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Make Extra Money with Yard Sales

09.19.2011 by Jon the Saver //

Having a yard sale is the perfect way to get rid of things you don’t use and turn them into cash. Although the prospect of conducting a yard sale may seem a little daunting, it’s actually easier than you might think. The first caveat of a good yard sale is to have good quality merchandise. The second is that it needs to be priced attractively, and the third is that the merchandise should be displayed in a neat and orderly fashion.

Pick your items carefully

Clean out your basement, attic, garage and closets; keep items that are gently used but still serviceable as sellable items. Take items you don’t think you can sell to Goodwill or simply turn them into rags, work clothes, etc. Remember, if you wouldn’t want to wear it, someone else won’t want to buy it. Similarly, if an electrical appliance is past its useful life, it probably won’t bring much money unless someone has the exact appliance and needs parts.

Common sense pricing

When pricing your items, keep in mind that people are looking for bargains at yard sales so they don’t want to pay store prices. A good guideline is to not price an item at more than 40% of retail price. Since anything that doesn’t sell will have to be stored again, you want to sell as much of it as possible, so use your prices as guidelines, not hard and fast rules. When negotiating a price, ask yourself whether you would rather have the cash or continue to store the unused item.

In addition, all merchandise for sale should be clearly marked with the price. Items can be priced individually or they can be grouped on a rack or table by price. Pricing items individually may take a little extra time but it prevents buyers from swapping items on adjacent tables or racks. Consider getting an old pricing gun to make this less time consuming… I would look on eBay, or go to my local grocery store and ask if I can buy one from them.

Clean and organized

Another consideration is that the merchandise should be neat and clean. Even though clothing may be out of style, people may still buy it as long as the item is clean and in reasonably good condition. A clean and unwrinkled shirt, for example, will bring a higher price than a similar shirt that is wadded up on a table and soiled. Additionally, tools that have been cleaned up and are not covered with dirt, oil and grease will be more likely to sell, as is furniture that has been dusted and polished.

Having a multi-family yard sale is an excellent way to attract more sales since prospective buyers will have more merchandise from which to select. Also, this reduces the advertising effort and expense because more families are sharing the work and the cost.

Advertising = cash

Advertise the yard sale on local street corners near the location of the sale and use heavy-duty, weatherproof poster board and waterproof, permanent marker. When making the signs, be sure to include the address, the date(s) and time, and that it is a multi-family sale. Use large, bold lettering to ensure that passers by can easily read the sign; stand thirty feet away from the finished sign and see if you can read it easily. If not, make another sign.

Posting on Craigslist and in the classified section of the local newspaper are excellent ways to attract more customers. Remember, the better your marketing efforts, the more people you’ll have to sell to.

Keep change on hand

Be sure to have plenty of cash on hand for making change. Dollar bills, quarters, nickels, dimes and pennies will be the method of exchange for your yard sale so make sure there are ample funds for making change. Some type of cash drawer will be necessary, whether it is a locking box or an old register, because you don’t want to see any of your hard-earned cash walking or blowing away.

Be patient

Be prepared for shoppers to arrive at least a couple of hours ahead of time for the day you have your yard sale. Many people make a day of yard-sale shopping and start very early in the morning; they may well arrive before the posted times.

Enjoy the interaction at your garage sale and look forward to the extra cash you’ll have in your wallet at the end of the day!

Categories // Earn Money Tags // extra cash, sales

Save On Groceries and Eat Well

09.06.2011 by Jon the Saver //

For most families, saving money on groceries is becoming more and more important. While I don’t have any children of my own, I do remember what it was like to be part of a family of five, and am tying the knot soon so who knows! My Mom was queen of frugal and somehow managed to feed our entire family on $300/month.  How the heck did she do this?  Looking back, it kind of makes sense.  She probably didn’t think twice about it but she actively used some common sense strategies to keep the food bill at a minimum.

Matt’s note: here are more tips from me and Betsy to help save money on groceries.

My Mom had to prepare all the meals during the day.  That included breakfast, lunch, dinner and any snacks.  These tips kept our grocery bill low.

Plan ahead

Planning is the most important tip you need to take away from this article.  Plan your route, if you’re going to more than one store, and plan what you’re going to buy.  Limit yourself to your list and leave with only the items on your list.  I recommend that you plan your meals ahead of time so you don’t find yourself running to the grocery store for emergency trips.

If you’re going to multiple stores, be sure to bring ads and coupons for each store and keep them in individual stacks.  As you can see, it took my Mom a significant amount of planning to save on the grocery bill.  Put this first tip to action and you will be well on your way to saving big on your next grocery run.

