Storage Auctions
The Storage Locker => Stories about Storage Auctions => Topic started by: MovieMan on February 04, 2011, 04:59:27 PM
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Thought I would start this as maybe a monthly report to see if we can really see a difference as time goes by in the number of lookers. There are certainly variables of course, but I can speak for my section of the country anyway.
I went to two auctions today both by the same chain and both in the same town. Neither of these had a professional auctioneer, but that is ANOTHER story.
The first auction had about 15 people and 5 units. Three units were losers (IMHO) and went for $25 and thereabouts. The other two went for $70 each.
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The 2nd auction had about 30 people and 5 units. A couple were OK and went in the $25 to $50 range. One went for about $375 but for good reason. The 15 year veteran who got it wanted the contents for his daughter's new living arrangement. She moved from an apartment to a house.
So lighter crowd but not biggie auction by well-known auctioneers...that was the main factor I think. :D
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100 views of this thread as of Wednesday Feb 9, 2011 but no one has anything to say...oh well, I do.
I am getting varied stories from other buyers in my area. Some auctions are having 75 or so "bidders" while others are only getting 30. Seems that time conflicts are accounting for most of this trend, with some smaller locations also getting the lower numbers.
Another few months needed to see real trends in bidder numbers.
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Good news here in Memphis,TN.
They are now starting up a new thing. Wohooooo could not come sooner.
All storage auctions in Memphis,TN will from March 2011 start with fees for newbies.
It will cost you as a newbie 100 dollar to even be able attend the auction. Bring your family and it is 100 dollar per head.
If you can not show that you have bought more then 10 units or attended more then 50 auctions the last 3 months you will have to pay up to get in. Of course they give this deposit back to you if you don't buy a locker. And if you buy a locker you get it back after the locker is inspected by the manager. (Must be empty and clean)
This will here in Memphis,TN reduce the crowds with atleast 40-50%
The same thing is beeing looked at in Alabama, Arkansas, and Texas. And more and more places will be doing it
Best thing about this, it is supported by fedral law as guidelines for the auctioneers.
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Mr. A....
That is BLOCKBUSTER news ! And the fact it is possible in more than one place even better. I'll let the major auctioneers in central California know about this. I don't know if it will fly or not. One greedy auctioneer will say "going , once, going twice..."and before saying "...going three times, sold" will pause after "going twice" and say anymore bids, I'm going to sell it", then he'll pause for about 15 seconds, and HE WILL sometimes get more bids and we keep going. His take on that extra $10 bump would be $2.50, and he wants it. HE ALSO WANTS THE BIGGEST CROWD HE CAN GET.
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Bigger crowds = inexperienced bidders = more money for the house and auctioneer...........
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I imagine laws probably very from state to state but in my state and at auctions where I'm freindly with teh auctioneers I was told they don't make a commission they just get a flat fee for facilitating the auction.
I'm not really big into auctions besides storage but I believe thats what differentiates a bid caller from an auctioneer, auctioneers do tehir own marketing, run the auction make a commission, bid callers just run the bidding.
Also, more money for a unit in my state isn't more money for the facility. I believe they get whatever they are owed in back rent, fees, late fees, etc but the remainder of the money by law goes back to the person that owns the auction.
it's good for them to get money so the facility gets all they are owed but over and above that I dont think they get to keep any of the money. At least in my state that is.
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Good news here in Memphis,TN.
They are now starting up a new thing. Wohooooo could not come sooner.
All storage auctions in Memphis,TN will from March 2011 start with fees for newbies.
It will cost you as a newbie 100 dollar to even be able attend the auction. Bring your family and it is 100 dollar per head.
If you can not show that you have bought more then 10 units or attended more then 50 auctions the last 3 months you will have to pay up to get in. Of course they give this deposit back to you if you don't buy a locker. And if you buy a locker you get it back after the locker is inspected by the manager. (Must be empty and clean)
This will here in Memphis,TN reduce the crowds with atleast 40-50%
The same thing is beeing looked at in Alabama, Arkansas, and Texas. And more and more places will be doing it
Best thing about this, it is supported by fedral law as guidelines for the auctioneers.
