Anyone buy abandoned storage unit with any success?

[digger27]

What I don't understand, is why the storage unit owner wouldn't look them over before selling.

Large facilities perhaps wouldn't have time, but for the price of a padlock, I would cherry pick before selling.

I was in the storage business for a few years and managed a a few properties and lived in an apartment with 400 of these things on site and was witness to many of these auctions and the behavior of the people at these auctions.
You could hit it big with coins, jewelry or something else if you are lucky, they call it 'Hitting a lick", but sometimes you might end up with a bunch of junk that you have to pay more money just to haul this stuff to the dump.
If you don't have any way to sell this stuff you now own that could also be a problem even if it is worth some money.
The reality show participants always seem to find some sort of expert to tell them what they actually have but this is not so easy to do without the resources of a tv network or a large group of tv producers to help.
Also, some of the things they find on those shows might have worth and that is the totals they show, (sometimes true, sometimes a fantasy), but if you can't find a buyer that stuff in reality is worth nothing.

Most buyers used to be owners of resale shops and bought these to stock their stores.
After the reality shows came on tv the numbers of bidders multiplied by many times and things are different now because of all these newbies not knowing what they are doing, all hoping for that big lucky score and causing fights fights and bad feelings with the regulars because the cost of the units have gone much higher now that they are in there bidding...sometimes bidding way higher than the unit is worth and then dropping out.

Why don't the owners cherry pick?
Because doing this is highly illegal.
I am not saying this doesn't happen, in the smaller individually owned properties they probably do, but in the storage business you are dealing with other peoples property and if all paperwork is not done exactly right, all notifications are sent in a timely manner and all auctions are not held on the up and up there is always the possibility the storage facility can be sued.
The larger chains will usually not take the chance and will fire any employee they find doing this.
Several times the original owners of the units attempt to buy back their own units by proxy cheaper than the bill they owe and if they do and if there is stuff missing there could be problems.

Here is a typical auction and an insight to what goes on at these things.
Launch player then go to 7:30 for the NPR story "Needle in a crapstack".

Contents Unknown | This American Life


Transcript here if you want to read it...
Transcript | This American Life

 

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[CincinnatiKid]

Great question that I too have often wondered. As others have stated, does seem like a lot of work for a minimal return. Another cost would be a place to store/sell the items? But I think we can all agree in the hopes of finding a "mother load " unit w gold and gems stacked to the ceiling. The gold and gems are also stacked on top of early 1700s Boston furniture. Good luck in your endeavor! Please keep us posted. Peace

 

[bigscoop]

Done it! But you need to realize that it's gotten "really competitive" in recent years and it's now, "a much bigger business". Use to be just use peddlers willing to throw a couple hundred at a good-sized unit, now it's big money guys arriving in large box trucks and they're there to spend money, buying up all that they can hoping that one or more units will recoup their expenses and show them a profit. It's a whole different world now, these new folks have warehouses and large sorting facilities, large sorting areas behind their storefronts, etc., and they have enough capital that they can afford to sit on all that useable inventory for quite a while. And last, most of them are well established in the business and they have a lot of resources and contacts. It use to be a "quaint" ordeal but, sadly, it's not anymore.

 

[Jason in Enid]

digger27, can you please explain how once a person has been declared in default on their storage, all contact means have been attempted by law, that it is illegal for the facility owner to take possession of any or all items that would be sold in auction? Is there a law that says they MUST auction the units? I'm always intrigued by weird laws and this sounds like one.

 

[hvacker]

I know from experience some facility owners contact their buddies and give them a heads up on the good stuff. I was contacted about one having several valuable shotguns. As this was awhile ago there might be stricter laws governing things like this now but if not try to be a buddy. It's always worth something to peek at the other guys cards.

 

[Rawhide]

Just curious if any of the members ever buy abandoned storage unit with any success of finding coins, relics, antiques....etc. I've been debating buying a few here lately. Was at my storage unit a couple weeks ago and saw them holding an auction for some abandoned units and there was only about 4 people there purchasing the units so it doesn't seem to be very much competition in my area.

