HOW TO ORGANIZE A SUCCESSFUL YARD SALE (TheNest.com)

• Set a date. Yard sale season starts in June and runs until October (or until the weather stops cooperating). Choose a date a few months or weeks ahead of time and stick to it. Use the time in between to start thinking about what you need to get rid of.
• Share the wealth. Enlist friends to join in a block party-style tag sale or rent a space at a local church or other organization's rummage sale. The more people, the more buzz and traffic.
• Drum up business ahead of time. Take out a classified ad in your local paper, post a notice on a local Internet message board, and canvass the area with flyers. Identify the date of the sale plus the start and end times.
• Create a line-up. Remember, this is your chance to get rid of clutter once and for all. Weeks before the event, scour your closets, basement, and attic (don't forget Mom and Dad's if you've got stuff stored away there), make a list of what you'll sell.
• Don't get personal with pricing. As you're surveying your pile of saleable goods, start pricing each item to sell. Remember, just because it pains you to part with your precious (and well-loved) New Kids On The Block T-shirt collection, it doesn't mean it's a collector's item and worth $200.
• Keep the change. Arrange to have a variety of bills and coins available to make change -- consider changing out $200 in various denominations. Keep a calculator and a change belt or fanny pack on you for quick and easy sales.
• Get up early. Yard sale devotees and antique hunters are notorious for showing up at the crack of dawn to be first in line. If you said your sale starts at 8:00 a.m., be ready to start at 7:45. This way, both early birds get the worm.
• Set the stage. If you want to sell all of your stuff, do a little window dressing. Place furniture -- particularly antiques -- front-and-center so they can be seen from the road. If you're selling clothes, hang them from a clothesline.
• Set the mood. The idea is to make some cash, but it doesn't mean you have to be all business. Cue the music, tie up some balloons, and create a festive atmosphere. Remember, you want to remain available for questions and have the opportunity to say hello and goodbye to everyone -- even if they don't end up buying.
• Sweat the small stuff. Buyers tend to overlook -- and undervalue -- small things like toys, small kitchen items, and jewelry if they aren't organized properly. Consider grouping items in sandwich bags -- you'll sell more of the little stuff faster.
• Slash prices at the halfway point. As your yard sale starts to wrap up, consider cutting prices in half. Make up a sign ahead of time and then bring it out a few hours before you're ready to wrap up. You'll increase your sales if people think they're getting a better deal -- everyone loves a bargain.
• Designate a free pile. Not everyone will love everything you've set out. Create a free pile and start adding items to it every half hour or so. You'll get rid of stuff faster.
• Keep the Salvation Army on standby. Inevitably, you won't sell everything at your yard sale. But don't commit an organizational sin by dragging all of that stuff back into the house. Arrange a pickup by your favorite local charity and have the remaining stuff hauled away.