{"id":4041,"date":"2024-07-29T11:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-07-29T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/?p=4041"},"modified":"2024-07-30T13:36:39","modified_gmt":"2024-07-30T13:36:39","slug":"best-cities-yard-and-garage-sales","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/best-cities-yard-and-garage-sales\/","title":{"rendered":"Bargain Hunting: 2024\u2019s Best Cities for Scouring Garage Sales"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Which cities are best for finding hidden gems at yard sales?<\/p>    <p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To mark the annual 127 Yard Sale \u2014 The World\u2019s Longest Yard Sale, starting Aug. 1 \u2014 <a href=\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/\">Lawn Love<\/a> ranked 2024&#8217;s Best Cities for Scouring Garage Sales.<\/p>    <p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We compared the 500 biggest U.S. cities based on 4 categories. More specifically, we looked at the number of yard sales and estate sales, yard size, and share of homes with garages, among 10 total metrics.<\/p>    <p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rummage through our ranking below. To learn how we ranked the cities, see our <a href=\"#methodology\">methodology<\/a>.<\/p>    <h2 id=\"in-this-article\" class=\"wp-block-heading\">In this article<\/h2>    <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li><a href=\"#rankings\">City rankings<\/a><\/li>    <li><a href=\"#top-5\">Top 5 close up<\/a><\/li>    <li><a href=\"#key-insights\">Key insights<\/a><\/li>    <li><a href=\"#ask-the-experts\">Expert take<\/a><\/li>    <li><a href=\"#methodology\">Behind the ranking<\/a><\/li>    <li><a href=\"#final-thoughts\">Final thoughts: Set your yard up for success<\/a><\/li> <\/ul>    <h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"rankings\"><span id=\"city-rankings\">City rankings<\/span><\/h2>    <p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">See how each city fared in our ranking:<\/p>   <div class=\"infogram-embed\" data-id=\"857b3cc6-caf3-4632-a366-a0e486494804\" data-type=\"interactive\" data-title=\"LL: Ranking Table - 2024\u2019s Best Cities for Scouring Garage Sales\"><\/div> <p><script>!function(e,n,i,s){var d=\"InfogramEmbeds\";var o=e.getElementsByTagName(n)[0];if(window[d]&&window[d].initialized)window[d].process&&window[d].process();else if(!e.getElementById(i)){var r=e.createElement(n);r.async=1,r.id=i,r.src=s,o.parentNode.insertBefore(r,o)}}(document,\"script\",\"infogram-async\",\"https:\/\/e.infogram.com\/js\/dist\/embed-loader-min.js\");<\/script><\/p>   <div class=\"infogram-embed\" data-id=\"1d1ba406-60a8-431f-a53b-9b115099eeae\" data-type=\"interactive\" data-title=\"LL: 25 Best\"><\/div> <p><script>!function(e,n,i,s){var d=\"InfogramEmbeds\";var o=e.getElementsByTagName(n)[0];if(window[d]&&window[d].initialized)window[d].process&&window[d].process();else if(!e.getElementById(i)){var r=e.createElement(n);r.async=1,r.id=i,r.src=s,o.parentNode.insertBefore(r,o)}}(document,\"script\",\"infogram-async\",\"https:\/\/e.infogram.com\/js\/dist\/embed-loader-min.js\");<\/script><\/p>    <h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"top-5\"><span id=\"top-5-close-up\">Top 5 close up<\/span><\/h2>    <p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Check out the slideshow below for highlights and lowlights on each of our top 5 cities for garage sales.<\/p>   <div style=\"min-height: 535px\" class=\"ub_image_slider swiper-container wp-block-ub-image-slider\" id=\"ub_image_slider_870940b7-9fe1-48e2-92b3-5d3eb8af2f4e\" data-swiper-data='{\"speed\":300,\"spaceBetween\":20,\"slidesPerView\":1,\"loop\":true,\"pagination\":{\"el\": \".swiper-pagination\" , \"type\": \"bullets\", \"clickable\":true},\"navigation\": {\"nextEl\": \".swiper-button-next\", \"prevEl\": \".swiper-button-prev\"}, \"keyboard\": { \"enabled\": true }, \"effect\": \"slide\",\"simulateTouch\":false}'>             <div class=\"swiper-wrapper\"><figure class=\"swiper-slide\">                 <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Los-Angeles-CA-1.jpg\" alt=\"The Griffith Observatory stands atop a hill overlooking the Los Angeles skyline.