This one may seem controversial, but I understand both sides. So, before you get upset, hear me out. Having a yard sale is ecological and environmental. Having too many yard sales is the opposite – we have to meet in the middle.
Why People Have Yard Sales
If someone is moving, they’ll want to sell some items they no longer need. If they’re downsizing, these items are sold because they don’t fit. Speaking of, after reading this, check out my post called, Should You Downsize Your Home? to learn how to work around moving and decluttering.
Still, most things in a yard sale are gently used, so don’t quite make the donation pile, but stand tall enough to make a buck or two off it.
Other people have yard sales because they want to declutter and make more money. Your trash is someone else’s treasure, truly. And good on you for not throwing these things away! You’re keeping our landfills clear when you give or sell your belongings to others.
I’ve been to a yard sale down my street to buy bar stools I needed for my new home. Turned out, the yard sale wasn’t full of items from the homeowner. He ran a charity with his nonprofit and sold donated items to fundraise for the children he was sponsoring to provide them with an education – he was a retired teacher turned philanthropist. I got four stools for $30 total. Such a deal and I felt good helping the cause. (By the way, this was validated as not a scam because my mother was with me and she had worked with this former teacher before she retired.)
Speaking of my mother…
When You Have Too Many Yard Sales
My mother is notorious for having a yard sale every season. When I ask her what she could possibly fill her driveway with this time, the answer is always the same.
“I want to sell my TV stand, and my bedroom set, and the dresser in the guest room, and the clothes I just bought, and my…” The list goes on, and it hasn’t changed. She’s literally gone through three bedroom sets in three years.
First of all, where were these items when you first had a yard sale?
You see, that’s what she does. She sells a bunch of stuff, then buys a bunch of stuff. But being a thrift Queen, she buys items just because they’re a good deal from Offer Up or Habitat for Humanity. Sometime sooner than later, she regrets it and doesn’t love the item anymore. She’s also sold on Offer Up. Her furniture has a quick turn-around. You want to know the pieces she has never sold and rather, has kept for decades? The ones she bought new, which she was so deeply in love with. Also ecological and environmental.
The point is, if you’re going to have a yard sale, let it be for cleansing and living more simply. Let it be because you don’t need the items and only want to keep what you love in your home. If you are going to purchase replacement furniture or clothes, be sure not to rush into it. Buy things you love and have always wanted. Really take the time to think about it. It’s a waste of money and adds to consumerism when we go out and spend all the money we just made.
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