I like the concept, particularly reducing the family crowd just taking up space and wasting our time. In practice I think this will be more trouble than it's worth. For example, are you going to carry 10 locker receipts with you? Will they honor receipts from other companies? Will you get receipts for attendance but not purchasing? What if I leave a tour early - who gives my money back? Or does each location take the $100 bill deposit? These are just a few of the many problems I can imagine. More than likely larger crowds are here to stay, but the "lookers" should fade away before long anyway so why would the auctioneers/storage companies invest time/money/effort into deterring people? I'm willing to bet the crowds=max revenue far outweighs the occasional locker left with stuff in it.
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Has anyone talked to the auctioneers to see if the longer auctions and more bidders is costing the auctioneer money? I would think the increased bids will outweigh the longer time periods.
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And the new practice of a attendence fee started today, i am glad to report that 15-20 people ( newbies / onlookers ) turned around and left. Suddenly the crowd was down to 20 people. Nice to see "waste of time" people are gone.
It is the auctioneer and storage companies who want this change, they lose big amount of money on newbies and onlookers.
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No new fees here in California for new would-be buyers.
On Friday, Feb 11, 2011 the crowd at two auctions (same auctioneer) was about 75; I didn't go to the 3rd auction.
Prices were somewhat high at first two auctions, but I got one for $500 (showing 3 laptops, two of which work);other stuff OK too, but total lkr not a huge money maker; three months ago this would have gone for $250 or $300 and would have made me that much more profit.
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I talked to a guy today who is a newbie, he won a couple of lockers last week, and everyone i know thought he overpaid by a lot.
One unit he paid 675 for and the other he paid 800 for.
Well after talking with him today he was in deep ****. He had spent all his money and taken out 300 dollars on a CC.
His problem is as following.
He has no one to pick it up for him, he only has a 4 door sedan, he has nowhere to put it, and have been told by the storage places that he will be charged 1 month rent at both places. He asked me if i wanted to buy his units for his original winning bids, something i said no to. In one week those lockers are picked.
On top of this he asked me if i could have my guy's picking it up and drive it to his moms place in Alabama, it is like a 4 hours drive one way. He is broke and can not pay for it.
So i said no, well then he went on to say that i was working against newbies and i was making their life harder. So i told him it was not my job to babysit him, he went into this on his own, now he has to get out of it on his own. This pissed him off i think, then he said he was gonna show up on ever auctions and bid every "old timer up" He was gonna make it hard for everyone in the business.
I tell you, this is the newbies in a nutshell, they get burned and then they blame it on everyone else.
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I don't know how many times in the last two months that I've overheard noobies saying that the auctions are "rigged" or some other such BS. They pay a lot of money for a locker, and it's full of crap, and then it's somebody else's fault. The only thing I'm more tired of hearing (at every damn auction!) is "Yeepp" done in Dave's tone of voice!
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1,400 on two units as a noob??? Not exactly a sound investment. If someone new to storage auctions is serious about making money in the long run, my advice to you is, start slow, buy units that do not exceed $200. If you have a home run mentality, more times than not you will strike out. I remember my first unit, got it for $150 and sold the hell out of everything, I would not allow myself to buy another unit until I sold everything that I could. I think I ended up making a $500 profit off that unit, but it was hard work.
Wonder what will happen to the guy in your story, things could get dicey if he tries to bid up other people only to have the unit dumped on him. :o
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Well i am a mirror, the way you treat me, is the way i treat you.
When he started to curse me and saying all kinds of F words in the book, guess what i will be doing tomorrow if he shows up. I will be telling all the old timers exactly what was said and how he is, and they will be aware of it. So he will get alot of units dumped on him. Trust me it will happend.