I have made money buying junk lockers, but would not suggest doing it if you dont have a open schedule. My experience is lockers are staged or picked through. There is usually enough in them to make a profit if you dont mind flea markets, craigslist, and huge yardsales. I estimate my profit by how many truckloads I have to take out of a locker. Dont bet on the red cross or salvation army to take your unwanted stuff either. I threw 50 bags of clothes some with tags on them as the salvage shops are just overcome here. You will have a certain amount of time to clean out the locker or rent the locker yourself. You will want to know where the dump is, and dont be afraid to cherry pick and resell the locker to some guy like me who will clean the locker for the scraps in it. Good Luck.

 

[Rawhide]

I know from experience some facility owners contact their buddies and give them a heads up on the good stuff. I was contacted about one having several valuable shotguns. As this was awhile ago there might be stricter laws governing things like this now but if not try to be a buddy. It's always worth something to peek at the other guys cards.

I dont care who tells you it dont happen, the managers of the lockers are the worst about taking stuff. The auctioneer and crew has a reputation, and will try to take two marginal lockers and make a good one for you. But all guns, documents, and pictures will be pulled on site. This happens either before or after the sale. Dont be surprised if the defaulted owner is bidding against you.

 

[hvacker]

I dont care who tells you it dont happen, the managers of the lockers are the worst about taking stuff. The auctioneer and crew has a reputation, and will try to take two marginal lockers and make a good one for you. But all guns, documents, and pictures will be pulled on site. This happens either before or after the sale. Dont be surprised if the defaulted owner is bidding against you.

Hey Casca, Like I said this was years ago when storage lockers were fairly new. When you could still buy guns at Kmart. Probably 1986 in another State. The owner just didn't want the guns to go for little money as he had to recover lost revenue. In his experience these auctions work ok if the unit is full of junk and there is few bucks owed on the unit.
When you say certain things will be pulled on site, where does that stuff go?

 

[Msbeepbeep]

Wonder what they do with the locker that a drug dealer stored stuff in then disappeared? That must be a real dilemma. While driving by a storage place I saw a guy back a nice convertible in climb over the hood and shut the door, hiding it from the repo man maybe?

 

[lookindown]

digger27, can you please explain how once a person has been declared in default on their storage, all contact means have been attempted by law, that it is illegal for the facility owner to take possession of any or all items that would be sold in auction? Is there a law that says they MUST auction the units? I'm always intrigued by weird laws and this sounds like one.

It must be auctioned off and they are not allowed to open the units before auction. They could still do it but it would be stealing and a crime. If caught, they would be out of business.

 

[postman_18]

I been buying storage units for around 3 years also I haven't lost money yet over all but you do win some and lose some I fould a silver dollar and some gold jewelry but nothing worth much to be honest it is more work than whats it is worth .but its also like metal detecting once you start it is hard to quit unless you run out of money with bad buys.

 

[Nickleanddime]

Here they run the names of the people who owned the locker and last known address. If the address is a good part of town I go, bad part no. I also clean out houses and find some good items doing that. People have the sheriff at the door they forget some things. It's sad some of the people are actually in bad times, others lazy. That's shady filling them up with junk and selling them, but hey a suckers called that for a reason. The TV shows have killed alot your not alone in it with your hobby. Lol I buy and sell, been for years, I avoid high price stuff like the plague. I buy the $1 items that they don't have a clue about and sell them. If something is priced low, they don't know. Anyways good luck out there and have fun.

 

[Nickleanddime]

What I don't understand, is why the storage unit owner wouldn't look them over before selling.

Large facilities perhaps wouldn't have time, but for the price of a padlock, I would cherry pick before selling.

By law their not allowed in most places. That's why in some areas your not allowed to enter its private property till transfer of lease. That's why their not allowed to cherry pick. Same as a leased apartment, if you evicted the landlord can not enter until the judge vacates the property or you just leave.

 

[augoldminer]

I'v been Thinking about these Storage Shows,
& how they seem to pick the Right ones.



Hollywood, would be one Clue.


Around here, Better chance of 4 Wheelers,
& Motor bikes
in winter & Snow mobiles in storage in Summer.
not big Ticket, But resaleable.

In calif motor Vehicles are not sold at storage auctions they must be sold by lien sale. also no guns can be sold a storage sales. if guns are found they must be turned in at a loss. These shows are BS and run by auctioneers.
Auction a Vehicle in CA?
Storage Wars / Hunters and Guns [Archive] - Calguns.net
The auctioneers get more people and higher bids because more people believe these shows are real.