\" style=\"height: 500px;; \">                 <figcaption class=\"ub_image_slider_image_caption\"><strong>No. 1: <\/strong>Los Angeles | <strong>Overall score: <\/strong>71.34<br><br><strong>Average Number of Weekly Yard and Garage Sales: <\/strong>32 | Rank: 1<br><strong>Average Number of Weekly Estate Sales: <\/strong>28 | Rank: 2 (TIE)<br><strong>Average Monthly Searches for Yard and Estate Sales Over Past Year: <\/strong>3,340 | Rank: 8<br><strong>Average Yard Size: <\/strong>0.12 acres | Rank: 433<br><strong>Percentage of Homes With Garages: <\/strong>62% | Rank: 341<br><br>Photo credit: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/photo\/white-and-brown-buildings-2709964\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Roberto Nickson<\/a> | Pexels | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/license\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Pexels License<\/a><\/figcaption>             <\/figure><figure class=\"swiper-slide\">                 <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/San-Antonio-LL-1.jpg\" alt=\"Historic hotels and highrise buildings stand out on a hazy day in San Antonio.\" style=\"height: 500px;; \">                 <figcaption class=\"ub_image_slider_image_caption\"><strong>No. 2: <\/strong>San Antonio | <strong>Overall score: <\/strong>63.24<br><br><strong>Average Number of Weekly Yard and Garage Sales: <\/strong>13 | Rank: 9<br><strong>Average Number of Weekly Estate Sales: <\/strong>31 | Rank: 1<br><strong>Average Monthly Searches for Yard and Estate Sales Over Past Year: <\/strong>4,170 | Rank: 3<br><strong>Average Yard Size: <\/strong>0.23 acres | Rank: 208<br><strong>Percentage of Homes With Garages: <\/strong>76.5% | Rank: 211<br><br>Photo credit: <a href=\"https:\/\/unsplash.com\/photos\/RzOUP6_Aa80\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">weston m<\/a> | Unsplash | <a href=\"https:\/\/unsplash.com\/license\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Unsplash License<\/a><\/figcaption>             <\/figure><figure class=\"swiper-slide\">                 <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Houston-LL-1.jpg\" alt=\"Skyscrapers reflect lights across the city, casting downtown Houston in a copper glow as night falls.\" style=\"height: 500px;; \">                 <figcaption class=\"ub_image_slider_image_caption\"><strong>No. 3: <\/strong>Dallas | <strong>Overall score: <\/strong>55.04<br><br><strong>Average Number of Weekly Yard and Garage Sales: <\/strong>8 | Rank: 26<br><strong>Average Number of Weekly Estate Sales: <\/strong>28 | Rank: 2 (TIE)<br><strong>Average Monthly Searches for Yard and Estate Sales Over Past Year: <\/strong>3,840 | Rank: 5<br><strong>Average Yard Size: <\/strong>0.18 acres | Rank: 304<br><strong>Percentage of Homes With Garages: <\/strong>71.5% | Rank: 272<br><br>Photo credit: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/photo\/brown-building-with-lights-on-during-night-time-45182\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Pixabay<\/a> | Pexels | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/creative-commons-images\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Pexels License<\/a><\/figcaption>             <\/figure><figure class=\"swiper-slide\">                 <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/CHICAGO111.jpg\" alt=\"Two people bike along the water overlooking the Chicago skyline.\" style=\"height: 500px;; \">                 <figcaption class=\"ub_image_slider_image_caption\"><strong>No. 4: <\/strong>Chicago | <strong>Overall score: <\/strong>54.69<br><br><strong>Average Number of Weekly Yard and Garage Sales: <\/strong>15 | Rank: 7<br><strong>Average Number of Weekly Estate Sales: <\/strong>18 | Rank: 7<br><strong>Average Monthly Searches for Yard and Estate Sales Over Past Year: <\/strong>4,540 | Rank: 2<br><strong>Average Yard Size: <\/strong>0.05 acres | Rank: 493<br><strong>Percentage of Homes With Garages: <\/strong>62.2% | Rank: 339<br><br>Photo credit: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/photo\/two-people-riding-bikes-3010969\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Chait Goli<\/a> | Pexels | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/license\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Pexels License<\/a><\/figcaption>             <\/figure><figure class=\"swiper-slide\">                 <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Houston-LL.jpg\" alt=\"The sunset reflects on high-rise buildings in Houston.