MOSES LAKE — Yard sale, garage sale, rummage sale — whatever you call them, they’re a chance for some people to get rid of unwanted stuff and other people to get great deals. 

It may seem like an anything-goes market out there for yard sales, but most municipalities do have regulations to keep sales from getting out of hand.  

Before you start setting up tables and putting out signs, it’s a good idea to know ahead of time what you can and can’t do.  

One thing that’s pretty universal is that signs can’t be posted on trees, telephone poles, or other public structures. Those signs that are attached to boxes and set out on the corner of the sidewalk? They’re illegal in most places, too. Some cities require a permit, and some have limits on how often you can hold a sale.  

Here are the rules for your community, according to the cities’ municipal codes: 

Ephrata: No permit is required, but sales are limited to Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. Signs must be on private property, not on sidewalks, telephone poles or trees that aren’t at the location of the sale. Sellers also may not get around those regulations by posting a sign on a car that’s not at the sale location. Signs cannot include arrows or balloons. 

The city has two public billboards where garage sale signs can be posted: in the parking lot of Basin Market at Division Street East and D Street Southeast, and at Alder Street Southwest and Division Street West in front of the silos. 

Moses Lake: Yard sales in Moses Lake do not require a permit and there is no limit on the number of sales a household can hold. Signs may be displayed for four days only on private property. Signs may not be posted on power poles, sign poles, sidewalks or in the planter strip between the sidewalk and the curb, and must be removed after the sale is over. Signs left up or posted illegally are subject to a fine.  

Quincy: Yard sales require a permit, available at City Hall for $2. Sales may only last three days and can only be held twice at the same address during a calendar year. No more than five families may participate in the same sale and it must be held at the residence of at least one of those families. Signs may be posted up to 72 hours before the event begins and must be taken down within 12 hours of the end of the sale.  

Othello: Yard sales are allowed three times in a year. They can last for up to three days and must be between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. A $5 permit is required and is available from the city clerk. City ordinances don’t specify how early signs may be put out, but they must be taken down within 24 hours of the end of the sale.  

Royal City: Yard sales require a permit, but there is no charge. Only three sales a year are allowed at a given address, and they’re limited to three days between the hours of 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. Everything sold at the sale must belong to the person holding the sale. Signs must be taken down within 24 hours of the end of the sale.  

Mattawa: Yard sales require a permit, but the permit is free. A seller can hold up to five sales in a calendar year, not more than three days at a time and between the hours of 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. Everything sold at the sale must belong to the person holding the sale, and everything must be cleaned up out of the yard immediately after the sale. Signs may be posted up to 48 hours before the sale and must be down within 12 hours of the end. 

Soap Lake: Sales are limited to three times a year and must be spaced out at least four days apart. They can last for three days. No permit is required. 

Each sale is allowed two on-premises signs up to 9 square feet in area, and four off-premises signs up to four square feet. Unlike most municipalities, Soap Lake allows signs in the public right-of-way as long as they’re not on sidewalks or government property and they don’t obstruct traffic or visibility. Balloons and streamers are not allowed for off-premises signs.  

Ritzville: Two sales per year are allowed and must take place between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. No permit is required. Signs are allowed only during the sale and must be free-standing, meaning A-frame or sandwich boards.