What might be some tips or experiences you've had with garage sales?

It's been my experience as a seller twice (at a garage sale and a car boot sale) that people are out for a cheap bargain, so don't expect a fair price for your best stuff- you might try Ebay for those things. Edit:Claiming a $200 sofa as a charity tax deduction won't net you $200. Depending on your tax bracket, you could net as little as 10 percent of its value. Sheila- average? Never! You're way above average IMHO

Before you set up your garage sale tables etc, make sure that there's only one access door to your house, and that's in plain sight. Lock your back door, and your garage door (if you have valuable tools in there). Block the main entrance to your house with a table or something like that, so that anyone trying to sneak into your house would have to pass you and the table. Make sure you have plenty of loose, small change. Make sure you have someone else with you so that you can take a toilet break or whatever. If you have a few small things that you think would be hard to sell, put them all into one box and sell it as a 'surprise box' for $5 or a $1 or something. If you have anything left, put it onto Freecycle as a surprise box or as individual items. Someone will come and take the things away. You have to join freecycle, but it's free, and very useful to you in the future, possibly, if you want some strange little thing, or want to re-home something you don't want to go into landfill. I don't know where that person got the idea you could use it as a tax deduction. Not in Australia. Sorry.

We had one, years ago, just prior to us moving house. Never again. People wanted things for nothing; market stall holders coming in heavy handed; people parking all over our lawn & double parking etc... Next time I sold at a weekly market by setting up a stall. I had a ute & I had trouble with people delving into my gear, from all sides, before I had unpacked & set up. I had to be forceful & quite rude to shoo them off. Nowadays I wont even go to a garage sale.

We had one a few years ago to get rid of a household full of furniture etc for a deceased estate ... NEVER AGAIN ! For the amount of effort it takes it just isn't worth it !

We just recently had one but not exactly in typical fashion. It was an estate sale where everything must go. We put the signs out. My job was to clear the garage of contents. The first day or 2, people showed up and I gave "prices to move". Anything leaving the premises was less for me to move. Eventually, one of the customers agreed to handle everything for a fee roughly the same to rent the giant dumpster. He also got the leftover items f/ the estate sale. If you have craigslist in Australia, I highly recommend that.

Plenty of small change Reg. Everyone wants a dollar bargain and pays with a 50 buck note ! Old plastic shopping bags to put the items in--people appreciate that if buying a heap of smaller stuff. Don't be shy to spruike your stuff or it could sit there without getting sold. I talk up an item . It wont sell itself unless you give a wee hand. Don't be bullied. Lots of garage sale buyers will try to bully you, no not bargain--bully, and I find that annoying.Dont be shy to throw in a smaller item to get the bigger sale. Watch the buyer , see what he/she is interested in then spruike the dearer item with --and I will toss in that one as well, works every time mate. Good luck, and anything left over? Drop it off at the nearest Salvos.

There are a lot of treasure hunters out there....that's for sure. Here in the states, there are always stories of someone finding something worth a million they paid five bucks for. There are also folks that are antique hunters that buy and resell at their own store or garage sale. It's a huge mini-business to go around to garage sales and snag a great buy, only to put it in their own garage sale next week at a higher price....or some things that sellers just don't have a clue on what they are worth... That being said, if you say your sale starts at 8 AM....expect the door bell to ring at 5 AM.... Early bird gets the treasure.... Be sure to put a pot on.... The hunter's are relentless....

Get some hot babe to dress up in a bikini and stand around.

Lesbians have the coolest stuff EVER!!!