Auction questions

Never had one, but I need one lol... got a bunch of stuff that I don’t want.... grandma passed, nobody wants her stuff... me included.. but they put all her stuff in my barn and told me to deal with it.. piles of rocker chairs, Cain chairs, tons of Christmas stuff, oil lamps plus a lot of old stuff antiques... iv got a good idea what’s stuff worth but I don’t have the time to deal with it... I called a auction guy and he came over and looked... told me he can sell everything.. two day sale and they haul the the stuff to there auction house, they take care of advertising. They do it all for 30 percent.. it’s that a good deal? What should I look out for when dealing with auction people? He did say that all the stuff I had the newer generation does not want... that would be me lol.. but I new that.

Read the fine print, make sure it is only the 30% with no hidden transport or disposal fees, we had a auction of my great aunts stuff and somehow ended up oweing the auction place additional money.

Forget that. Call mike and frank.

Put up a FREE sign and It will all be gone In few days.

Lol, iv already burned a bunch and dumpsterr some,

In my opinion, you should NOT have burnt or dumpstered anything. You may think you know what stuff is worth but you never know what folks want to buy and in some cases pay good money for. Just a thought in case there is a "next time".

As far as the auction fee, 30% is fairly standard. However, in many cases, that is just the base fee. 30 % of the total sale. There may also be charges for advertising, building rental (if they don't have their own facility)., charges for packing and hauling the items.

He said 30 percent for everything, me no touch... I’m going to call him tomorrow and see if I can’t get something in writing

30% sounds like a good deal especially if you don't have to fool with it. I am skeptical that they can move everything in 2 days without almost giving it away.

The reality is that the antique/collectable market has declined. Young people starting out are as interested in nice things as previous generation. You can find fine furniture on craigslist for a steal because you can hardly give it away.

My wife and I liquidated her parents stuff when they died through a series of yardsales, followed by donations to charities.

When my mother moved to a retirement community, there was an auction amongst my siblings (6 of us) and then the rest went to charities.

Your other option is to run a few yardsales in the late spring and then donate. That's a lot more work and possibility for less money.

I don’t have time for yard sales, I sold some stuff on eBay but don’t like paying them.. lol I told the guy everything sells, I don’t care for how much money... he said there’s lots of stuff and he maybe want a two day auction.. 4 hours one day 4 hours auction next day

Never been to a two day Auction....Ive been to many many 8 to 10 hour auctions. , one day though.

Me either, always they last all day

Not sure where you are in WNY but one place to try is bid-n-buy auctions in Castile NY. They run most of their auctions online and get very good prices most of the time. Their standard commissions are usually 10% on the seller and a 10% buyers premium. They sell a lot of the type of stuff you are talking about.

I have never had a big auction with them but have sold random unwanted items though their consignment auctions and have been very happy with the results.

After my wife passed, I auctioned off, my 19 acres, my home, and a HUGE bunch of stuff. Now I’m certaing everyone thinks auctions are a way to unload stuff quickly at a loss to the owner. Not so if you find the right auctioneer.

He did the chattels(the stuff) about one month before the day of my house and separate acreage auction.

He does huge amounts of advertising.

End result: Chattels: over $15,000. House: I netted about $20,000 over appraised value (after his fees) Acreage: more than doubled what I paid for it after 10 years ownership.

Fees: Chattel: 10% plus cost of advertising and $10 per hour for workers to set up and work the auction. I paid no where near 30%. Auction was on site. Sale took about 4 hrs. 75 or more people.

Acreage: 10%. Sale took maybe 45 mins. It was 2 hours before my home auction. 30 people there?

House: 10%. Took maybe 1 hr. 50 people? Some bidding by phone from out of state.

Anyway keep looking. On the chattel I contacted ones who took the stuff to an auction house. Fees were much higher. Those places bidders expect low prices. Some stuff sold at prices that stunned me.

Anyway, good luck.

70% profit off stuff you didnt buy and don't want doesnt sound to bad. I go to a lot of auctions and follow a lot online. If you don't have any big ticket items or collections that are very I interesting it is hard to attract people to an auction. Some companies I follow will haul the items to thier auction house because they can inventory each item and list them online. They can then list something like a nice chair that someone will likely bid on with a box of junk so the person who buys the chair has to dispose of the junk.

If you have an idea of what the things are worth and are expecting those amounts for the items you are likely to not be happy with the auction. Things you expect to be worth a lot will have low bids, though other things can go for more than you expect. An auction is a good way to clear out a barn if your not attached to the stuff inside.

I would question if they are going to have a buyer's premium. If they are, they will be making a larger profit, it's not off you but maybe you could negotiate down to 25 or 20%. The auctioneer probly has a good idea what all your stuff will sell for and based the % accordingly so they make sure they make some money after doing the work.

I've been to MANY auctions where an entire life estate is sold in 8 hours.

I also go to auctions looking for certain items I may be able to use. You won't believe the items people actually pay money for. Nothing is junk.

I know life can be fast paced, but if you would have taken a little of your time you probably found thing from your childhood, mother or fathers childhood. People usually keep things that are sentimental to them. Hoping when they are gone the family will carry it to the next generation. Lost memories can never be recovered.
I go to a lot of auctions. And there are great finds to be had.
If I find something I believe that the family should have, I make every effort to return it to a caring family member.
I have returned war metals, dog tags,papers and books that where family treasures. Send to auction by people like you who care more about right here and now. Than the ones who worked hard to insure you had a better future.
Let us know where the auction is and when. I'll go

No...nothing is Junk....but at An Auction house the buyers hold out....and they do Expect to buy at low low prices. A good old fashioned Farm or on site Auction will bring the Seller more....depending on Advertising and Weather

Had the auction on Saturday, over a hundred people there... people as far as Ohio came.. the auctioneer put my stuff with some one else’s stuff... to make it bigger.. some things went cheap some things went high.. in the end it’s all gone and I got room in my barn... there was 3 packed 22 foot trailer full of stuff I got rid of.. I will say people are nuts at auctions..... lol