 

[Native Floridian]

The time spent might be better used attending garage and yard sales looking for items that can be resold on CR.

Salable items like infant and toddler cribs and playsets. baby gates, of all things! My wife bought a play set that retailed for over $800 new for $125. it was one of those big plastic things you see in yards that the kids crawl on and thru. It was in perfect condition. We used it for two years and just sold it on CR last week for $275.

Power tools are another big item that usually sell quickly on CR.

Some other items that get bucks and quick sales are musical instruments like guitars. However, some knowledge is needed here because much can go wrong with these instruments as they age. But as an example 10 years ago i bought myself a bottom of the line Martin Guitar. Martin is a top brand and even this low end Martin was a beautiful instrument. Just to make things more difficult, it was a left handed Guitar. i paid $600 for it brand new. i sold it last year for $750 on CR.

While these storage unit auctions are intriguing they are a crap shoot. Going to a yard sale or flea market - with a little knowledge and good negotiating skills i think you could do better.

 

[menotomymaps]

I've had good luck going to the auctions and then buying stuff off the person who won the auction.
I only buy bicycles. I know what to look for, and the person who won the unit gets a quick cash infusion.

 

[BosnMate]

I've bought two units. Before even going to a sale it was decided that any with a mattress, kitchen appliances or large furniture would not be bid on. The two units I bought, the stuff was pieced out and sold, and I did a bit better than break even. A couple of things were kept for myself, most stuff sold, and the balance hauled to the dump. I decided storage unit sales aren't worth the effort, unless you have a place to sell the stuff. One unit I bought had a car stero with speakers etc. and I figured it would sell big, but I couldn't get rid of it. There was other stuff in the unit that I discounted as junk, but those items are what made me my money back. One was a small ATV type bumper rigged for an electric winch, and right off I found a guy building a 4 wheeler, and he bailed me out buying the bumper. I'll admit the TV shows were the only reason I even tried buying a unit, there was lots of competition, prices were high, and in the end it's a lot of work to haul off, sort out, sell, haul to the dump, etc. So figuring my time and gas involved it wasn't worth the trouble.

 

[digger27]

digger27, can you please explain how once a person has been declared in default on their storage, all contact means have been attempted by law, that it is illegal for the facility owner to take possession of any or all items that would be sold in auction? Is there a law that says they MUST auction the units? I'm always intrigued by weird laws and this sounds like one.

This has been answered but I will restate...it is against the law to do this in most states.
Not saying it doesn't happen, the owners are just not supposed to do this and the larger chains would be stupid if they did because the consequences might be dire if any of their employees are caught doing it.

In Alabama we were allowed to cut the locks and open the lockers and did an inventory of the contents we could see from the outside.
According to law this inventory has to be published in the paper twice with the name an address of the possessions owner of record before any auction.

Wonder what they do with the locker that a drug dealer stored stuff in then disappeared?

This actually happened at one of our auctions.
They opened a door and saw pretty much all the makings of a meth lab stacked up.
They weren't cooking in there, they just stored the stuff because the owner was going to court.
Turns out the owner and his wife went to jail after court which is why they didn't have a way to pay the monthly fees and it went to auction after a few months.

It was a big hub-bub after they opened that door and realized what was in there.
The police were called and immediately came out before the rest of the auction was over and they taped off the entire area with that yellow tape they use and they checked out the contents using those moon suits in case there were still hazardous chemicals in the vicinity.
Turns out no chemicals were in there, just some glassware and burners and things that were actually pretty clean and eventually the cops took possession and hauled it all away.

 

[MattDart]

I have watched such storage unit auctions on television and for those of the buyers who are more experienced, they usually see from outside and roughly gauge what to expect inside. Some of them have a solid basis in the field and they know what are the factors that affect the contents of a particular unit. Like for example, if the storage facility is within an expensive estate, then the content inside will most likely be expensive too. Other factors include materials, color and many others.

 

[Jason in Enid]

I have watched such storage unit auctions on television and for those of the buyers who are more experienced, they usually see from outside and roughly gauge what to expect inside. Some of them have a solid basis in the field and they know what are the factors that affect the contents of a particular unit. Like for example, if the storage facility is within an expensive estate, then the content inside will most likely be expensive too. Other factors include materials, color and many others.

Are you being serious? Are you really basing a statement from what you watched on a television show?