I'm in So. CA. & people don't have any money or are afraid they will be the next to be laid off. With health insurance going up & coal & other industries being shut down making utilities go up & told they will go much higher, people just don't want to pay much. Although the local thrift shop is quite busy. Too hot for many yard sale & summer ones don't do well, no body wnts to get out when it is so hot. Today 107 degrees!

I would say the fault is in your marketing....from all I see there is no decling in the market for fine antiques.

You keep posting this same question .. you don't like the answers you've already gotten?

Another thing to consider is during the "country look" years people got carried away & ended up with huge collections of stuff .America has gotten into more of a European less stuff look. Magazine pics show lot of pics that look like show rooms or "houses for sale look" as there is very little to tell anyone lives there, maybe a bike outside , couple of books on coffee table, coffee maker in kitchen, no cabinet full of salt & pepper shakers etc. I call it the "bare bones look" even lot of movie stars homes have nothing but a throw on sofa or couple of pillows. You don't get sense of anything the folks that live there like to do, so that rubs off on us even tho that European look has been around for 20 yrs or more some are slow to get it. People that have had to downsize & gave up lot of stuff don't want to "lose it" all again or can't afford what they used to. Times have changed. Lot of so called "high end " furniture we thought of as junk when it came out in late 1950's Platform with cushions on it of heavy foam(sofa), no style now you see the square tables & boxy sofas all over & I dislike them as much as ever. The cheap knock offs are soon piled up for the trash men to haul off. The wealthy get them with better fabrics & it's called high end or midcentury modern etc. It doesn't fit well with scalloped edge tables, styles change. I tend to think nice glass pieces are beautiful but I've always loved them but then again people don't want to have to wash them, don't use good silver or china so only those interested will buy. It's the throw away society, time is spent on Internet & other things & even cooking for families is fading away. I just saw large packages of precooked meals somewhere, just pop it in the microwave & dinner is served in short time I guess.

x

People I know use silver, stemmed glasses even for every day, china and don't serve precooked meals.

I had one woman actually picked up an EAPG pitcher and started walking away with it. I stopped her and said that the pitcher was $10. She replied, "I don't know why I would have to pay anything. After all, it's stuff you don't want or it wouldn't be out here."

If you offer something - merchandise, a service, whatever - and it doesn't sell either its something nobody wants - or you aren't getting the attention of and appealing to the people who do want it.

Always.

I am guessing that you have had repeated yard sales with much of this same merchandise and people are getting the idea that you are really desperate to get rid of it.

It could be that people see similar items in the thrift stores and think if it was in the thrift shop, it's not worth a lot- it's a give away.

Clean it up, polish it well, and ask $25 ... let yourself be bargained down to ten.

People do steal at garage sales, even if it is priced a dollar.

If there is an estate sale company in your area, you would of been better off with that. People swarm when they have one here. They know what is selling and what it is selling for. Still, you are not going to get what you think it is worth. Collecting just does not exist anymore. Most of the generation below mine does not use china, crystal, or silver. They spend a lot on dishes, but want something that goes for all year and will go in the dishwasher.If you have had a lot of sales, people are going to ignore your sale because they think they know what is there.

If you want to sell on Craigslist, Take very good pictures of the item (including any warts). Price it to sell. I always put in the ad.: Price is firm. Cash only. No delivery. Any email must have name and local phone number and I will return call. I also recommend having an e-mail account just for Craigslist. You will get spam emails. Anything wanting to pay and have you ship is a scam on Craigslist.

I have been cleaning out my own stuff (and parents and grandparents). I have sold some of it, but most I have donated to the local animal rescue thrift stores. I have been reading on here that a lot of people are just starting to use the good stuff everyday and put it in the dishwasher. It's not worth anything anymore and no one will want it, so why not enjoy it!