Get garage sale readyTips and GuidelinesHolding a garage sale is a great way to declutter, make some extra money and support Brisbane’s thriving second-hand economy.

Every time a person buys a pre-loved item instead of a newly manufactured one, the environment benefits as we have saved energy from production, reduced emissions from transport, preserved resources and avoided adding more packaging into our bins. On top of all that, buying second-hand is generally cheaper, and can lead to more neighbourly and connected communities.Council recognises the many wonderful benefits of garage sales and we show our support through community-focused reuse initiatives such as Garage Sale Trail and World’s Biggest Garage Sale.

To make your garage sale a fun and profitable day, we’ve compiled this list of tips and guidelines to keep in mind.

1. Get organised and identify items to sell

They say “a tidy house is a tidy mind” and hosting a garage sale offers a unique opportunity to reflect on which items we truly wish to keep around.

Remember, the items we need the least are probably those stored away and long forgotten about. With this in mind, look in every cupboard, every drawer and every forgotten box in your shed. People love seeing items at garage sales priced for a $1 (or less) so don’t assume that purple potato peeler you never used won’t have a potential buyer for the right price.

Be sure to consider that sometimes it’s best not to sell an item if you are likely to buy it again anyway. For example, an item like a beach umbrella may only be used once or twice a year but ask yourself whether it proves its value to you on those occasions. Alternatively, consider if you can sell all your rarely used items and instead join a sharing group like Brisbane Tool Library or the Share Shed.

2. Invite your friends and neighbours to join you as sellers

Having a garage sale can be great social event and encourage others to also declutter. Getting your friends involved also increases the word-of-mouth potential of your sale.

By hosting a group sale with mates, you can relieve yourself of the pressure of being the sole attendant. To really make it a fun day, consider having a breakfast barbecue at the back of your house to let the kids and dogs run around, while you and your friends take turns with the garage sale shoppers out the front. Arranging this type of event can make having your sale feel like less of a chore.

3. Choose a date – wisely!

In general, Saturday is the best day for a garage sale as people are generally more active and task-orientated compared to the lazy vibes of Sunday.

Mid-week public holidays like Ekka Wednesday are also a good opportunity as many people are looking for stuff to do.

Considering the weather is important so, if possible, pick a day outside of Brisbane’s hot, humid and rainy summers.

On the third weekend of each October, Brisbane City Council sponsors the national Garage Sale Trail event which gets about 400,000 shoppers out visiting thousands of sales across the nation. It’s free to register your sale on the trail and you can benefit from this national event’s wide reach.

4. Advertise your event and get to know Council’s signage rules

In the age of the internet, we’re spoilt for options in advertising your garage sale. Websites like Garagesales.com.au, Gumtree.com.au and local neighbourhood community forums like Nabo.com.au all provide free opportunities to advertise.

Start a public Facebook event and ask you friends to share it. Having a Facebook event up will also give your mates a friendly reminder when the day arrives.

It’s important to remember that not everyone is online so traditional methods like street signage, community noticeboards and a letterbox drop can also help boost attendance on the day.

Remember if you are going to advertise in your street, there are local laws to also consider. Below is an outline of Council’s signage conditions:

You are allowed to advertise on the property and on the footpath having the sale

Signs should not be illuminated or exceed 1.2sqm in size

Signs should only be placed out on the day of the sale.

To add that extra sparkle to your sale, consider painting up an eye-catching street sign on some cardboard. It can be a fun activity, especially if there are kids in the household to help out. Adding in some of the items on sale (e.g. Furniture, Sports goods, Vintage) can help entice more people.

5. Make sure the price is right

Remember that people generally visit garage sales expecting a bargain. Although you may feel something is worth more, factor in how much time and effort you’ll save through selling the item on the day through a quick and easy sale on the day.

To gain a clearer idea of how to price items, you may wish to look up similar items on online marketplaces such as Gumtree, eBay or Facebook Marketplace.