\" style=\"height: 500px;; \">                 <figcaption class=\"ub_image_slider_image_caption\"><strong>No. 5: <\/strong>Houston | <strong>Overall score: <\/strong>52.92<br><br><strong>Average Number of Weekly Yard and Garage Sales: <\/strong>10 | Rank: 18<br><strong>Average Number of Weekly Estate Sales: <\/strong>17 | Rank: 11<br><strong>Average Monthly Searches for Yard and Estate Sales Over Past Year: <\/strong>5,040 | Rank: 1<br><strong>Average Yard Size: <\/strong>0.15 acres | Rank: 395<br><strong>Percentage of Homes With Garages: <\/strong>71.8% | Rank: 265<br><br>Photo credit: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/photo\/high-rise-buildings-in-the-city-under-the-cloudy-sky-10893475\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Trace Hudson<\/a> | Pexels | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/license\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Pexels License<\/a><\/figcaption>             <\/figure><\/div>             <div class=\"swiper-pagination\"><\/div>             <div class=\"swiper-button-prev\"><\/div> <div class=\"swiper-button-next\"><\/div>         <\/div>   <h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"key-insights\">Key insights<\/h2>    <p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The <strong>Texas Triangle<\/strong> and populous <strong>Midwestern cities<\/strong> like <strong>Chicago<\/strong> (No. 4), <strong>Minneapolis<\/strong> (No. 7), and <strong>Indianapolis<\/strong> (No. 8) score at the top of our ranking, behind <strong>Los Angeles<\/strong> in <strong>first place<\/strong>. These cities each claim <strong>high access to<\/strong> and <strong>demand for<\/strong> garage and estate sales.&nbsp;<\/p>    <p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The best cities for yard sales aren\u2019t necessarily filled with big front yards. Busy cities like <strong>New York<\/strong> (No. 19) <strong>lack space for selling<\/strong>, but still have <strong>frequent sales<\/strong> \u2014 plus the chances of rummaging through <strong>luxury items<\/strong> are seemingly higher. 2023 saw trends in NYC <strong>celebrity stoop, garage, and estate sales<\/strong>, such as from filmmaker <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bkmag.com\/2023\/08\/07\/scenes-from-spike-lees-stoop-sale-saturday-in-fort-greene\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Spike Lee<\/a>, actress <a href=\"https:\/\/www.townandcountrymag.com\/style\/fashion-trends\/a43894988\/chloe-sevigny-rummage-sale\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Chloe Sevigny<\/a>, stylist <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/04\/04\/nyregion\/stacy-london-garage-sale-brooklyn.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Stacy London<\/a>, and the late <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lrb.co.uk\/blog\/2024\/march\/at-the-tom-verlaine-book-sale\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Tom Verlaine<\/a>.<\/p>    <p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Cities in <strong>Florida<\/strong>, <strong>Massachusetts<\/strong>, and <strong>New Jersey<\/strong> land at the bottom, with <strong>low interest<\/strong> in yard sales, <strong>small yards<\/strong>, and a <strong>small share<\/strong> of <strong>homes with garages<\/strong>. <strong>Less than 32% <\/strong>of homes have garages to declutter in the bottom 10 cities.&nbsp;<\/p>    <p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hunt through more regional insights <a href=\"#media-resources\">below<\/a>.<\/p>   <h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"ask-the-experts\"><span id=\"\"><\/span><\/h2>  <div id=\"experts-block\" class=\"experts\">     <h2 id=\"expert-take\" class=\"text-2xl font-bold text-black mb-3\">Expert take<\/h2>    <p>One neighbor\u2019s trash may be another\u2019s treasure, but which items are worth buying (or putting in the effort to sell on your lawn)?<\/p> <p>We turned to a panel of experts for their best garage sale tips. Go treasure hunting through the next community yard sale with help from their advice below.<\/p> <ol> <li>What are your best three tips for organizing a yard sale?<\/li> <li>What\u2019s your best advice for establishing prices for a yard sale?<\/li> <li>What are three of the most popular resale items in recent years?<\/li> <li>What are three benefits and three downsides of joining a neighborhood or city-wide yard sale?<\/li> <li>What are your best three tips for shopping at a yard sale?<\/li> <li>What are your best three tips for shopping at an estate sale?<\/li> <\/ol>    <div id=\"experts-container\" class=\"relative lg:mt-6\" x-data=\"experts()\" x-init=\"init()\">      <style>       .expert-avatars {         scrollbar-width: none;         -ms-overflow-style: none;          \/* momentum scroll on iOS *\/         -webkit-overflow-scrolling: touch;          \/* disbable vertical scroll for touch *\/         touch-action: pan-x;       }        \/* hide scroll bar *\/       .expert-avatars::-webkit-scrollbar {         display: none;       }        .expert-avatars .item {         width: 125px;         flex-shrink: 0;       }        .expert-avatars .item:not(:last-child) {         margin-right: 10px;       }        \/* hacky fix for padding at the end of the.expert-avatars *\/       .expert-avatars .item:last-child {         position: relative;       }        .expert-avatars .item:last-child::after {         position: absolute;         left: 100%;         height: 1px;         width: 20px;         display: block;         content: \"\";       }        .trim-label {         max-height: 18px;         text-overflow: ellipsis;         overflow: hidden;         display: -webkit-box;         -webkit-line-clamp: 1;         -webkit-box-orient: vertical;         line-height: 1.4;       }        .credentials {         max-height: 18px;         width: 250px;         text-overflow: ellipsis;         overflow: hidden;         display: -webkit-box;         -webkit-line-clamp: 1;         -webkit-box-orient: vertical;         line-height: 1.4;       }        .credentials-small {         max-height: 18px;         width: 110px;         text-overflow: ellipsis;         overflow: hidden;         display: -webkit-box;         -webkit-line-clamp: 1;         -webkit-box-orient: vertical;         line-height: 1.4;       }        [x-cloak] {         display: none;       }     <\/style>      <div class=\"expert-avatars flex overflow-x-scroll overscroll-contain px-2 mb-10 lg:hidden\">                         <div class=\"item text-center mx-3\" @click=\"openExpert('dr-alexander-milovic', 'container')\">             <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Alexander-Milovic.png\" alt=\"Alexander Milovic\" class=\"mt-0 mx-auto mb-3 w-24 h-24 object-cover rounded-full border-white border-4 shadow-xl\">             <div class=\"text-sm leading-4 mb-2 text-black font-medium trim-label\">Dr. Alexander Milovic <\/div>             <div class=\"text-sm leading-4 mb-2 text-gray-800 trim-label\">Associate Professor of Practice of Marketing and Associate Director of the Center for Professional Selling<\/div>           <\/div>                   <\/div>                     <div           id=\"expert-dr-alexander-milovic\"           class=\"mb-10 border border-gray-200 p-4 cursor-pointer lg:block\"           x-bind:class=\"{'lg:border-theme-green block': focusedExpert == 'dr-alexander-milovic', 'hidden': focusedExpert != 'dr-alexander-milovic'}\"           @click=\"openExpert('dr-alexander-milovic', 'expert'); expertIsFocused = true\">            <div             x-bind:class=\"{'items-center': focusedExpert != 'dr-alexander-milovic', 'items-start': focusedExpert == 'dr-alexander-milovic'}\"             class=\"item mb-4 hidden lg:flex\"             @click=\"openExpert('dr-alexander-milovic', 'expert')\">              <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Alexander-Milovic.png\" alt=\"Alexander Milovic\" class=\"m-0 mr-3 w-16 h-16 object-cover rounded-full lg:w-20 lg:h-20\">              <div>               <div                 x-bind:class=\"{'trim-label': focusedExpert != 'dr-alexander-milovic'}\"                 class=\"text-sm leading-5 mb-2 text-black font-medium\">Dr. Alexander Milovic <\/div>               <div                 x-bind:class=\"{'trim-label': focusedExpert != 'dr-alexander-milovic'}\"                 class=\"text-sm leading-5 mb-2 text-gray-800\">Associate Professor of Practice of Marketing and Associate Director of the Center for Professional Selling<\/div>               <div                 x-bind:class=\"{'trim-label': focusedExpert != 'dr-alexander-milovic'}\"                 class=\"text-gray-600 text-sm\">Marquette University<\/div>             <\/div>           <\/div>            <div             class=\"hidden lg:block\"             x-bind:class=\"{'lg:hidden': focusedExpert == 'dr-alexander-milovic'}\">             <button class=\"flex items-center text-theme-green open-details\" @click=\"openExpert('dr-alexander-milovic', 'expert'); expertIsFocused = true\">View Answers <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewbox=\"0 0 20.243 13.501\" class=\"w-4 ml-2\">                 <path data-name=\"Icon ionic-ios-arrow-round-forward\" d=\"M12.909.258a.919.919 0 00-.007 1.294l4.275 4.282H.907a.914.914 0 000 1.828H17.17l-4.275 4.286a.925.925 0 00.007 1.294.91.91 0 001.287-.007l5.794-5.836a1.026 1.026 0 00.19-.288.872.872 0 00.07-.352.916.916 0 00-.26-.64L14.189.283a.9.9 0 00-1.28-.025z\" fill=\"#48a27a\" \/>               <\/svg><\/button>           <\/div>            <div             class=\"details fixed top-0 left-0 bg-white h-screen z-10 overflow-scroll w-screen lg:w-full lg:relative lg:h-auto\"             x-cloak x-show=\"focusedExpert == 'dr-alexander-milovic'\"             x-transition:enter=\"transition ease-out duration-100 transform\"             x-transition:enter-start=\"opacity-0 scale-95\"             x-transition:enter-end=\"opacity-100 scale-100\"             x-transition:leave=\"transition ease-in duration-75 