First Auction Today

Went to my first auction here in Houston today.  Weather was very rainy and slightly cold.  Did not seem to keep anyone from going.  About 50 people were there.  Saw some just like me who were there to watch and learn and some who obviously knew each other and were talking about their previous days aucitons.  Auction started about an hour late and it pretty much rained, sometimes very hard, the whole time.  First door went up and the unit was packed high but not to neat.  Maybe a 10x20.  Saw some bedframes and matresses and other bed pieces.  Lots of other types of wooden pieces that could have been parts to book shelves or office furniture.  None of it looked very expensive or solid.  A lot of particle board and such.  I don't think anyone really knew.  The back 5 feet could have been empty but one guy did comment that anything could be in the back.  It was all thrown in and looked like some crazy type of jigsaw puzzle. Bids started and no one made a sound.  Finally the aucitoneer asked if anyone wanted it for 5 bucks.  Some guy spoke up and said he would take if for five.  Thats where it ended.  Heard some of the guys that I think are experienced auction buyers making comments about the amount of work it would take to load it out and that there was nothing visible to make it worth that much work. 

More to come later. 

That one guy could be walking away with a 5 dollar gold mine! Or just a lot of hard work and a couple trips to the dump. That is the beauty of storage auctions

For $5, i'll take every storage unit I can. Even if it's a bust, you don't lose much.

I will not take units that are all mattresses.  I saw a unit the had 5 mattresses and an old TV last batch I did. No one would bid $1.  I did get 2 dollar units but some I will not take at any price.  Saw one with 4 sofas and a hot tub in once no one bid on that one. Dump fees eat up any profit quick on big items.

i've bought 3 units so far.  they've been typical semi-crap type units.  lotsa household, clothes, not junk per se, but nothing of any value really.  at an auction yesterday a huge 10x15 room didn't get any bids.  it was full of the same kind of stuff i'd bought previously and i'm kind of thinking i would like to elevate the quality i acquire.  of course most units have this same type of semi-crap.  now to the poster who said they'd take any room for $5, i almost took this unit for $10 (my typical no-other-bid bid) but it was SOOOOOO much stuff that it would've taken too long to get it all out.  3 round trips w/me and my brother (2 cars), and it just looked sooo routine.  if i'd seen ONE good quality item sticking up, i (and others) would've bid.   but......

of course "you never know" is our eternal mantra, but sometimes the odds are pretty clear what you're likely getting and in those instances i listen to my instincts

of course hours after leaving i was second guessing myself and almost/kinda wishing i'd bought the unit!  ; )

of course "you never know" is our eternal mantra, but sometimes the odds are pretty clear what you're likely getting and in those instances i listen to my instincts

I've heard people say this more than once, and I can only add: "Yes, that's true, but the law of averages says...yes, I do know this is a standard household type of lkr...so, I'm not going to bid on it."

I've found its much better NOT to buy marginal lkrs than it is to buy them hoping for a prize. Buying a lkr cheap or even getting it for free doesn't mean much if they are more than likely not going to provide a good outcome for the effort laid out. But of course THIS IS JUST MY OPINION based on my 7 years of experience and purchase of about 350 lkrs. Others experiences and opinions may vary as is ALSO most likely.