Being Thrifty

Garage sales always amaze me. I love looking at what friends and neighbors (and people I don’t know) have to sell. I also enjoy seeing just what it is that people buy at these sales as well. You know the old saying “One man’s junk is another man’s treasure”? That saying epitomizes garage sales.

My brother and sister-in-law had a garage sale this past weekend. Because they were kind enough to let me put in some things of my own to sell, I figured it was only fair that my fiancé and I help out. It was a neighborhood sale, so during the slow times at my brother’s sale, I had a chance to check out other sales in the area.

Some people look at having a garage sale as a way of cleaning house and getting rid of toys, clothes and miscellaneous household items; and making a little spending money at the same time. Others look at garage sales as a business venture. Personally, I take the ‘cleaning house’ point of view. I have garage sales to get rid of things I no longer need or want. I price things accordingly (read: cheap!) so that my gently used but no longer needed treasures will sell.

I shop garage sales the same way. I don’t think I’ve ever spent more than $5 on any one single garage sale item in my life.

Sure, some things, such as antiques and collectibles may warrant a higher price, and they should be priced accordingly. There’s probably not a lot of people out there, in my neighborhood anyway, who are willing to pay $10 for an electric fry pan that is missing the cord, and has no non-stick coating left.

If you want your things to sell, price them to sell. If you truly don’t want to part with your treasures, you shouldn’t be having a garage sale to begin with.

Trackback URI | Comments RSS