First Estate Sale Of The Year

[trdhrdr007]

I got an early invitation to an estate sale Thursday. It was run by a company that has an email list of people they notify. In the email they talked about how crowded the house was & said numbers would be passed out at 2 with the sale at 2:30. I showed up at 1:30 & was the 18th person in line. At 2 the door opened & the lady came out to hand out numbers. I'm thinking WTF. If you were inside the whole time why didn't you start handing out numbers earlier so we could sit in our cars instead of standing around in the cold? Anyway, then she tells us that only 15 people can go in at a time. By this time I'm totally pissed. No sense in burning bridges so I politely ask who's house it was. I figured I could call some of my contacts & find out what might be there. The first person I get in touch with tells me it's a hoarders house & is packed....then she tells me she turned down the sale because there were bed bugs. She said it had been treated twice since then. Treated or not there was absolutely no way I was going in that house. The way my luck has been running there would have been a bedbug that survived the treatment & hitched a ride home with me.

 

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[Rodbuster209]

Key move not going in. I would not have went in either. Good luck on the next one!

 

[kingskid1611]

Bedbugs need new homes too.... I would not have been able to see past all the crap to find the good in a hoarders house. They just needed someone to clean it up for free for them. At least you didn't invest in it.....

 

[captain flintlock]

Good move! I wouldn't have gone in either!

 

[cyberdan]

I figured I could call some of my contacts & find out what might be there. The first person I get in touch with tells me it's a hoarders house & is packed....then she tells me she turned down the sale because there were bed bugs.

My bro-in-law went to one of those before Christmas. He did his research before going and found out the estate was in a very wealthy part of town and the past owner was a very famous test pilot and aeronautic stunt pilot decades ago. They even told him that the Smithsonian was allowed in a few days earlier. He bought around 25 posters that were signed by the artists and some even had astronauts autographs all for around $225. He sold one poster for more than that.

 

[biggmike]

I hear ya but I would have had a hard time staying out. I've been to two true hoarders houses and they were both great sales. One was really organized and not trashy just a bunch of stuff stacked everywhere. I bought some things there and made some pretty good money. The other was outstanding. I ended up picking for about a total of 10-15 hours over the next couple weeks and spent hundreds but made many thousands. About 5% was garbage, about 94% was useless stuff but about 1% was outstanding, in fact, some of the best stuff I have ever bought. I purchased one item for $10 that sold for $1300, another for $80 that went for $900 cash and a set of knives that I spent $60 for that sold for $1400 just to name a few but again, I'm not saying you should have entered and I'm not sure I would have either but I would have struggled with whatever decision I made......

 

[trdhrdr007]

It wasn't the easiest decision I ever made. Some of the crappiest places have great finds.

 

[cyberdan]

I have only been to two hoarders homes that I knew of. The first one, the guy was still alive (and hidden in the house) and the wife was having the sale. There were a few things I wanted and every time I asked a price the wife went inside to talk to hubby. She would come out and say not for sale. It was a true hoarder. Wonder if she is still married to him?

The other was a two day sale. I walk in and see pathways with junk piled up 3-4 feet on either side. It stinks bad, cat boxes everywhere. True estate sale, old lady had died and son was holding sale. He is embarrassed but wants to sell. I pick a few things and get a good price. We talk a bit and he tells me his mother was a famous German (or Romanian?) opera singer and he invites me to come back Sunday and anything I want will be free. I didn't really dig deep on Saturday. I am back Sunday and surprisingly a lot had sold. A couple of things that I was planning on getting were gone. ;(

I filled the back of my car. The only things that I remember getting were four Persian rugs (3' X 6' to 8') that were absolutely filthy. (I listed each one on ebay and one lady bought all. I shipped in one box and that was extremely heavy. She was thrilled. I got $100+ and shipping)

The other thing I got FREE was this gun in a carry case. It is a CO2 Walther, I still have. It is only missing the silencer and the thumbscrews to hold on the attachments.

I could only find one company on the internet that said they can get the parts but they never got back to me with a price and will not answer emails. What a way to run a company. Any one have any ideas?