With gas prices these days, it is important to really consolidate your yard sale runs and get the most value and the least expense when you shop for bargains. One of the best ways to do this is to consider multifamily or community sales. These sales typically have several “sellers,” making your chances of finding multiple good bargains pretty high.
Unfortunately, though, all yard sales that are designated as multifamily sales aren’t created equal. Sometimes a multifamily sale can consist of two small folding tables with lots of “junk.” Here are some ways that you can find the better multifamily sales, or at least make your gas and time investment as small as possible.
Look for community sales first. Yard or tag sales that are sponsored by an official community, such as a town wide sale or a township sale, a church sale or a civic organization sale will be your best bet. This is because the officials in the community will work hard to make sure that spots are being filled and that goods being sold meet certain criteria. Often, sellers pay a small fee or at least register, so those who are selling are pretty invested in the sale.
When you go to a community sale, scour the area close to where the sale is held. Often, you will find off shoot sales where local people who are not participating in the official sale will still hold sales of their own. You can often pick up another handful of sales this way without traveling out of your way.
Look for sales that are close to home. This way, you know you won’t be spending a lot of time or gas on getting their. If they turn out to be duds, then you don’t have a much to lose as if you were traveling more of a distance.