Estate Sale turned Auction - very aggravating

[dieselram94]

Probably already is...

sent from a potato...

 

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[BosnMate]

Sounds like a scam to me. I'm thinking she was a shill, and you were supposed to bid more, a fancy way to run the price up.

 

[OldSowBreath]

I saw a Sunday add for a GS that had "NASA stuff". Well I had to be there. No one else there except the the guy's neighbor, who did not exactly look like a NASA collector, but more of a calorie collector at the local Dairy Queen. He put us in an auction mode. I paid twice what I wanted and am positive she was shilling for him.

 

[meanpc]

Setting stuff in a pile up front is standard. Once I tell someone I am buying something, it is done in my mind. The thought of either me not paying or them not delivering the goods is not an option. The OP handled this way better than I would have.

 

[lookindown]

Yeah, like someone else said. I would have kept bidding until she quit and then just walked away without paying or saying a word.

 

[Paleo_joe]

Any company that is looking for repeat business is not going to treat a buyer like that. It is basically the same smallish crowd of dealers lining up 45 minutes before the sale around here, and so word spreads fast.

 

[billjustbill]

How do you do this?

If you have any suggestions on how you set up the holding areas, I'd love to hear them, and make suggestions to the estate company I attend.

How do you do this?

The local estate company is a mess when it comes to this. Sure, they are generally very cramped for space, so.......

If you have any suggestions on how you set up the holding areas, I'd love to hear them, and make suggestions to the estate company I attend.

What bugs me is the behavior of the dealers around North Central Texas. One moved from "North Dallas" and brought her "privileged attitude" with her. Her husband walks 3-steps and bowed-head behind her, and both sit in there heated/air condition car as the line grows. Twice, she has moved her way passed me and others to the front entrance, and when opened, she shoots in... I've made up my mind there won't be a third time, even if I have to call the police saying her behavior is causing a civil disturbance!!!!

A younger female dealer comes to the sales with a roll of 1" masking tape with "SOLD" printed in short sections on the first 2 or 3 feet . Once inside, she's goes around putting "Sold" on all the things she can't carry.

What I've come to learn is that if I see something I want, I go directly to who's in charge. It causes one to get derailed, but in the long run it's worked best. I've not seen but one, maybe two, sales where a marked and "official" spot is set aside for buyers. So, taking the concept from the pushy Dealer, I have 8"x10" sheet made from a tough and long-lasting thin plastic placemat or plastic tablecloth with the words, "Sold-Taken". It stays in place with a wire twist-tie and helps cover up what's in my stack. I keep one folded-up in my "sign-fat" wallet, and keep a second in the console of the pickup. They do make a difference.

I've learned, too, the hard way. The real problem comes when you have to deal with a selfish, mad-dog attitude, man or woman about something that is unmarked!! In one case, it was so early, me and one other fellow were the only ones at a yard sale the owner opened early. I found two "official weights and measurements" cases; one had just on 10lb weight and the other had all four. The other guy made an offer of $10 and the owner declined. About 5 minutes went buy, then I made an offer for the two cases and five solid weights and the owner accepted. When I went to get them, another "growling and barking" dealer arrived and grabbed the cases while I wasn't looking. I learned later he was a ex-law officer that had been dismissed from his job for his outbursts and outlandish behaviors, and when I went to pay the agreed amount, I saw he had my weights in his huge stack. He was vibrating he was so mad as I told him and then tried to reason with him. It meant that I'd paid $25, he knew I had $100.00 in scrap brass and that flew all over him! I got my way, in spite of a weak owner trying to explain, but 10 minutes later the Nut Case walked up and the flakey buyer blew sky-high... Apparently, he wasn't through.

Mark your stuff as best you can, stack it as close to the owner with that big-letter sign, and hope those that are selfish and nut-cases will think twice before trying to trick or bully their way through a sale. It's going to keep happening, and escalate in seriousness, as this economy continues its downward path and money gets even tighter.