So I went to an auctioneer's caravan of facilities this morning until noon--- 21 units! 
1st facility(uncle bob's SS) had about 50 people (no kidding) and crap went for 275+++ ugh.  supposed to have 6 units- 3 paid up.

2nd facility(uncle bob's SS) supposed to have 9 units, 4 doors were cut open and every one went for 300+!!!! WTF... i decided to hold onto my 400 and save it for a much smaller crowd--- figured the reason for the crowds is they search storage auctions online and get our local autioneers website which lists their upcoming caravans- sign up and get emails of upcoming auctions=tons of people=overpriced lockers.  believe me- today's lockers were not that impressive. 

HERES THE TIP- IF YOU WANT INEXPENSIVE UNITS, GO OLD SCHOOL SEARCHING FOR STORAGE FACILITIES THAT DON'T USE AUCTIONEERS (PUBLIC SELF STORAGE, the big orange P, uses their district managers to caravan once a month and handle the bidding wars=boring bidding not trying to skyrocket the price for a cut of the profits=more money you and i save!) 

A note about our local auctioneers that irritate me- they make us form a line and after only 10 or so people see the locker she starts the bidding at 100.00!   its usually up to 225 by the time everyone sees it...  anyone else have any thoughts or ideas--???

My .02
Storage facilities operate under state laws - they are to advertise and maximize revenue at the sale. The laws are to protect the tenant. The past due renter gets all the money unless it exceeded the past rent and fees. If the storage facility cant find the person the state or county gets the extra money. Also the auctioneer works for the storage facility and makes a percentage of the total sale, the auctioneer makes more money by getting max revenue as well. The system is capitalism operating... You can participate in the process by keeping money in your pocket as well....

Lance

Who exactly are the new cast members?

I was with the So Cal cast - dont know who they have chosen for Dallas, but I know they are still looking for more people. I can send people to the casting agents (the real ones - lots of bs out there) if anybody is interested in applying. They do want real buyers, junkers etc. I will have been asked by Original Productions to help find new people in 4 different markets. I will have correct contact info on my website within a couple of days. Beware of BS.

My guess is unless you know a person personally that has been selected you wont know the truth until the real filming begins. They (OP) keep things very quiet. I do know the main producer was in Dallas this week at auctions watching buyers.

You would be surprised how hard they work to get real buyers and not posers - they really want real deal people. I dont think they care if it is a profession or a hobby - they just want to know you are real and know what you are doing...

Lance

Totally agree with the "retail" value they use - I would imagine they rarely see those numbers.

Kind of like the news uses on "street value" lol

No, just buddies with decision makers who has known him as a friend for years. I think he finally saw a place to plug Barry in... Cant imagine Barry on the deck of a crab boat or trusting him with a chainsaw. LOL

Hey guys,

I can put an end to all this speculation and answer most questions you have about the show. Thomas is my middle name - use it sometimes. I am an owner of storage facilities in Southern California and was one of the first to be involved with Original Productions (OP), allowing them to film SW at our locations. If you watch the show I am the one that has my store name visible in the shots. StorageOutlet.net 

Dan Dotson has been my auctioneer for 14 years and he is real as they get - 100% what you see on TV.
All the buyers are real buyers with the exception of Barry. Barry has friends at OP and the wanted a character who was not a Pro. Barry has been a collector all his life and that is what they say. BTW Barry is actually 500% nuttier off the camera. His nickname for the film crew is the "Time Bandit" from another OP show im sure....

Look up OP on line and look at the shows they have made. OP are masters at casting characters. They have great TV and its about the PEOPLE not the crabs, trucks, trees and storage units - about people!

I will only speak for the auctions that have been filmed at my stores, bc i have been there for every second. The units are real. There are 47 state laws we as storage owners have to live within and breaking the laws has substantial liability. I would never risk my core business or subject my investors to liability for a few hits on our website.

Those of you on this site that are Pros know that the Tenant can come in and pay for the unit up until the auction has started. We (storage outlet) and any operator following CA law have taken possession of the property between the time we cut the lock and take the inventory (state law) (all done video camera and a witness).

Now lets get to the conspiracy theories I keep hearing. I have the key to the door and a seal on the auction unit and I am going to give it to (OP) and let them into the unit before the auction so they can stack gold bars in there to make it interesting? ...lest go down that path and say I do? what happens when the tenant sees their unit on tv and says wow "I had gold bars in my unit" maybe I should get an attorney? Or if OP put the Gold Bars in there and the tenant came and paid the bill just before the auction starts? Demands control of the unit - which they would get. Do we sneak in in front of 200 people and get the Gold Bars? BTW im using "Gold Bars" substitute anything you want.

If you have any questions I will try to answer...
SW is now starting to film in other markets
Lance Watkins
storageoutlet.net
storagetreasures.com