I will make sure he is a financial disaster when i am done with him.
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It sounds like he is already a "financial disaster"! ;)
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Mr. A....
Your post #10 is really interesting; can't get how this guy blames it on you; you didn't want to buy his stuff; he's mad at himself for jumping off the cliff.
Yep, he might bid some people up and then get stuck with the locker especially if you inform all the old-timers.
What an idiot he is.
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He doesn't sound like someone who will be in the business for long. He's either going to piss everybody else off and never get a cheap unit, or he's going to blow all his cash on crap units. I love people that blame everyone else for their stupidity and greed!
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I talked to a guy today who is a newbie, he won a couple of lockers last week, and everyone i know thought he overpaid by a lot.
One unit he paid 675 for and the other he paid 800 for.
Well after talking with him today he was in deep ****. He had spent all his money and taken out 300 dollars on a CC.
His problem is as following.
He has no one to pick it up for him, he only has a 4 door sedan, he has nowhere to put it, and have been told by the storage places that he will be charged 1 month rent at both places. He asked me if i wanted to buy his units for his original winning bids, something i said no to. In one week those lockers are picked.
On top of this he asked me if i could have my guy's picking it up and drive it to his moms place in Alabama, it is like a 4 hours drive one way. He is broke and can not pay for it.
So i said no, well then he went on to say that i was working against newbies and i was making their life harder. So i told him it was not my job to babysit him, he went into this on his own, now he has to get out of it on his own. This pissed him off i think, then he said he was gonna show up on ever auctions and bid every "old timer up" He was gonna make it hard for everyone in the business.
I tell you, this is the newbies in a nutshell, they get burned and then they blame it on everyone else.
Noobie or not, this guy obviously isn't very intelligent. Tell him to ask his mom to bail him out.
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lookey loos I say lookey lunatics. I went back out on one of the big uhaul runs yesterday. First time in couple months or more. Huge crowd. I thinkin okay they are just here to look. 1st locker has atm and kids dirt bike. Goes upwards of 900.
Next locker 4 x 5 with uhaul boxes only thing u can see is kids books. I'm thinking my locker max 250 it goes for 475 I think. The whole run was like that. One unit with 2 torn open big black trash bag and clothes strewn about went for 90 bucks.
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I'm curious Terry, was this auction advertised online, e.g. auctionzip.xxx? Also, what region of the country are you in?
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Lookey Lunatics ! Good one and should catch on around these threads. ;)
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Atlanta Ga
No it is not on auction zip. But all the newspaper in this area have web sites. plus work of mouth. Uhaul is smiling all the way to the bank. The auctioneer was to till about 5:30 pm. He had 3 locations to go. I left with 1 to go at 7:15.
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Those are the good days to go to some other smaller auctions around town while everyone is on the big "tour"! Too bad there wasn't much else going on around town(Atlanta) on Monday!
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Feb 20, 2011
The lookey loos are still coming though the numbers seem to have stabilized or gone down a bit depending
on the auctioneer.
The other thing I have noticed is that some of the newbies I have seen coming for the last 3 to 6 weeks are starting to buy ! These folks seem to be pretty focused and will possibly be long-term contenders, but others are making newbie mistakes and won't last..imho.
Only a week left in February!
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I have only seen 2 newbies that have stayed for longer then 2 weeks. Most newbies here in Memphis shows up once or twice, then you don't see them again. But there is always a new face in the crowd.
Since desember i have only seen 2 newbies who are still showing up, and bidding on regular basis.
The rest of the pack comes and look, they bid and act like total dumbasses, then they are gone, just like the wind.
They come, they bid, they lose, and they are gone. And waht do that tell you, well either they lost their shirt on a deal, or they are lazy people who will not work. People like that will never make it, regardless of what they are trying to do.
Big mouth, huge show off needs, and then the air goes out of them like a balloon.
