Car Garages and Garage Sales

Now that the weather is cooler, some families will start thinking about opening the garage door and holding a garage sale. It’s kind of a comical name since they aren’t really selling the garage. The history of garage sales is a little story which explains elements of history, architecture, and the economy.

Garage sales started--branching out of rommage, a discount sale of unclaimed cargo at the shipyards in the early 1800s. As time progressed, similar sales became popular in social hubs such as churches.  Finally, in the ’50s and ’60s, yard sales became family and neighborhood events.

Moving the garage

But, in the ’70s and ’80s, housing developments became popular. The architecture of homes changed, offering an attached garage which opened at the front of the home. Previously garages (and carriage houses before them) were located behind the house.  The new design was necessary because housing developments needed streamlined traffic.

Whereas prior to that time, porches and social activities were in the front of the house, the garage pushed those things to the back of the home, creating much more family privacy and less social interaction between neighbors. Meanwhile, the front-facing garage became a major part of the house front architecture and changed the social structure of our neighborhoods.

Juggling possessions

As the economy spiraled upward, television became more influential in selling products. As people bought more and better stuff, they began to need a way to get rid of things they didn’t want anymore. No one wanted to throw away perfectly serviceable items, and if they had some extra money in their pocket, all the better.

Everything but the car.

But wait--the garage is now the predominant structure in the front of the home!  A family could assemble their sale in the privacy of the garage and merely slide open the door to be ‘OPEN’ for business. The security of a garage door was a bonus. The fact is that a garage is something close to ideal when it comes to home sales, as long as one isn’t particular about where the intended occupant, a.k.a. the car, is parked during this symphony of commerce.

The garage sale

In fact, the further away the car is from the business at hand, the better. If there is a lot of selling to be done, tables of merchandise can be set up to lead back to the garage and presumably the homeowner/merchants. The actual garage can be used in one of several ways in this situation. Either it can be used as the hive of commerce, for the display of the rarest of goods, or for the things the family couldn’t bear to part with but couldn’t have cluttering up the confines of their home.

So, what may seem like the humble garage to many families is the means to three tickets to a show during the Lady Gaga residency. Garage sales can be massively lucrative and very well worth the effort. Even more essential is the possibility that the car will once again be ensconced in the garage following the purge which a garage sale brings. Garage parking for the car will be especially welcome in the coming months as the weather heats up in what has already started and promises to be a long, hot summer.

If you are in the Phoenix Metro area and want a no-hassle cash offer on an old, wrecked, unwanted, salvage or burned car, SUV, van or truck, give us a call at I Buy Junk Cars. 480-771-8290.