transform\"             x-transition:leave-start=\"opacity-100 scale-100\"             x-transition:leave-end=\"opacity-0 scale-95\">              <div class=\"bg-theme-green p-4 mb-4 pb-20 relative text-white lg:bg-white lg:pb-0 lg:text-theme-green lg:mb-8\">               <button class=\"close-details mr-4 mt-2 absolute top-0 left-0 flex items-center ml-4 lg:mt-0 lg:ml-0\" x-on:click.stop=\"closeExpert('dr-alexander-milovic')\">                 <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewbox=\"0 0 20.243 13.501\" class=\"w-6 mr-2 fill-current\">                   <path data-name=\"Icon ionic-ios-arrow-round-forward\" d=\"M7.334 13.243a.919.919 0 00.007-1.294L3.066 7.667h16.27a.914.914 0 000-1.828H3.073l4.275-4.286A.925.925 0 007.341.259a.91.91 0 00-1.287.007L.26 6.102a1.026 1.026 0 00-.19.288.872.872 0 00-.07.352.916.916 0 00.26.64l5.794 5.836a.9.9 0 001.28.025z\" \/>                 <\/svg> Close               <\/button>             <\/div>              <div class=\"item text-center px-4 w-full text-center -mt-20 relative z-20 pointer-events-none lg:hidden\">               <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Alexander-Milovic.png\" alt=\"Alexander Milovic\" class=\"mt-0 mb-3 mx-auto w-32 h-32 object-cover rounded-full border-white border-4 shadow-xl\">               <div class=\"text-base leading-5 mb-2 text-black font-medium\">Dr. Alexander Milovic <\/div>               <div class=\"text-sm leading-5 mb-2 text-gray-800\">Associate Professor of Practice of Marketing and Associate Director of the Center for Professional Selling<\/div>               <div class=\"text-gray-600 text-sm\">Marquette University<\/div>             <\/div>              <div class=\"px-4 lg:px-0\">               <p><strong>What are your best 3 tips for organizing a yard sale? <\/strong><\/p> <ul> <li>Promote using both old-school marketing (word of mouth, yard signs) and social media (especially Facebook Marketplace).<\/li> <li>Consider the layout of items in the yard sale. How will you arrange them throughout the yard? <ul> <li>The anchoring effect can work for you \u2013 people place a high value on the first piece of information that they encounter. If you only place cheap items at the front of the yard, then customers will assume that there is only junk at the sale. If you only place expensive products at the front, customers may be dissuaded by the high prices and leave without purchasing.<\/li> <li>Split items up and set up tables and sections with signs to help customers find what they are looking for (&#8220;collectables,&#8221; &#8220;electronics,&#8221; &#8220;furniture,&#8221; &#8220;deals!&#8221;). Successful retailers use these techniques, you should too!<\/li> <\/ul> <\/li> <\/ul> <ul> <li>Have a strategy for bargaining and selling. How much are you willing to lower your price when asked? How will you engage with customers during the sale? A positive attitude and smile can help set the mood as they enter your yard sale. <ul> <li>Make it inviting by coming out to greet customers and allow them to ask questions as you guide them through the yard (rather than sitting behind a table and staring at them).<\/li> <li>Providing refreshments and snacks will encourage them to stay longer and to purchase something to offset the free snacks, also known as reciprocity (from Robert Cialdini&#8217;s principles of influence).<\/li> <\/ul> <\/li> <\/ul> <p><strong>What\u2019s your best advice for establishing prices for a yard sale? <\/strong><\/p> <ul> <li>Visit other yard sales to benchmark pricing. You can also visit yard sales on different days to see what days of the week are especially busy and which are slow.<\/li> <li>Visit resale websites, like Facebook Marketplace and eBay to get an idea for price ranges. One thing to note is that people tend to place a greater value on items they own, referred to as the endowment effect. This is especially true of clothing \u2013 how much would you really pay for someone&#8217;s used t-shirt?<\/li> <li>If possible, accept both cash and mobile payment options. Customers may not carry cash and will also be willing to pay more if they don&#8217;t have to part with physical money.<\/li> <li>Consider lowering prices on the last day of the sale if you are looking to sell all merchandise. If you don&#8217;t end up selling much merchandise, review both your promotion and pricing strategies. Did nobody show up, indicating bad promotional efforts, or did people show up but not buy, which could be due to a mistake in pricing or not having enough products that people want.