I found out that the "goodwill by the pound" store I go to has auctions every week and even though it's not a storage auction, it sounded interesting so that's where I started. I thought I would be intimidated since I'd never been to an auction before but I was so caught up in the excitement of it that there wasnt any time to be intimidated. For me, it was the same rush I get from gambling but it's much better because if you lose money, you walk away with something...
Instead of auctioning off units, Goodwill auctions off giant bins of pre sorted stuff. The first time, I Bought 3 of the 8 bins they were auctioning. Altogether, I paid less than $300 and got some great stuff! Including:
A painting : estimated value- $300-600 (I love it though so I'm keeping it)
An old weaving machine: $100-900
Adams plates (that we almost threw away): $200 ea.(set of 8)
Antique sewing machine in case: $150
Victrola table top phonograph: $100-200 (as is)
Pink impression glass: $200-1500
Of course we may not be able to sell this stuff for it's actual value but I'll make some money on it for sure. I think my favorite find at the goodwill auction was my see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil frogs. I don't know the monetary value but it doesn't really matter because I love them!
With a couple goodwill auctions under my belt, I was ready to set off in pursuit of the "wow factor"...
My first storage auction was on Friday, January 20th. It started at 10:30 am. We left at 8:30. It was about 40 min away and we wanted to get there early because they only accept the first 50 people. We had no idea what to expect and I think I would have cried if they turned me away. I couldn't sleep the night before I was so excited!
On the way, I stopped at the bank to withdraw money- most auctions are cash only- a quick stop for coffee and we got there in plenty of time. We signed in and then waited anxiously for auction time. As people started to show up, I found myself trying to gauge who they were, what they were there for and how deep their pockets were. The crowd was overwhelmingly male- with a few couples- so we stood out immediately. Even though we had 2 male friends with us, we found people curiously studying me and my friend Tara. Maybe they just found us incredibly attractive but more likely, they were trying to get a read on us.
We had an interesting crew for sure. There was me and Tara, our friend Fritz who does a lot of eBay and also owns a sign company, my friend Matt who is very helpful, owns a truck and isn't afraid to work hard but who can also be extremely loud and embarrassing in public and my mother in law- who, as she ages, seems to lose her social filter and will therefore say some off color things sometimes.... I think maybe bringing the last two was a good strategy. It threw people for a loop and they didnt know WHAT to make of us!
The auctioneer showed up and started going over the rules. Note: learn the rules BEFORE you go. The auctioneer is required to ask if there are any questions but its rhetorical! I could literally feel the aggression coming off the eager auction goers when Matt started asking stupid questions. I'm pretty sure I saw rhe auctioneer roll his eyes at one point. Finally I stepped on Matt's foot and told him he was going to have to shut up.
Mostly everyone was very pleasant. We were joking and laughing as the auctioneer led us to the first unit. He cut the lock and opened it up. Right away I noticed that the boxes seemed to be orderly but that whoever owned it didn't have much money. That was evident from the furniture. There were a couple fiber board pieces and old couches that had probably been second or third hand by the time they got to their current owner. Still- there were lots of boxes and they could be filled
With anything!
I had decided the unit wasn't for me and that I wouldn't be bidding when the auctioneer started asking for the first bid. I don't know what came over me but I found myself raising my hand and saying "yeah." I couldn't stop myself! I won it for $170. I gave the auctioneer my name and then locked up the unit with a lock that Fritz brought (thank god he had one). And it was on to the next two Units.The second one was packed with boxes and bags and looked very interesting but mostly, it looked like a lot of work... I didn't bid on it but looking back, I probably would have been better off with that one rather than the one I got. It had very little furniture and furniture is tough to move! Oh Well- You live and learn.
The third one clearly belonged to someone who had to get out of where they were living... And fast. I got tired just thinking about going through all of it. I was glad later that I had no interest in it because the owner of the unit showed up to try and stop the auction. I think I would have felt bad if I'd won it.
The auctioneer has a circuit that he does... So from the first storage place, everyone follows him to the next. We paid for my unit and headed to the second auction. Even though I was dying to see what I'd gotten, I still had 900 burning a hole in my pocket and Tara said shed go in on a unit with me if we saw a good one.
Right before the auction was going to start, my husband Art showed up. His work was close by so he took an early lunch and decided to see what the whole thing was about. It was a nice surprise.
Unfortunately, the only good unit at the second place was the one everyone wanted. It went for 1700 (which was 500 more than I could go) It was a bummer because the 1700 investment could easily have been doubled with just the furniture you could see from the doorway. Plus there were lots of bins. A couple were clear and you could see the stuff inside was carefully wrapped. It was my dream unit and I was bummed...but at least it gives me something to aspire to.
It was Getting late and I wanted to at least peak at my finds so we opted not to go to the final 2 auctions and headed back to the first storage place.(Later we wished we'd gone to the other two-It's definitely addicting)
There was a lot of crap, I won't sugar coat that and I have to say, I was disappointed at first. Especially when we came across all the owners personal papers and learned that she was fairly young and most likely was in jail. We were able to piece everything together and come to the conclusion that someone else had packed up all her stuff after she was arrested and rented the unit. (we found the receipt for the unit with someone else's name). It was sad. I hadn't counted on there being an emotional aspect to all of it. We made sure all personal things were returned to the office- picture, love letters, bills, etc. once that was done, it was easier to look at the other stuff objectively.
It wasn't a total bust. There were some dolls worth about 100 each so I made my money back on those alone...
2 used pregnancy tests
Hamper full of dirty clothes
A cd with pictures of her daughters funeral (Im pretty sure she was just a baby- it made me very sad)
Best finds:
Dolls- est. value 200-500
DVDs and computer games
Lite brite!
Most places give you 24-48 hours to clear out the unit- broom swept. You have to give $100 deposit that you get back when that's done. We went back that night. It took 4 of us a couple hours to sort and load everything.
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| Almost clear |
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| All Clear |
By the end of the night I was exhausted!
Some things I learned:
1.There are certain things you need to bring with you:
-A lock is essential if you plan on buying anything
-a flashlight is very helpful
-Lots of cash!
-A broom, garbage bags, rope, and bins (if you buy a unit)
2. Don't bid on large items if you don't have a big enough truck! (Ok this seems like common sense but I got so caught up in everything that I didn't care!!)
3. Don't be a hoarder! If you have a tendency to hold on to things, storage auctions are probably not for you. Come up with a plan on how to liquidate things quickly or else they will take over your life! I have someone who sells my stuff for me and I try to turn it around within 2 days.
4. Make friends with other buyers. Once we started talking to people, they were pretty good about giving us tips- although one buyer who came over to "be helpful" was definitely only interested in getting a peak at what we got in our unit!
5. Bring help when clearing out the unit. It may not look like it, but it's A LOT of work.
6. Pre-sort. We didn't go crazy but we did separate things into general piles. we brought bags of donatable stuff to the goodwill before we did anything else.
All in all,My first storage auction was exciting and fun but much more work than I anticipated...
It's more of a gamble than the goodwill auctions but the payoff will be bigger when I hit the jackpot!
I'll be going again for sure! I'm still looking for that hidden gem !
My next goodwill auction is the day after tomorrow! I can hardly wait!
Check back to see how I do.
Happy Bargain Hunting to all!!
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