Pricing items individually can be an unnecessary chore so keep things simple. An easy option to price items might be to buy a roll of coloured dot stickers and hang up a sign which identifies the price associated with each colour. For example, all red dot items might be $1, all purple dot items are $20 and so on. A similar idea could be to simply group items on tables with a price that covers all that table’s items.

Keeping prices simple ensures most of the change you give out on the day will be bank notes and gold coins, rather than silver.

6. Prep the day before and get an early night’s rest

It’s important to prepare as much as possible the night before to ensure you have a smooth and enjoyable garage sale hosting experience.

Professional garage sale shoppers love to arrive early (sometimes much earlier than your start time) to beat other resellers. It’s up to you whether you choose to allow early birds access to your sale and being firm yet polite is acceptable etiquette if you wish to hold until you’re ready.

Ensure you’ve been to the bank to get a cash float which has a nice selection of notes and gold coins (silver coins won’t be important if you have priced as per Tip #5).

Check the next day’s weather. If it looks like it’s going to rain, think ahead for undercover spaces or your items.

7. On the day

A little ambience goes a long way to support your profits so set up your garage sale to be a welcoming environment. Simply having some music playing in the area can help visitors relax and spend more time browsing.

There are many ways to decorate your sale to further enhance the experience. Why not make bunting out of some the old unsellable clothes you found while decluttering? This is a great way to avoid single-use plastics or balloons. Homemade bunting can also be reused for all your future barbecues, birthday parties and family gatherings.

Ensure you have a space for people wishing to try on clothes with a mirror and privacy. This can be as simple as putting up arrows directing people to a lockable room in the home allocated for this purpose. A great alternative to that is to make a DIY cubicle by hanging sheets in a corner of your garage. Ensure the sheets you use aren’t transparent and have a mirror in the space as well so your guests can see how good they look in your pre-loved clothes.

Display your items out on tables or, if you don’t have tables, sheets on the lawn are an easy alternative. If using sheets outside, place heavier items in the corners to avoid the breeze blowing over your display.

Offer cash and online payment options. It’s a shame to miss out on sales because people don’t have enough cash to buy all your treasures on the day. Having an app ready on your phone for a

basic online payment system like PayPal may be appreciated by your visitors, especially the tech-oriented millennial generation.

Be prepared to be haggled but always keep a happy demeanour throughout the process. Remember, the purpose of haggling is to get a happy outcome for both the buyer and seller so if you feel bullied into a sale, politely decline and feel good knowing you’ve got several post-sale options (see next tip).

8. Donating or selling the survivors of your sale

Don’t feel bad if you have quite a few items still leftover – this is a normal part of any garage sale. Instead, feel good to know that you’ve made some extra pocket money and already know which items you’re ready to move on.

Before you place any items away in boxes, separate everything into two groups – those you plan to sell online and those you are happy to donate or give away.

This is an excellent opportunity to take photos of all the items you plan on posting online.

There are many ways to sell or donate your leftover items, including:

Post the item up for sale (or as a giveaway) on a second-hand market place like Gumtree, Facebook Marketplace or eBay.Donate the item to Council’s tip shops (Endeavour Foundation) via your local resource recovery centreCheck if any of your items could be of use to a local community sharing group. The Share Shed has an online wishlist of items and the Brisbane Tool Library is also able to consider donations of unwanted tools, camping equipment, kitchen appliances, play equipment, etc.Donate to an op-shop. For locations, check out the national website for charities or on Recyclingnearyou.com.au/charities Post the item up as a giveaway on a dedicated reuse website such as Ziilch (au.Ziilch.com) or Freecycle.orgSave the item and donate it as part of the World’s Biggest Garage Sale event. This is a local charitable initiative that was developed here in Brisbane to turn the value of your dormant household items into financial donations to children’s charities.Check Council’s online calendar for when your next kerbside collection is on. It is acceptable to place the item inside your property boundary with a ‘free’ sign on it as a way to ensure it is not disposed of by Council’s waste contractors.Contact a local community group or business who may have a use for the item. For example, unwanted toys or art supplied might be accepted by a local youth centre or after school care group.

Brisbane City Council extends thanks Garage Sale Trail Foundationfor the use of their imagery in this document.