<\/li> <\/ul> <p><strong>What are the most popular resale items in recent years? <\/strong><\/p> <p>While I don&#8217;t have any specific answer to this question, certain items like exercise equipment, electronics, and collectible items have more value than clothes or items that may only have personal significance. Visiting other sales and online marketplaces may give you an idea of valuable items that you may have.<\/p> <p><strong>What are three benefits and three downsides of joining a neighborhood or city-wide yard sale? <\/strong><\/p> <p><strong>Pros:<\/strong><\/p> <p>1. The potential for increased promotion and customers.<\/p> <p>2. More items overall means that customers are more likely to stay longer (and buy more).<\/p> <p>3. Save energy (don&#8217;t have to be there the whole time maintaining a positive attitude).<\/p> <p><strong>Cons: <\/strong><\/p> <p>1. Will have to share profits and costs.<\/p> <p>2. You sell your items better than someone else. If you&#8217;re not there or working with other customers, someone else may be selling your items\u2026or not!<\/p> <p>3. Your items may be competing with other sellers&#8217; items in real time.<\/p> <p><strong>What are your best tips for shopping at a yard sale? <\/strong><\/p> <ul> <li>Before you go, establish a budget that you&#8217;re willing to spend and do some research on what other places would charge for used items (e.g., Goodwill, St. Vincent DePaul, eBay, other yard sales). If you do go online to comparison shop, be careful to avoid offending the yard sale host. If the price of an item is cheaper somewhere else, you may bring that up but be nice! A seller&#8217;s counter to your lower price request would be that you can have the item now rather than waiting for delivery. Take that into consideration as you negotiate.<\/li> <li>The more you buy, the more you can potentially save! Rather than haggling over the price of one item, select a few items and negotiate a lower price for purchasing multiple items.<\/li> <li>Have multiple payment options \u2014 both cash and mobile payments \u2014 ready before you go. Some sellers may prefer cash. If you see an item that you like but have to go to an ATM to get more money, you should have some cash available to ask the sellers to &#8220;hold&#8221; the item for you.<\/li> <li>Estate sale or yard sale? Both are selling the same things: used items. But it&#8217;s all in the difference in terms. People expect to pay more for an item at an estate sale versus a yard sale versus a rummage sale. You might find expensive furniture at the estate sale, an exercise bike at a yard sale, and perhaps clothes you can turn into cleaning rags at a rummage sale. This is the concept of framing, where terms like &#8220;estate&#8221; have more positive attributes than &#8220;rummage&#8221;, which would lead customers to think that the products at an estate sales are more expensive and valuable than those at a yard or rummage sale.<\/li> <\/ul>             <\/div>            <\/div>          <\/div>              <\/div> <\/div>   <h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"methodology\"><span id=\"behind-the-ranking\">Behind the ranking<\/span><\/h2>    <p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">First, we determined the factors (metrics) that are most relevant to rank the Best Cities for Scouring Yard and Garage Sales. We then assigned a weight to each factor based on its importance and grouped those factors into 4 categories: Yard Sale Access, Climate, Housing Characteristics, and Interest. The categories, factors, and their weights are listed in the table below.<\/p>    <p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For each of the 500 biggest U.S. cities, we then gathered data on each factor from the sources listed below the table.<\/p>    <p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Finally, we calculated scores (out of 100 points) for each city to determine its rank in each factor, each category, and overall. A city\u2019s Overall Score is the average of its scores across all factors and categories. The highest Overall Score ranked \u201cBest\u201d (No. 1) and the lowest \u201cWorst\u201d (No. 500).<\/p>    <p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Notes:<\/p>    <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li>The \u201cWorst\u201d among individual factors may not be No. 500 due to ties.<\/li>    <li>Data for the number of yard sales and estate sales was collected over 4 weeks, from June 28 to July 19, 2024.