Don't know if this says anything how the rest of the us feels, but one of the local sports radio personalities here did a segment about things your over with(run its coarse) and he said he is over the auction shows(along with the nfls pro bowl). Honestly think you will see things like all the spin offs disappear. I really think your going to see just SW Cali after this year. I imagine you may see numbers drop off mid summer.

Well I hope they are not setting there starting bid by whats in the unit but more for what is owed for it. 

In theory this should work(min. Bids), but you have to be very visible to do that.  I do hope when I hear about min bids that they can't sell. Lack of sale = lack of rent = hopefully pissed off owners

Lol - Dave just kills me.  Was watching the show with my wife.  When that locker opened I was like, hmm 200 - 400 locker depending on crowd in my area.  CA price - 1k.  Before they even started to dig I said - watch him say he'll double / triple his money.  Starts to dig and tosses a bag full of cloths out - $30.  I'm trying very hard not to scream at the tv saying WTF are you talking about.  Not even looked in the bag to see if it's stained, rags, etc. and it's $30.

Heck at Dave's prices I have $360 just sitting under my sort table I've yet to cash in.  Those rocks/minerals I could prob sell for $200 or so in my area.  They are not common here like they are out west.  Only thing we get is the small polished stones from the mountains / tourist areas.

Jarrod and B's tool locker - $400 - $800 here.  That was a nice locker IMO, but not worth 4k.  I think all the tools were craftsman also.  If were snap-on would be worth more.  The cart they had in the unit is the same type that I pulled out of a unit last month.

All that new furniture in Darrell's and Jarrod / Bs unit would sell for about 1/2 retail here.  Still would of been good money.  Just would of been slow to sell.  You would have lots of money tied up in inventory.


As for the SW:Texas promo - saw the ring being appraised for $30k.  I'm just sitting there going oh sure.  They put a $30k ring in a storage locker instead of a saftey deposit box which cost the same as a small unit.

Really wondering how bad Feb is going to be when people get tax money back.

Remember though to trust our good friend on here Lance who says they don't plant a thing.

Funny how a 30k(supposed) ring is going to show up around tax season, but it's probably just a a coincidence.

YES

But think about this:
This will come out in the long run - They have filmed about 70 episodes on SW alone. The other shows I dont count... Those 70 shows have been seen 100's of millions of times. Somebody should have jumped up and said "Hey that is my unit and I did not have a (whatever) stored in my unit"... Than comes "gee the storage facility miss advertised my unit and the buyer made all this money - maybe I should sue the facility, auctioneer and whoever else my attorney wants"

You can be sure that is in my mind when allowing OP to film. We do not make money from the producers, so liability is considered.

Guys this is reality TV - its entertainment. They have a hit show and it is not perfect. You are correct the auctioneers and storage facilities are doing well. However the good auctioneers hate the show. They know in the long run this is tough on them. It used to be only the really well organized auctioneer could get the good bidders to an auction with a fist full of cash. Now any auctioneer can get a crowd. Something to think about.... There is a lot in that message.

ST

ST

Somehow I think paying someone to be quiet about a unit can pay off for the old tenant 100% of something is better then 0% of nothing on top of the cash they make off of stupidly high bids. Either that or those units you tape we're never owned by an actual tenant.

Secondly, wtf would a good auctioneer be pissed with the show? Your show has increased there commissions 10 fold, hell they are almost superstars to people.  Tell me if the good auctioneers are beating down your door to be on the next SW? They get commissions plus show appearances, plus free advertising, that's like killing 3 birds with one stone. Sorry, I don't buy a thing your trying to sell me or anyone on here.

I've been thinking the same thing. The Denise of the show would be because it wasn't original and the cast sucked. Moe was a more annoying, more boring, less funny version of Barry, Lesa was just annoying and The bubba twins were ok. Vic was really the only one that peeked my interest.

