by Misha Mustaqeem
With the end of summer coming up, many around Coach Hill and Patterson Heights are gearing up to host a garage sale for our Parade of Garage Sales on September 16. So how do you have a successful garage sale? Here are some tips.
#1: Follow All Municipal Bylaws Regarding Garage Sales
The relevant bylaws that apply to hosting a garage sale relate to temporary signs: first – temporary signs cannot be placed closer than 15 meters to any intersection and must be 30 meters from any City bus shelter, transit bench, bus zone, LRT station, or LRT platform. Second – they cannot be placed within 20 meters of a sign that depicts the same idea or which is posted by the same owner, 2 meters of a Fire Hydrant, 10 meters of a crosswalk that is not an intersection, closer than 2 meters from the curb or edge of the road, on any traffic island or center meridian, or which obstructs any traffic control device. You also cannot put any signs on prohibited or restricted roadways. (City of Calgary)
#2: Follow All Health Canada Regulations Regarding What You Can and Cannot Sell
Health Canada has several items that you cannot sell. According to it’s website, you cannot sell any baby gates that have a diamond shaped opening (they say it’s thanks to safety concerns), you cannot sell any car seats that do not have a National Safety Mark and which do not meet regulations (in addition, Health Canada asks you to check with Transport Canada on whether or not the car seat has been recalled), and they strongly advise against selling car seats that have been involved in a collision. (Government of Canada, 2012). It is also illegal to sell children’s jewelry that is above the legal limit of lead (due to obvious lead poisoning concerns), and they do not recommend selling cotton children’s sleepwear. These and more can be seen at: https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/consumer-product-safety/reports-publications/consumer-education/facts-garage-sale-vendors.html.
#3: Price Items Appropriately
Pricing items is very important during a garage sale as it effectively communicates with the purchaser how much you will need to spend to get the item. However, if you price the item too high, the purchaser is likely going to have problems with forking over the money to purchase the product, and if it’s too low, you likely will feel as if you did not get enough money for the product you want to sell. Factor in several aspects – the age and the amount you paid to get the product initially. If it’s an old product, factor in inflation. For example, if you paid $100 for a DVD player initially, it might mean that you could charge $110 or $90. However, you should also factor in who wants a DVD player. Make sure you price things well before you host your garage sale.
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