&nbsp;<\/li> <\/ul>   <div class=\"infogram-embed\" data-id=\"8dff43d8-8d32-4ac9-b1d0-0765e1db90ca\" data-type=\"interactive\" data-title=\"LL: Methodology Table - 2024&amp;#39;s Best Cities for Scouring Garage Sales\"><\/div> <p><script>!function(e,n,i,s){var d=\"InfogramEmbeds\";var o=e.getElementsByTagName(n)[0];if(window[d]&&window[d].initialized)window[d].process&&window[d].process();else if(!e.getElementById(i)){var r=e.createElement(n);r.async=1,r.id=i,r.src=s,o.parentNode.insertBefore(r,o)}}(document,\"script\",\"infogram-async\",\"https:\/\/e.infogram.com\/js\/dist\/embed-loader-min.js\");<\/script><\/p>    <h3 id=\"sources\" class=\"wp-block-heading\">Sources<\/h3>    <p class=\"has-small-font-size wp-block-paragraph\"><em>EstateSale.com, EstateSales.net, EstateSales.org, Garage Sale Finder, Google Ads, LawnStarter, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Census Bureau, Walk Score, and Zillow<\/em><\/p>    <h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"final-thoughts\"><span id=\"final-thoughts-set-your-yard-up-for-success\">Final thoughts: Set your yard up for success<\/span><\/h2>    <p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With the back-to-school season around the corner and folks from Michigan to Alabama gearing up for the upcoming <a href=\"https:\/\/www.127yardsale.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">127 Yard Sale<\/a>, many U.S. homeowners are sorting through their closets and attics, aiming to make space and declutter.&nbsp;<\/p>    <p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Before you drop a deposit on a storage unit for extra room, see if you can purge your unwanted or unneeded items. Skip the hassle (and chance of being scammed) from selling through online platforms like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wired.com\/story\/zelle-scammers-are-ruining-facebook-marketplace\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Facebook Marketplace<\/a>, and instead get your neighbors together for a community yard sale.&nbsp;<\/p>    <p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A stunning lawn could draw attention and signal to shoppers that your sale is worth stopping by. Get your yard in shape with help from our tips below.<\/p>    <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li><a href=\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/best-time-repair-lawn\/\">Repair your lawn<\/a> if it\u2019s looking rough and patchy.<\/li>    <li>Kill those pesky <a href=\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/kill-weeds-permanently\/\">weeds<\/a>.<\/li>    <li>Get your grass to <a href=\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/how-to-get-thick-grass\/\">grow thicker<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/why-neighbors-yard-greener-than-mine\/\">look greener<\/a> on your side of the fence.<\/li>    <li>Trim or prune your <a href=\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/hedge-trimming-cost\/\">hedges<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/bush-trimming-cost\/\">shrubs<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/tree-trimming-cost\/\">trees<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/li>    <li>Make the most of a <a href=\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/small-front-yard-landscaping-ideas\/\">small front yard<\/a>.<\/li>    <li>Create a beautiful landscape <a href=\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/cheap-landscaping-ideas\/\">on a budget<\/a>.<\/li> <\/ul>    <p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/\"><em>Hire a local Lawn Love pro<\/em><\/a><em> to make your lawn look perfect before the big sale.<\/em><\/p>    <h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"media-resources\">Media resources<\/h2>   <div class=\"wp-block-ub-content-toggle wp-block-ub-content-toggle-block\" id=\"ub-content-toggle-block-e8ac8add-ffd4-4b09-8719-c8fed790e763\" data-mobilecollapse=\"true\" data-desktopcollapse=\"true\" data-preventcollapse=\"false\" data-showonlyone=\"false\"> <div class=\"wp-block-ub-content-toggle-accordion\" style=\"border-color: #f1f1f1; border-top-left-radius: 8px; border-top-right-radius: 8px; border-bottom-left-radius: 8px; border-bottom-right-radius: 8px; \" id=\"ub-content-toggle-panel-block-d40ba9fe-252f-4cb7-9cc3-76ae033aa71f\"> \t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-ub-content-toggle-accordion-title-wrap\" style=\"background-color: #f1f1f1;\" aria-controls=\"ub-content-toggle-panel-0-e8ac8add-ffd4-4b09-8719-c8fed790e763\" tabindex=\"0\"> \t\t\t<p class=\"wp-block-ub-content-toggle-accordion-title ub-content-toggle-title-e8ac8add-ffd4-4b09-8719-c8fed790e763\" style=\"color: #000000; \">Quotes from Lawn Love Editor-in-Chief, Sharon Sullivan<\/p> \t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-ub-content-toggle-accordion-toggle-wrap right\" style=\"color: #000000;\"><span class=\"wp-block-ub-content-toggle-accordion-state-indicator