Well you got us - we tried to help charity and used an example of a GREAT unit. Here is the whole message:
So you’ve won your first storage unit for $200 and start digging in. First you find a few fly rods you know are worth a couple hundred bucks. Then you find an old silver watch and cufflinks that will bring a few bucks. The rest you decide to dump ... other than a few odd trinkets you’ll get appraised later on. You start gathering up piles of clothes, kitchenware, and a baby stroller to throw away at home.
STOP! Why dump these items when they could help someone else and you can receive a tax deduction in the process? Everyone benefits when you drop those items off at an organization who can get them in the hands of someone in need.
Here are some tips on tax deductions:

When documenting and claiming your tax deduction there several approaches to valuing the donated items. It’s important to be reasonable and consistent. For some help in this area, click here for IRS guidelines as well as input from the Salvation Army.
Here are some charities that accept donated goods:
   Charity Storage
Storage Treasures has teamed up with storage operators to found the first national storage charity. After you buy a unit, ask the facility manager if they participate in Charity Storage, where facilities designate a storage unit as a donation point, and later auction the unit off to raise money for local and national charities.
   
Salvation Army
Salvation Army can send a truck to your home to pick up your items, which may help someone across town or at the site of a natural disaster.

   
Goodwill
Goodwill has over 150 stores throughout the US and Canada as well as a wide network of donation points to help get your used goods to someone in need.


Stop by our forum and let us know how you, or your fellow auction hunters have made a difference and to let us know what organizations can accept goods in your area.

Happy Donating,
Your Storage Treasures Team

Your missing the point Lance.  That first paragraph is a what will set people off. People doing this don't get things appraised, eBay 99% of the time is our appraisal. Why? Because 99 of every 100 units is usually clothes, 5 buck nic nacs or common electronics.  Your email implies that every unit may have rare antiques.  Sorry just not the case.

And I saw the whole email, just posted the part that will enrage any half minded person intent on reselling items.  I even said if you read my whole post that it was part of a donation email.

And yes we heartless low balling b'tard bidders do donate alot, only way to get rid of the **** you dont want that your site doesn't talk about without dropping money at the dump. Salvation Army, clothing bins and the such save our asses.

This is a great question BTW. Very few people ever ask this....and the way the tenant benefits is in conflict to how the buyer might benefit.
1) More people are paying their bills = less units going to auction. People did not truly understand the result of not paying before the show. TV has educated the world - maybe to your disapproval. Just an opinion bases on operating over 100 storage facilities in 7 states.

2) Some people have their unit sold without their knowledge. Example: You rent a storage unit and move to a new location. Your wallet gets stolen and you cancel your CC or maybe it just expires and you are at a new address and the storage company has not been notified.  (BTW - This happens often)  The last thing on your mind was that storage unit - now ur stuff got sold. If the storage company advertised properly and there was a large crowd you have a much better chance of getting some value for your contents. There are many other possibilities as well.

You might not care about everybody involved in the process, but we do. Here is a link to our email archive to help you find the information to share with the forum how we mislead people.

storagetreasures.com/general-information

Lance Watkins

In response to #1- if people would read all the fine print on the paperwork, they would know, but like most people they are lazy and don't read the whole paper or brochure they are given, so the only thing that These shows have done is do more legwork for the lazy tenant.  This would also be why you find rancid food in units, because people don't f'ing read, they expect to be spoon feed everything.

As for argument 2, in rare occasions I understand this one(service men and women or the deceased).  Sorry besides that, again laziness or forgetfulness shouldn't be an excuse. If you are forgetful enough to not pay for your unit for 3 or 4 months(don't know how it doesn't cross your mind once in that time frame), then IMHO it really wasn't that important to you in the first place.  I also believe many of these stories to be fabricated to make the storage site look neglectful or the bidder to be a heartless b'tard.  I believe the real truth to be people living beyond their means, hence when the unit does come up they can't pay.

Bartering is great.Sometimes you can get more value.

Only thing I have found out about bartering is people will try and bend u over a barrel right now here.