For four days next week, the garages of Palos Hills will turn into treasure troves — and one dead-end street will even have baby chicks for sale.

Bargain Days, a citywide garage sale tradition organized by longtime residents Dawn Williams and Sue Workman, returns May 15–18. In past years, the event has drawn between 75 and 100 homes. So far, about 40 homes have registered, and organizers expect more to sign up in the coming days.

“We’re just residents running this to bring people together — and hopefully help everyone find some good stuff,” Williams said.

Sales typically run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day, but there’s no official time limit. Individual sellers can set their own hours.

A full list of participating addresses and featured items will be posted on the Palos Hills Bargain Days Facebook page. Printed lists will also be available at the Palos Hills Community Center and City Hall.

At each address, sellers will highlight a few major items — such as entertainment centers, recliners and other big-ticket furniture or household goods — to help shoppers plan their routes. 

Residential garages will host most sales, but those living in townhomes and condos can now join the fun at the Community Center’s “Trash to Treasure” day Saturday. The event, added last year, gives residents who can’t hold garage sales at home a chance to sell their items too.

“We just started doing that last year,” Williams said. “It gives everyone a chance to participate and clear out their homes.”

Organizers added Thursday sales this year after noticing that many sellers started packing up early on Sundays. Expanding the event to four full days gives shoppers more time to explore.

Beyond bargains, Williams said the real heart of Bargain Days is the community spirit. Over the years, she and Workman have seen neighbors reconnect, families chat over driveways, and kids pitch in with lemonade stands. 

One young girl across 103rd Street even donates her lemonade earnings to the Palos Hills Police Department every year.

“She’s just wonderful,” Williams said.

Williams, who has lived in Palos Hills since she was 10 years old, will run a sale out of her family’s longtime home on South 81st Avenue — the one at the dead end — where she’ll also be selling baby chickens.

“It depends how many hatch,” she said.

Parking is residential and first-come, first-served. Shoppers are encouraged to follow the Palos Hills Bargain Days Facebook group for updates, photos and videos posted by sellers.

With decades in Palos Hills behind her, Williams said the event’s endurance reflects something lasting.

“With everything that’s going on in the world, the positivity in this event is what we love,” she said. “A reason for people to talk, and for community.”

For more information, contact Dawn Williams at 773-307-0999.