Anyone buy abandoned storage unit with any success?

[jeremyjms06]

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.

 

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[63bkpkr]

I've seen it in northern california and about 40 people were in attendance. From what I saw each unit is different, no real way to tell what is in there unless it is very obvious and I suppose one would have to have a knack for spotting tip off items as to what else might be in any one unit.

If you've got the money to spend $100 - $200 on an unknown storage shed I'd advise investing the money in good coins unless of course you just are curious about what's in a particular unit.

63bkpkr

 

[jeff of pa]

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

Location would be one.

Hollywood, would be one Clue.
alot more Money Flowing, So better chance of
expensive Items in storage.

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

also in these Days where Privacy dosn't Exist,
there has to be a way of finding out Who rented
the Shed.
If you can Research the Person, you can
be more Tuned to their Tastes & Hobbies.
Making it easier to decide.

Around here also People have alot of Friends.
A Storage unit Owner, will tell his Freinds
if somone with Big money defaulted, & know
ahead of time IF the unit has Potential.

I think these Storage Shows do alot of research,
Before deciding where their next show will be filmed.
a World war 2 Vet's, will have them Scrambling

 

[j.dean]

I've been buying them for about three years, but now it's getting harder to get a deal because A&E started putting out that stupid storage wars show and everyone thinks you will strike it rich.

I have made good money, over the three year period we have averaged about a 60% annual return... but keep in mind that is just a money return and not taking into account all the time spent. I have probably made 15000 in three years and worked 1000 hours total... so its not a glamour or get rich quick thing but it is profitable and ALOT of fun..

Be ready to find very weird and personal stuff though. We have found adult toys, childrens teeth, and EVEN GRANDMA'S ASHED. yes, we found a box with a bag of ashes and a picture of a 80+ year old lady... VERY creepy.

 

[47thelement]

Bought a couple, and yeah it's a lot Of work for not so much money. I've never found any thing special.

 

[relichunters]

If you're a professional and know exactly what the items are your looking at, it's easy to make a good profit and earn a living. But that can take years to learn. I haven't done it yet, but I will when I make the money. I am going to buy a few just for fun.

 

[jeremyjms06]

Thanks for the input..... I've been debating on picking up a few mainly as another "hobby" and just see what I come up with. We have an indoor antique/thrift mall down here that is only open Fri-Sun and my family has a small shop inside the mall.... figured it couldn't hurt to pick up a few and place the items inside our shop and see what happens. The few people that I saw bidding was only going up to about $200 tops so the units in my area aren't selling for much money. They auctions are done by the actual storage unit itself and not by an outside auctioneer.

 

[Sparky.KCMO]

There is an auctioneer of this area, who this year has retired. I believe it was U-Haul that has thousands of these storage units in the metro area and once a month they sell of the abandoned ones. The auctioneers strategy was to buy these storage units and then have his own personal auction once a month. Good items sold by the piece and the junk by the box. He is and was very successful even after the TV shows brought in the crowds. The best unit I ever heard of had 157 long guns. Over the last 12 years I have seen it all sell, from rookwood pottery, abe lincoln signature, weatherby guns, gold and silver coins, porcelain license plates, art glass, you name it, it probably sold there at some point.

 

[gleaner1]

The best storage unit find is an authentic pirate's treasure chest containing $500,000 in Spanish gold coins. Google it. You will see. This was a headline only a few weeks ago.

 

[gleaner1]

http://abcnews.go.com/US/man-reported-find-500000-worth-treasure-storage-unit/story?id=14958206

 

[clovis97]

Just be careful when buying units, especially if they cost much.

Around here, there is an auctioneer that is renting empty units and filling them with trash, and then selling them as if those units were abandoned.

There are lots of set ups out there...just be careful!!!!!

Yes, there are good units out there too...but be careful!!!!!

 

[weighit]

The same applies to storage places around here. They call them "house" units, and you would think someone didn't pay for the storage of their house stuff. Wrong, it is the junk left behind from all the storage units when folks clean out their stuff and leave items either too big to carry, not worth carrying home or junk. The storage folks cart it to a empty storage locker and keep adding to it over the course of the year till it is full. They put a cheap lock on it then cut off the lock and say look here a house unit, what am I bid? I watched the last one go for over $700 bucks, and it was all junk!! I know the storage manager and he told me not to wait around for the last item and why.

 

[snakeyes]

I've only been to 1 and that was a few years back. Seems everything was sold by the piece not the whole locker at once. One locker was stacked to the roof and all the way to the back with sealed boxes.They were being sold like 3 at a time, well I guess the guy that put them there had some kind of paper route, and every box was full of newspapers and thats all.

 

[Mzjavert]

I've never been to a storage unit auction. I've attended enough weekly auctions and estate auctions to know that these shows are setup. I never dreamed auctioneers were cheating. Those guys need to be reported to the state and have their licenses pulled.

 

[MRBeyer]

Bought a unit with an old arcade game once. Saw a storage unit full of brand new furniture go for 1/10th the cost of the furniture (it was still in its boxes and wrappings). A friend who worked part time at the storage place found a whole bunch of guns in the dumpster the local gun shop had thrown out (they were all broken). He turned them all in to the base police who then had their gunsmith use them as gun repair training tools for the newbies while the real owner was found (the gun shop). Then they gave the now fixed guns back to the gun shop. Man, I so wanted to kick my friend's butt over that one.

Yeah, deals are out there, just a rarity. I no longer watch the storage wars due to the fake nature of it. However, I do watch antique roadshow and american pickers as that stuff isn't staged. When they start staging it, I'll stop watching it.

 

[blithe]

I've been to one in a nearby facility, the contents of the storage unit just looked like everyday stuff to me. From I hear, the chances of you getting your investment back is relatively low... it DOES happen, but don't be fooled by what you see on TV.

However, if you're looking for a storage auction, you may want to look at the ones on this list and give them a call, see if they have auctions. You may get lucky and find a good one!

 

[jerseyben]

Bought a unit with an old arcade game once. Saw a storage unit full of brand new furniture go for 1/10th the cost of the furniture (it was still in its boxes and wrappings). A friend who worked part time at the storage place found a whole bunch of guns in the dumpster the local gun shop had thrown out (they were all broken). He turned them all in to the base police who then had their gunsmith use them as gun repair training tools for the newbies while the real owner was found (the gun shop). Then they gave the now fixed guns back to the gun shop. Man, I so wanted to kick my friend's butt over that one.

Yeah, deals are out there, just a rarity. I no longer watch the storage wars due to the fake nature of it. However, I do watch antique roadshow and american pickers as that stuff isn't staged. When they start staging it, I'll stop watching it.

I'm not trying to give you a hard time but do you really believe that story your friend told you about the guns in the dumpster

 

[SvenS]

I went to a number of them while in Georgia, they sold for the average $25-50 some went for $200, lots of folks attending. Most filled with junk dumpster ready. Storage owner was smart, why pay a trash hauler to cart away the units junk when folks will pay to take it to the dump for him....................Auctioneers will always spout out before the auction how this watch, clock etc. was found last auction valued at $15,000.00...............

 

[Gold Maven]

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.

 

[Jason in Enid]

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.

That is exactly what the few local ones I went to were doing. When they had in their ads that the units contained tool boxes, luggage, furniture, etc.... you know they went through them first. Expecially when one or two notable items listed weren't present at sale time.