Mike DeJesus went shopping last week and found a much better deal than any retail store could offer him. Every item, from men’s clothing to clothing for his three children, was $1 each at RoseAnn Campos’ garage sale in Westchester.

Last year, DeJesus was laid off from his job with an airline at O’Hare International Airport. Since then, he found another job at the airport, but at a lower salary. In order to save money where he can, DeJesus visits local garage sales to get some clothes and toys for his children.

“The way the economy is right now, garage sales are a great way to find cheap stuff,” DeJesus said. “You have to do something even though times are tough.”

DeJesus is not alone. While garage sales might be on the rise, according to a Craigslist spokeswoman, the classified Internet site has seen garage sale postings increase by more than 60 percent this year — the motives for both garage sale buyers and sellers are changing.

Elisabeth Strejc of Lombard wasn’t looking to spend the money she made at her garage sale on a summer vacation or a new car.

On a Friday afternoon in June, Strejc was sitting on a bench in her grandmother’s driveway in Lombard in hopes of earning her own type of scholarship. A sign on the table in front of her read that all proceeds from her garage sale were going to help pay part of her education bill at the College of DuPage in the fall.

“It’s getting rid of stuff we don’t use anymore and paying for college at the same time,” Strejc said.

Strejc’s grandmother Marian Schmoeller was the owner of many of the items for sale. Schmoeller was remodeling her Lombard home, and was looking for a way to get rid of some of her items.

Being a frequent garage sale shopper, she helped her granddaughter with organizing items to create a good appearance for shoppers.

All Christmas items were located in the back of the garage in one area, books in another, and antiques to the right.

“It’s very well organized so it’s attractive to people as they drive by or come in,” Schmoeller said.

After taking an entire day to set up for the two days of selling, Strejc said she was hopeful to earn a few hundred dollars from the weekend.

“It’s better than nothing or throwing the stuff out,” Strejc said.

Not everything that was left after the sale was trashed, however. Many sellers, including Strejc and Campos said they were donating a large portion of the items that don’t sell.

“Last year we kept a lot, but this year we’re going to donate it and start fresh next year,” Campos said.

Resale organizations such as Goodwill see increased donations every summer thanks to garage sale leftovers.

Dee Hardy, manager of the Goodwill store in North Riverside, said the store receives a larger number of donations in the summer after weekend garage sales.

“We get a huge leftover on Sunday evenings and Monday mornings,” Hardy said. “I’ve never really paid attention (to the most donated item), but there’s always clothing.”

Sally Studio, manager at Deja Vu, a St. Vincent de Paul thrift store in Geneva, said  post-garage sale donations give the store an increase in products during the summer.

“You can tell it’s garage sale items because they still have price stickers on them,” Studio said. “Not everything is always good, but if you find two or three good things in a box, it’s OK.”

While more people might be shopping at garage sales looking for a bargain, it hasn’t changed spending habits at retail stores in Illinois, said Peter Gill, a spokesman for the Illinois Retail Merchants Association.

“There’s a big difference between a new product at a big store and stuff selling out of a garage or yard sale,” Gill said. “Retailers have competition amongst each other for new products.”

After a successful trip to Campos’ sale, DeJesus, the Westchester father of three, walked away with a plastic bag full of new clothes for his children, and even a few toys. He said he won’t stop hitting garage sales in hopes of a bargain.

“Whenever I see a good one advertised in the paper, I’ll be there,” DeJesus said.

Staff writer Hal Conick contributed to this report.