Buy in bulk

Sam’s and Costco are some of the most popular grocery stores for good reason.  Buying in bulk, when done right, saves money and makes sense.  Save yourself a trip to the store and buy large quantities of typical grocery items.  Keep an eye out for extra discounted items and try to buy food that can be frozen.

The key to buying in bulk is to do your research and plan ahead. Think about what your family goes through the fastest. Write out your list of common, staple items and stick to the list. Knowing you have a large quantity in the kitchen will give you peace of mind.

Shop without kids or alone

Looking back, I actually never remember going grocery shopping with my Mom.  I either stayed home or was told to hang out with my Dad.  Either way, my Mom never brought me grocery shopping.  It all makes sense now!  If I had gone with her, I bet I would have begged for luxury items like cocoa puffs and donuts.  As a matter of fact, I know I would have.  I was a hungry little kid and any advertisement would have caught my eye.  Plus, I think she knew she had a soft spot for us so taking us to the grocery store was inviting poor stewardship.

Do what my Mom did, leave your kids at home and do the grocery shopping by yourself.  Don’t feel guilty either.  Spending time with your kids at the grocery store isn’t necessarily quality time anyway.

In short, saving money on the grocery bill isn’t hard, it just takes patience and some thinking outside of the box.  Plan ahead of time, buy in bulk, and leave your kids at home!  These tips will save you money and hassle.

Categories // Money Management Tags // food

Hidden Value of Our Work

08.28.2011 by Jon the Saver //

I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately about my career and the value of my job. I know that the first thing that comes to mind in terms of value is my salary but I want to dig deeper than that. I don’t know about you but when I think about my job in terms of money, I end up feeling like a number. There’s gotta be more value than just the salary, right?

So, I sat back this weekend and did some brainstorming in regards to what I value within my job. As it turns out, there’s a lot more I value than just my salary! Here are the things I came up with and hopefully they will help you value your job a little more this week:

Complete Benefits Package

Most people don’t think about this benefit that adds so much value to their career. I didn’t until just recently when I had to get my teeth cleaned at the dentist. When I was walking about, I asked how much I owed for the service and I got a reply back, “sir, you owe nothing, your insurance paid for it.” What a blessing! The bill was a couple hundred dollars and not a penny came out of my pocket. I realized that a comprehensive health and dentist plan covered by an employer is a HUGE benefit and adds tremendous value to your career. Even looking down the line in my own life with a family and kids, insurance becomes that much more important.

And I can’t forget to mention 401k plans. Since most companies offer these retirement accounts, you can take advantage of employer matching (if yours offers) and get ahead in your retirement planning portfolio. You couldn’t do this without your employer. That’s another big value of working for someone. Speaking of which, I need to increase my contributions this week!

Matt’s note: You can do this without your employer, but employer sponsored plans are definitely a blessing to be used and appreciated.

Networking Opportunities

This is a massive value in my opinion.  We all know that most people end up changing companies at some point during their career.  You never know when you will need recommendations for job opportunities or need a contact about finding a new job.  We spend a considerable amount of time in the workplace and those relationships can last a lifetime.  Think about mentors you’ve had, great bosses, and fun co-workers.  These relationships add tremendous value to anyone’s careers and should not be minimized or taken for granted.

Making an Impact for Christ

This is something that I’ve begun to realize more and more as I work within the corporate world.  God has placed us in our career at a specific company for a specific reason.  I cannot begin to tell you about the amazing talks I’ve had with co workers and the opportunities to bring them to church with me – how amazing is that?!  God did not design us to be worker bees left with no purpose other than busy work.  He designed us to change the workplace for his glory.  I have found that this type of thinking not only adds great value to my career but keeps me inspired to get up for work in the morning even when I don’t feel like it.

Solid Work-Life Balance

For me, this balance ranks much higher than my salary.  If a company offered me $100,000 but expected 80 hours a week, I would tell the company to take a hike.  If a similar company offered me $75,000 but expected me to only work 40 hours a week, I’d take the latter of the two.  Work-life balance is huge in my book.  When I feel pressured to budge on this issue, I think about extremely rich people on their death beds with no friends or family to comfort them as they pass.  Remember folks, money is a fleeting thing and will never bring happiness.  Only Christ can fulfill our hearts desire, so don’t get trapped into the lie that money is more important than or your relationships with family, friends, and the Lord.

As you can see, salary is only a sliver of the total value of my career.  It’s critical that we think of our jobs as a total package and not just numbers.  It causes us to value our job significantly more which helps us have a better time at work.

Take some time this week and brainstorm some things you value about your career.  I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised!

Categories // Earn Money, Spirituality Tags // career

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