How do you know a unit has not been "Pre-Picked" by Management

When bidding on a unit that is supposedly "freshly opened" how do you know that the management did not go through the unit prior to auction day and snag anything that may have been valuable? Would you have any way of knowing that you are not just bidding on the leftovers from other units stacked into 1 "new" unit and put up for auction?

I would try talking with some auction vets in that area they should be able to tell you which facilities seem shady

I am a newbie as well but, look for disturbed dust, that could be a tell tale sign.

Well here in WA it would be considered stealing since the contents belong to the renter until sold at auction. Not to say it does not happen but I suspect it more likely the unit will be posed as in the best stuff will be showing.

Don't they have to leave the owners lock on the unit until the auction begins and then cut the owners lock? If there is a lock in addition to the storage companies lock that should tell the story. Of course, they could always cut the owners lock, get what they want, replace the owners lock with a new cheap one and then add the storage units lock also. So I'd say look for a couple things.......

1. two locks (one the owners one the storage companies)
2. disturbed "struff" dust out of place or wiped off something
3. boxes that are mostly opened and appear to be rummaged thru (as most people close and tape their storage boxes when putting them in the units.

Anyone have any other ideas?

When bidding on a unit that is supposedly "freshly opened" how do you know that the management did not go through the unit prior to auction day and snag anything that may have been valuable? Would you have any way of knowing that you are not just bidding on the leftovers from other units stacked into 1 "new" unit and put up for auction?

well let me tell you how it works in the state of South Carolina.
1. the owner of the unit has until the start of the auction to payup, if they pay and open their unit and stuff is missing, they can call the cops and the owner of the biz, can and will be prosecuted for theft....we have had people show up just as I'm raising the door with money in hand too payout.

2. when you don’t pay your monthly bill by the due date, the site manager places a lock along with yours onto the door(that day)that way someone can’t sneek in and remove the stuff under the cover of darkness….fast forward thru the certified letters and such, 30 days they cut off your lock, open the door, take a picture or 3 and list what they can see(for the legal ad)…90 days no payment…it goes to auction….Note: most that I’ve seen are $900 to $2000 in arears of back rent.

(as most people close and tape their storage boxes when putting them in the units.

Been doing this for 15+ yrs, and I can tell you that maybe 10-15% pack this way...all the rest pack with a shovel!!..I hate too raise a door and see black garbage bags....then there was the day we rolled up the door and there sat a Jaguar XJ-6.....

They just sold a 1982 Aston Martin Lagonda (went for $10,100) and a 1969-70 Land Rover ($7500) last week in Bellevue.  The Aston was supposed to be a good runner, but it's a damn ugly car!

I have been doing storage auctions in California since 1984 and have seen a lot of units.  Most managers are honest but as with any field with people, sometimes a few do illegal stuff.  In California, the tenant can pay on the unit until the auctioneer has sold the unit.  Sometimes the unit looks picked by the manager but it was the tenant getting to their unit before they were locked out.  Some managers are not as quick to lock them out as others.  Some people break into their units after they have been locked out.  A lot of buyers will say managers do stuff just to keep buyers from going to their storage auctions.  Always watch who is bidding on the unit, a lot of times it is the very person who is claiming the manager picked the best stuff out.  Hope this helps.  I have a lot of answers to common questions on my website: storageauctionexperts.com.  Good luck on your buying.  A lot of people make good money with storage auctions but one thing the TV shows are, edited.  People who make serious money have to work long hours and they are always moving stuff.

Good info

You make money over time in this business.
You will not make the millions by attending one auction, y have to stay in it for the long haul, and over time develop a system for both buying and selling, and also cost control on waste/garbage.

I know people who have become rich from this business, and making 6 figures a year from it. But they have been doing it for 4-5 years, day in and day out. They have created a network for selling.

Bidding and buying units are only 25% of the whole thing.

When bidding on a unit that is supposedly "freshly opened" how do you know that the management did not go through the unit prior to auction day and snag anything that may have been valuable? Would you have any way of knowing that you are not just bidding on the leftovers from other units stacked into 1 "new" unit and put up for auction?

The answer to your first question is: you don't
The answer to your 2nd question is: no, you wouldn't

When bidding on a unit that is supposedly "freshly opened" how do you know that the management did not go through the unit prior to auction day and snag anything that may have been valuable? Would you have any way of knowing that you are not just bidding on the leftovers from other units stacked into 1 "new" unit and put up for auction?

I don't doubt this happens but remember up until the auction starts people can show up and pay and reclaim their unit.

That would not be good if the manager of the facility took out high priced items and tehn the person showed up to pay off the unit. For that reason I don't think it happens as much as you might think.

What you should be more worried about is people clearing good stuff out of their own units. If you been to a lot of auctions you've probably noticed at some there's several cut locks already on the ground. Basically the person gets behind on payments, storage facility cuts lock puts on their own and the person finally pays up. They get access to their unit clear out osme good stuff and the same sceneario happens. They pay up again take soem more good stuff. Same thing happens over and over so by the time they eventually do lose the unit they have cleared out their worthwhile stuff.

You know, a lot of people get caught up in this question. If you only bid on what you can see, it shouldn't matter whether someone has gone through the unit. Is it unethical & illegal, sure. But, if there was anything valuable missing, you would have never known it was there anyway. What you really need to watch out for are "managers units". These are the units where a manager stores the items given to them or left behind by tenants who are moving out, or items that were left at the dumpster that the manager thinks they can make a buck on. The reason you have to be careful with these is because most of the time it is just a bunch of junk.

Two ways to tell if it is a managers unit is to make sure that the unit being sold was advertised in the public notice.
If it isn't in the public notice, the storage facility has made a huge mistake and sold the wrong unit or it is a managers unit. Every now and then you will come across a unit where the tenant is current and has actually requested for their property to be sold, be weary of these as well.

Also, at storage auctions in Houston, most delinquent units have some type of tag on or near the lock. If it is missing the tag, this is a giant red flag.