Children at Auctions

I'm not a control freak, but....

I think it's time for the auctioneers and the facility owners to get a handle on bringing kids to the auctions. Storage auctions are NOT the county fair! When there are 60 ADULTS lined up to look at a unit, and then an additional 10-12 KIDS who all have to stand in front of the door (and won't move!) and get a look, it makes for a really aggravating day. This is a REAL business for a lot of people, we have only minutes to evaluate what is inside the unit, what we think we can resell it for, and decide if we take a risk on a unit and get burned? or do we go home empty handed and have nothing to sell? Then you have the kids that obviously run the household." Mommy, we should buy this one! ""Ooohhh, daddy thats a good one, you gonna buy it?" I just LOVE the kids who already KNOW about the business, "Mommy we can sell that for $XX! " I am not complaining about people in the business who are teaching there teenage children about the business, I am talking about newbies and kids in age range of 4-11 years of age.

That's my rant for the day, thanks for listening. 

I went to one on Wednesday where I counted 90 adults.  There were at least 10-12 kids and 2 infants!  It was almost 100 degrees out there, and I was dying for a drink of water.  What are these people doing to their kids!

  At the auction in Nh. a couple of weeks ago , One Couple besides bringing the kids also brought Gram. and Gramps.  to push the baby buggy  and they had to get a look inside too .
  I really shouldn't talk , When We started doing auctions back in 89/90 We brought our 6 yr. old daughter , but then You were on  mailing list and had to call at the last min. to see how many, or if still on .
  Sometimes there would be only 3 to 5 bidders , at one auction of 4 units , We were the only bidders Me , wife , and 6 yr old daughter .
 Auctioneer asked her if she had her allowance with her ? We bought two of them for  $ 25. ea. and cleaned out the others for $ 5.00  ( got $ 8.00 in bottle returns plus a wedding dress in  the trash bag of one of them .
  Bandit

Well, I cant complain to much, cause I do bring my kids out there, my daughter who is 9 and my son who is 8. But since they are not buying I make sure they stay out of the way and keep their mouths shut about anything they do see in a locker.

Key advice to everyone else that do bring your kids for what ever reason, bring them something to drink, snack on, and if your kids aint bidding, keep them away from the door and out of every one else's way. This also goes for those lookie loos who are not even thinking of bidding.

Not really that age bracket that bothers me, but if the kid is young enough to be pushed in a stroller, /facepalm. 

Hey you all get off lucky! I live in UTAH home of 6 kids per family, and yes parents take them to all the auctions and they seem to just let them run wild. Makes me sick.

My daughters (14 n 12) like the auctions and I like taking them. They carry all my stuff (locks,towels,etc.) in a backpack and hold the umbrella to block the sun. It's like having an auction caddy, just hand me the flashlight when we get to the door.

My daughters (14 n 12) like the auctions and I like taking them. They carry all my stuff (locks,towels,etc.) in a backpack and hold the umbrella to block the sun. It's like having an auction caddy, just hand me the flashlight when we get to the door.

I am looking forward to taking my son to auctions in a few years to do such things, but if they are too young to help, or are running wild and getting in the way, leave them at home!  And for goodness sake, keep those poor newborns out of the hot sun!

You know, the only kids that I see at auctions are pretty well behaved. I think it is because the auctioneers are so strict in our area that the parents keep the kids in check in order to avoid drawing attention to themselves.
Keep in mind, a lot of people are just barely making it and they can't afford child care.


My daughter has been yelling out (unintentional) bids since she was on the tit.

I agree if they are well behaved then yes! Try bidding while they are yelling and running around. Thas annoying

Adults or children its a pain when they aren't behaved.At least the adults should know better.

You know, the only kids that I see at auctions are pretty well behaved. I think it is because the auctioneers are so strict in our area that the parents keep the kids in check in order to avoid drawing attention to themselves.
Keep in mind, a lot of people are just barely making it and they can't afford child care.


My daughter has been yelling out (unintentional) bids since she was on the tit.

I guess it will be better in the next couple of weeks when the kids go back to school, except for Saturday auctions.

I bring my 13 and 11 yr old boys to auctions! They stay out of the way for the most part. I let them get a look and we guess how much the locker will sell for. their guesses have been better than mine a few times. Nobody seems to mind here. But if you have toddlers running amuck around and into lockers....that's just bad parenting

Children in no way whatsoever belong at an auction, under the age of 13 at least. They are interfering with the auction process and cannot enter into a binding legal agreement anyways unless they are over the age of 18. Their presence is a waste. I can see as to maybe wanting to bring along a teenage son or daughter to help aid you in the locker cleanup, and perhaps a training session for when they are ready to bid. They can also be well behaved at that age. BUT before you allow anyone inside of the unit, you should first secure and make sure that their are not things that a minor cannot possess legally, such as pornography, firearms, tobacco, or alcohol. Shame on those adults that do not think about these things, and I am very sure that there are.

They are interfering with the auction process and cannot enter into a binding legal agreement anyways unless they are over the age of 18. Their presence is a waste.

Well, although a lot of auctioneers don't allow children to attend, there is nothing stopping them legally from bidding on a unit. The only agreement you are making when you buy a unit is that you will have it cleaned out within a certain amount of time.

I know one young man who attends auctions with his mother, I think he is 12. He is allowed to select his own units, bid on them himself (with his own hard earned money) and he is responsible for loading and selling the merchandise. His mother allows him to do this in order to teach him how to be responsible with money. I don't call that a waste.