run out of bags or never had any to begin with? People will just have to juggle stuff out the door.

Instead a month or so before the sale, start saving those plastic bags from the grocery stores.

6. Signs / Directions

Don't you love a scavenger hunt? That's what it is when an address on the sign is too small to read from a car, written with a pen instead of a marker or signs are set-up so many blocks away from the garage sale that no one knows where it actually is.

If you want shoppers to find your sale, BIG BOLD LETTERS on a simple sign work best.

7. Read a Book, Watch TV or Talk on the Phone

Obviously you have better things to do than talking to the customers and reading a book or talking on the phone lets them know that right off the bat.

Rude? You bet it is and there are many sellers who apparently don't even feel like they have to say hello or welcome, don't get this garage sale mistake send folks away.

8. Missing a Few Pieces?

You're not sure if the puzzle is missing a few pieces or the game isn't all there, you'll still ask full price for the item. It's the same thing with a few chips or re-glued piece of ceramics, let the buyer beware and make what you can on the deal.

Alright, I might not put together a 1000 piece puzzle to make sure it's all there, but if there is any chance that a few pieces might be missing, I'll let the buyer know or just not even bother selling it.

9. Mark the Price Directly on the Item

Use a Sharpie marker and write directly on the stuff for sale. It's not your problem if they can never remove the mark. Another strategy is using tape on cold-painted pieces, when the tape is removed, so is the finish.

10. No Permit

You might think you'll save a few dollars by not getting a permit from the city, but not if you wind up getting fined when the inspectors stop by.