How appropriate

Got my first loser unit this weekend, and when I log in I'm back to noobie status. Wish I had been a looky loo yesterday, but it was just a matter of time I guess. 5 total hours of work cleaning out, 2 dump runs and a probable 40.00 loss. Oh well, it's fall break for the wife and kids and I'm on vacation for ten days. 

Got my first loser unit this weekend, and when I log in I'm back to noobie status. Wish I had been a looky loo yesterday, but it was just a matter of time I guess. 5 total hours of work cleaning out, 2 dump runs and a probable 40.00 loss. Oh well, it's fall break for the wife and kids and I'm on vacation for ten days. 

Hey, it happens, and will happen again...just a part of the biz. If we could pick only TOTAL winners we would but there will be break-evens and losses as well. Welcome to the club !

Perfect example of bid on what u can see. When in doubt stick with that u cant lose.

Means your closer to a good one.Good Luck!

Got my first loser unit this weekend, and when I log in I'm back to noobie status. Wish I had been a looky loo yesterday, but it was just a matter of time I guess. 5 total hours of work cleaning out, 2 dump runs and a probable 40.00 loss. Oh well, it's fall break for the wife and kids and I'm on vacation for ten days. 

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that the people who stick it out and make a living of storage auctions are not uniquely blessed in that the always win profitable units. The people who stick it out are those who can take the loser units and determine how they went wrong with either bidding or selling and shake of the loss and keep going. Obviously you have to win more then you lose to be successful, but if you can drop $500 or more on a locker and it turns into a complete dump run which costs you another $100 in fees, fuel & labor; and have the confidence get out to the auctions and start bidding again, you are well on your way to being successful in this business.

My little caveat, I disagree with the notion of only bidding on what you can see, unless you have years of experience and can "see" a lot more than the average bidder. Auctions have become so competitive in most parts of the country you will never win a unit just bidding on what you can see, you are going to have to take some gambles to win units consistently.

I feel your pain Miller.  Got my first loss unit last month also.  Currently sitting at a 180 loss.  None of the electronics were good (busted tvs, fridge, vac, etc.).  Plus, all of the boxes were cloths.  Many of the cloths are stained with grease, etc.  I've not sold anything out of the unit yet, thus why I have it on the balance sheet as a $180 loss.  Will re-coup some money in scrap but not much.  So it all hinges on the good cloths selling in the spring when I have time for a yard sale.

Thanks for the great comments, hearing them is a great pick-me-up. I pretty much agree with everthing I read. I had not won a unit in a month and upped the risk factor and got burned a little. I think upping the risk is needed in the current environment but I won't get carried away like this one. I looked at it as a good learning experiance and I'm ready for the auction Monday after I get back from the beach. Good luck to everyone.

Got my first loser unit this weekend, and when I log in I'm back to noobie status. Wish I had been a looky loo yesterday, but it was just a matter of time I guess. 5 total hours of work cleaning out, 2 dump runs and a probable 40.00 loss. Oh well, it's fall break for the wife and kids and I'm on vacation for ten days. 

Bought one of those last weekend myself! But lucky us the owner really wanted there stuff back so sold for 200 more plus got the 25 cleaning deposit back

I have yet to buy me a loser locker where I didnt at least make my money back. However, I also have not been back out in awhile. I am hoping that with this break I am taking things will settle down quite a bit. I am not expecting to go back to the way it was before the shows, I dont think that will ever happen. But I am hoping enough people look at it as Get Rich Quick Scheme that YOU SHOULD AVOID. I have noticed that a major part of the new people coming out think it as a Get Rich Quick Scheme, until they realize how much work really is involved. Most people seeing this will back out after they lose X amount of money. And that is what I am waiting for.

jrossjr, I have great respect for your knowledge and experience so I'm not suprised by your non losing streak. I got away from my gameplan and it will cost me 30-40 bucks, not a major loss. I calculated my Return (sales + resale value of items kept) to Cost of Units ratio and was 4.04 to 1.00. This was before the bad unit and was greatly influenced by a unit I have made 9x the cost so far, though I have done quite well on the others. With the other costs factored in this has still been a profitable venture for doing it as a second job. The problem with doing this for a Get Rich Quick Scheme is the lack of preparedness will bite you in the ass. To be successful at this takes planning, discipline, patience and constantly growing knowledge. You and the veterans here helped me get started and I will always be grateful. Got a small unit yesterday that I will easily double my money, so lesson learned and stick to the gameplan. Looking forward to you jumping back in.

Must admit Millertime, I am no vet. I just seemed to be better prepared, and then with the knowledge added that I have from doing resells in general, that is what overall has helped me the most.

I look at it as somewhat like your playing poker. There is a risk, there is some luck. But there is always a way to improve your odds. I am also sure there is a way to even overcome what is going on now with the same perspective of increasing the odds in your favor. But those are games that I am currently not ready for. I need more learning on those