Decided to go to the Storage Auction

[Beans]

Week or so ago I posted that I was trying to decide to go to a local storage auction. Well I went but only to observe. As I signed in I let the auction guy know I was new and had a few questions. Nice guy, before I got to by first question he yells got a new guy here to everybody standing around waiting. WTH ok this will be fun.

So I sign in and park my car, walk to the gate and wait with everybody else. There were about 20 people there. After 10 minuets goes by the main gate closes, no more bidders. He explains the process real fast, since everybody has heard it before (except me).
The tag is cut off the door of the first unit and he opens it up. Tells everybody to get in line walk past the door spend a quick few seconds looking at what is in the unit. He starts of $500 in his auctioneer voice and quickly drops to 50. Bidding starts, seems to be few interested in the unit. Ends at 125. Next unit, a lot of family stuff in this one. Cluttered but could be some good stuff. Sold for 350. This goes on for 9 units. All sold lowest was 20 highest was 350. Two units looked like they were staged to show what was in some of power tool cases. Maybe just happened to be that way.

Half an hour goes by and auction is over. As I was walking back to my car I stopped by one of the worst units and told the guys I never been to an auction and if I could watch them go thru the bags of clothes. They had no problem with me watching. They picked thru some stuff but they did not have their gloves so was going to kind of pick thru a couple of bags with out digging in them. They came up with some CDs , x rated magazines, and KFC take out box. They laughed and closed the unit.

Over a fun and learning experience.

 

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[Cassews]

Well that was better than the one hubs and went to ... Everything was staged outside of the storage unit and you bid that way (I thought it was strange-but they said that is how they do it and people were then able to look it all over). We stayed for a while then left after nothing interested us, the gate man was a wee bit upset he had to stop drinking his coffee to open the gate. But hey life do go on ......

 

[G.I.B.]

Interesting...

So, lets say I own the storage company and I'm going to have an auction and get rid of 8 units on Monday morning.

Well... Sunday evening I'm going through the units and then put a crappy lock back on it so it can get cut off for the bidding.

I keep the one or two guns, really good tools, or anything else valuable...... you buy the trash and haul it away for me.

~ just saying, that's how I'd do it.

Oh yeah, and lets say I have 5K worth of stuff in the locker.

I owe $1,000 in back rent.

I get my brother in law to show up as a new guy, buy the contents for $500.

Once again, I'm ahead, got all my stuff back and saved a bunch of rent money.

Just some thoughts...

 

[Mackaydon]

G.I.B. Does the storage company give the debtor a 100% credit for the bid amount? And, if so (in your example), don't you still owe the storage company $500? As I see it, your 'brother in law' is out $500 and you still owe $500 to the storage company (and $500 to your brother in law). How do you see yourself being "ahead"?
What am I missing.
Don.....

 

[G.I.B.]

The storage company does not know that you are buying your own stuff back for $500. Your brother in law is just another bidder who won.

As the defaulted owner (and having your brother in law buy it for $500) means you don't have to pay the storage company the back rent. You are no longer involved and are just another delinquent tenant that had his stuff sold at auction.

It's how people buy stuff back for less than what they owe on it.

 

[b3y0nd3r]

"So, lets say I own the storage company and I'm going to have an auction and get rid of 8 units on Monday morning.

Well... Sunday evening I'm going through the units and then put a crappy lock back on it so it can get cut off for the bidding.

I keep the one or two guns, really good tools, or anything else valuable...... you buy the trash and haul it away for me."

And if im the buyer of junk, the day before the auction starts, i rent a storage unit, and put my junk back in the other storage unit and forget about it lol

 

[Mackaydon]

G.I.B.
It would seem to me that (in your example), yes, you have your property back, but now you owe your brother in law $500 and you owe the storage company $500 for the unpaid debt (after assuming a 100% credit for the bid). Worse, this $500 unpaid debt to the storage company now goes on your credit report.
So how are you 'ahead'?
This is a learning process for me.
Don....

 

[G.I.B.]

Don, you are thinking like an honest person who pays their bills and takes care of responsibilities.

Think like most of the people out there. Stop trying to pay the storage company back. That is not the point.

Joe owes $1,500 to the storage company.

Joe gets Bill to buy his unit it at auction for $500.

Joe pays Bill $500. Joe does not pay the storage company anything.

Joe gets his property back from Bill for $500 not for $1,500.

Joe saved $1,000.

 

[49er4ever44]

Just give it up man. Most people don't want to be shady regardless of what you think or have experienced.

 

[yardgoat]

OK different states have different laws. But I once owned a second hand store in Nevada and bought all of my merchandise from storage auctions (this was before the phony storage auction TV shows). In Nevada the storage company must try to notify the owners by certified mail and also placing a legal ad in the local newspaper 3 times announcing the date and time of storage auction. The owner of the unit has up until the time of the auction to settle up, which could and has put the manager of the storage facility in hot water and legal trouble if he has removed anything from the unit. Also if the storage unit has sold for less than the amount owed, the storage company can still take the tenant to court and get a judgement against him. On the other hand if the unit brings more than what is owed the excess money must be put in a escrow account for one year during this time the tenant can claim this excess, if not claimed in one year the state of Nevada gets it. That being said a lot of storage managers do go through the units and most are not caught and some do set up units to get rid of the crap left behind from other tenants. If you buy storage units long enough you soon learn which storage facilities are crooked and which are honest.

 

[Carl995]

I have seen many times people trying to buy their units back. Their door opens & they start crying that major items are missing!!!
Or their unit is split up to 3 separate units. The regulars notice the owner/bidder (by instincts)
they look at what their wearing/driving & run the unit thru the roof.....owner doesn't get their unit back.
Or the owner gets their unit back not knowing it has been gone thru by workers/managers. Owner can't do anything about it because it was sold as-is auction, plus owner was bidding on his own unit.
Anything can happen & I wouldn't take the chance even tho you say it's $5000 worth of goods, It still will have important or personal items you wouldn't want to gamble with.

by the way it's 3 months here, which means a 10X20 avg $120/ month = $360 due, not $1000.

To owe $1000, it would have to be 3 10X20's. Good luck on buying back 3 10X20's for $500.
Carrol