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Went to 2 auctions today...Feb 24, 2011...by same auctioneer. About 5 lkrs at each site and "only" 30 plus bidders. A gal who used to buy $5 and $10 lockers has upped her bids into the $100 range that those lockers now require. She got 1 for a hundred something, 1 for $35 and another in that range.
The fellow who used to get the $1 and $5 lockers is not coming right now...those lkrs are going for $25 and up.
But, crowd seems better than even a few weeks ago, so there is hope.
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Went on an auction circuit yesterday, 6 locations. All day the prices were way out of hand. Too many people with too much money to piss away. I thought the cold weather would deter people, I was dead wrong. One locker went for 2900 and believe me, it was not worth 2900. I went home empty handed, I just couldn't justify paying retail for a unit. My last auction of the day was in Minneapolis and it was an inside facility. The crowds were insane, trying to move was such a hassle. And while I'm venting, don't people shower anymore, my God I've never encountered such shady, stinky people. I think I'll wait until the end of March before hitting another auction, the scene is just too saturated right now.
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I am pretty sure at least one of the shows was picked up for a second season, so waiting until March probably wont help a damn thing.
Orlando
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I am pretty sure at least one of the shows was picked up for a second season, so waiting until March probably wont help a damn thing.
Orlando
Both shows have renewed for sure. I actually think central California is starting to see a bit of backing off in crowd size. Also, some newbies ARE buying...though still paying too much. I have heard 2 guys say they got crap and will lose money on what they paid for...one paid 500 and another 1650!
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There are a lot of people losing money right now. I've seen many units sold for way more than what they were worth. One guy was buying stuff left and right, and he blew through over 15 grand in about four auctions, including buying one locker with a lot of nice looking furniture for $7600 (plus tax, he was in it in the mid 8's! I've talked to him quite a bit now, and the other day he told me he will be lucky if he get's 5k back out of that locker, and his wife is starting to get a little mad at him. Their garage is full and he has spent a lot of their savings and they haven't made any money yet.
I was also selling a few clothes at a shop I do business with, and the owner's husband was there, and he started talking about storage auctions. He told me he was going to get him and his buddy to each put in $600 and they were going to go to the auctions and "tear it up"! I told him I know guys that go with $20K, and they aren't even "tearing it up" right now!
I do think it is starting to stabilize a little bit.....I got 2 1/2 this week (split one) but prices are still a lot higher than they used to be. Paid $50, $360, and $1075. Before, that would have been $10-$20, $150, and maybe $400-$500!
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One thing I hated about this circuit was they took credit cards.
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I am pretty sure at least one of the shows was picked up for a second season, so waiting until March probably wont help a damn thing.
Orlando
Tax season doesn't help right now either
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There are a lot of people losing money right now. I've seen many units sold for way more than what they were worth. One guy was buying stuff left and right, and he blew through over 15 grand in about four auctions, including buying one locker with a lot of nice looking furniture for $7600 (plus tax, he was in it in the mid 8's! I've talked to him quite a bit now, and the other day he told me he will be lucky if he get's 5k back out of that locker, and his wife is starting to get a little mad at him. Their garage is full and he has spent a lot of their savings and they haven't made any money yet.
I was also selling a few clothes at a shop I do business with, and the owner's husband was there, and he started talking about storage auctions. He told me he was going to get him and his buddy to each put in $600 and they were going to go to the auctions and "tear it up"! I told him I know guys that go with $20K, and they aren't even "tearing it up" right now!
I do think it is starting to stabilize a little bit.....I got 2 1/2 this week (split one) but prices are still a lot higher than they used to be. Paid $50, $360, and $1075. Before, that would have been $10-$20, $150, and maybe $400-$500!
Ha,
there was this one locker and it was beautiful. Well packed, full of goodies. So as I scan it, I come up with a max of 600, I mean great stuff in there. I sit back and wait to see what the other bidders do and next thing I know the bidding is up to 1,300 bucks, I just walked away.