charging admission ????

This is an ad from St. Louis auctioneer:       UPCOMING STORAGE SALE SCHEDULE

**NOTE** These numbers are very likely to change before sale times....For those of you who do not understand how this works , the tenants have right up until the time that the sale starts to come in and pay off their delinquent balances, so that locker would not be sold as advertised.

**NEW POLICY- Effective 1-25-12 ALL FACILITIES - Due to the ever increasing crowds showing up at storage auctions, there will be a $5.00 per person  ( that means every wife, child & friend) , not per buyer cover charge at each location, refundable with purchase. This money goes to the facility.

We are experiencing a large number of people that are there with no intention of buying lockers, bringing their children, which increases our time selling each unit.

All of our time is valuable. Where it was 5-10 minutes to show & sell a locker, it's now taking 20-25 minutes, and it's costing storage facilities several hours at each location from start to finish doing paperwork. **

WE STILL WELCOME EVERYONE TO ATTEND

I see their point but that's messed up. I'm not paying $5 just to find they have three trash lockers. Or lockers that go above my limit.

Though this tells me the facility doesn't like the reaction to the tv shows either.

My feeling is the facilities liked the higher bids as a result of the shows but now it's just not worth it. Not like the have that many defaults. Most often sold within two months of last payment so not a huge loss. Auction recoils some. Selling to collections a touch more and the rest is a write off.

And that's my opinion with having no knowledge of financial losses due to default. 

i have no problem with this at all. many times, the caravan im following is mostly lookeyloos and 5-10 real bidders. cracking down on the spectators will decrease the time spent while EVERYONE gets a look, plus the possible 'omg i have to have that jack up the price' types that are there only to run up bids.

This may cut out some of the lookey loos but, I still don't like the idea, whos to say they won't start chargin 10, 15, 20 admission fee?

I really like this idea as a consistent storage unit buyer. In my opinion, the extra $5 per location spent on not winning a unit is worth it if I can start winning $400 unit for $200.

Now for the part-timers and lookie loos, this my seem like a bad idea but consider there is an admission fee to go to sporting events, car races, movies, etc. any other form of entertainment, so why not the auctions?

I look at it this way. I go to 10 auctions, they are all garbage units, I spend $50. Then the next auction a real nice unit comes up and because there aren't a bunch of lookie loos, newbies, part-timers running up the bid I get a unit for $600 that right now would go for $1200 or more.

potential $600 saved on unit from excessive bidding minus $50 in auction fees = $550 saved!

I see your point.
And I guess five bucks is an okay price as not to be tripping over kids and having 20 people in your view of the locker

I can see the large auctioneer's and facilities doing this to make extra money.  We had over 200 people (some said 340) at a Metro auction on MLK day.

Talking with the auctioneer (does texas, fl, etc. and had been on the show) - he hates the shows.  At first it was nice to have the extra bidders and higher prices.  However, due to the crowds now he is loosing money.  Where before he could hold 4-5 auctions a day, he can only do two.

Now if they grandfathered in people.  So if you had purchased a unit(s) from them in the past you didn't pay admission.  If you were brand new, then you did.

I would be pissed however to pay $5 to see 2 or 3 crappy lockers that I'm no way interested in.  Or the day no one was interested in the two units.  Most of my auctions are 20-40 people even with the looky loos.  So the auctions still go by pretty quick. 

Do what some places are doing a set up a refundable $50 payment.  Everyone pays 50 bucks up front, and you get a bid card. No bid card means you don't go into the auction.  This way the lookie loos are either removed or are at a bare minimum(as most lookie loos carry zero cash).

I like this $5 idea a lot. A better idea would be that for anyone whom bids, they get their $5 back. This way the real bidders don't get hit with the fee, only the LLs do.

I like this $5 idea a lot. A better idea would be that for anyone whom bids, they get their $5 back. This way the real bidders don't get hit with the fee, only the LLs do.

Yeah, but....who's going to keep track of that?  And what is to stop a looky-lou from bidding $1 to get their money back?

I love the idea of grandfathering in those who are known buyers, but again, who does the policing of this?

I'd love to get the crowds under control and wouldn't object to a pay-per-view kind of deal, but there are just so many variables.  Like on a two day 16 facility caravan it'll cost my husband and I $160?  And who is going to be collecting all that dough?  The employees of the facility or the auctioneers?  Either way, time will be consumed with filling out that paperwork......

ugh......let's just get these danged shows off the air or better yet.....get one that really portrays the business......that should squelch about 80% of 'newbies'!

GREAT IDEA if ya ask me......Id pay it all day even if I didnt win a locker.

This is an ad from St. Louis auctioneer:       UPCOMING STORAGE SALE SCHEDULE

**NOTE** These numbers are very likely to change before sale times....For those of you who do not understand how this works , the tenants have right up until the time that the sale starts to come in and pay off their delinquent balances, so that locker would not be sold as advertised.

**NEW POLICY- Effective 1-25-12 ALL FACILITIES - Due to the ever increasing crowds showing up at storage auctions, there will be a $5.00 per person  ( that means every wife, child & friend) , not per buyer cover charge at each location, refundable with purchase. This money goes to the facility.

We are experiencing a large number of people that are there with no intention of buying lockers, bringing their children, which increases our time selling each unit.

All of our time is valuable. Where it was 5-10 minutes to show & sell a locker, it's now taking 20-25 minutes, and it's costing storage facilities several hours at each location from start to finish doing paperwork. **

WE STILL WELCOME EVERYONE TO ATTEND

I think this is a good idea but need a better idea so serious buyer arent affected! Maybe have a big screen in the lobby for the people that are starving for entertainment can watch or play reuns of storage bors?

So no one but me would have a problem with this.  It is open to the public.  So if there are 7 auctions that day and you go to all of them there is $35 spent and you may not win a single unit.  Now if you are going as a team because two sets of eyes are better than one you just spent $70. Start doing that 4 - 5 time a month and you are talking $300 a month.  Good luck making a profit that way.  Would anyone be happy when they open a unit and the only thing in there is one chest and a bag of garbage left behind.  Talk about the WOW factor.  I just paid $5 to see that trash.

I think this is a good idea but need a better idea so serious buyer arent affected! Maybe have a big screen in the lobby for the people that are starving for entertainment can watch or play reuns of storage bors?

And who is going to pay for the big screen and camera's at every auction ?

So if there are 7 auctions that day and you go to all of them there is $35 spent and you may not win a single unit.

Think of the time saved by not having all of the LLs in the way. Getting the 7 auctions done in 3 hours instead of 7 hours is well worth the extra cost. My time is valuable to me. Then of course there always the possibility of being charged just one $5 fee by the auctioneer to cover all of the auctions that day.