wp-block-ub-chevron-down\"><\/span><\/div> \t\t<\/div> \t\t\t<div role=\"region\" aria-expanded=\"false\" class=\"wp-block-ub-content-toggle-accordion-content-wrap ub-hide\" id=\"ub-content-toggle-panel-0-e8ac8add-ffd4-4b09-8719-c8fed790e763\">  <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li>While <strong>Austin<\/strong> (No. 17) is a destination for <a href=\"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/best-cities-for-thrifting\/\">thrifting<\/a>, it shops behind <strong>San Antonio<\/strong> (No. 2), <strong>Dallas<\/strong> (No. 3), <strong>Houston<\/strong> (No. 5), and <strong>Fort Worth<\/strong> (No. 6) with <strong>lower local interest<\/strong> in <strong>yard sales<\/strong> and a <strong>smaller share of homes with garages<\/strong>. However, <strong>Austin leads<\/strong> the Texas Triangle in <strong>yard size<\/strong>, with residences averaging <strong>0.24 acres<\/strong>.<\/li> <\/ul>    <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li><strong>Rochester Hills, Michigan<\/strong> (No. 80), <strong>New Braunfels, Texas<\/strong> (No. 60), and <strong>Edmond, Oklahoma<\/strong> (No. 44), demonstrate <strong>high local interest<\/strong> and the <strong>most ideal Selling Space<\/strong> overall thanks to their <strong>big lawns<\/strong> and <strong>plentiful garages<\/strong>. Unfortunately, bargain-hungry residents <strong>lack yard and estate sales <\/strong>to sift through.\u00a0<\/li> <\/ul>    <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li>Not all big cities offer big opportunities for finding treasure in yard sales. <strong>Boston<\/strong> (No. 474), <strong>Providence<\/strong> (No. 475), and <strong>Jersey City<\/strong> (No. 495) score <strong>near the bottom<\/strong> of our ranking, with less than <strong>1 yard sale per week<\/strong> on average, <strong>low sunshine rates<\/strong>, and <strong>few detached single-family homes<\/strong> \u2014 let alone residences with garages and spacious lawns.<\/li> <\/ul>    <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li>Despite the steady stream of scholars moving in and out each year, college towns like <strong>College Station, Texas<\/strong> (No. 404), <strong>Manchester, New Hampshire<\/strong> (No. 439), and <strong>Tempe, Arizona<\/strong> (No. 440), have <strong>scarce garage sales <\/strong>to shop, swap, and sell.\u00a0<\/li> <\/ul>    <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li><strong>Allen, Texas<\/strong> (No. 85), boasts the <strong>highest share<\/strong> of <strong>homes with garages<\/strong> \u2014 <strong>98%<\/strong>. <strong>Deltona, Florida<\/strong> (No. 173), claims the <strong>highest percentage<\/strong> of <strong>single-family detached homes<\/strong>, <strong>94.4%<\/strong>.\u00a0<\/li> <\/ul>  <\/div> \t\t<\/div> <\/div>   <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li><a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/spreadsheets\/d\/1DAez0eoaXqlbpkyhL553MwV4C0eEHQeRndj6mexkXWs\/edit#gid=0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">High-resolution images of cities<\/a><\/li>    <li><a href=\"https:\/\/infogram.com\/best-cities-for-yard-sales-and-garage-sales-1ho16vogmzqk84n\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">2021\u2019s Best Cities Scouring Garage Sales ranking results<\/a><\/li> <\/ul>    <p class=\"has-small-font-size wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Main Photo Credit:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-photo\/hamptons-new-york-usa-may-26-1101731099\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Shutterstock<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Which cities are best for finding hidden gems at yard and estate sales? Rummage through 2024\u2019s Best Cities for Scouring Garage Sales. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":4045,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[169],"tags":[348],"class_list":["post-4041","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-studies","tag-studies"],"acf":[],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/rsz_shutterstock_1101731099.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"Sav Maive","author_link":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/author\/sav-maive\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4041","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4041"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4041\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4045"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4041"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4041"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4041"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}