Disappointing morning to say the least. Two auctions at facilities literally right across the street from each other. One at 9:00am and the next at 10:00am. Close to home, nice places, friendly management....
Auction #1 - I arrive at 8:35am, sign in as bidder #5, and am told there will be eight units. I then spend the next 25 minutes watching three tenants pull into the lot, go into the office, and pay up their units. So we're down to five. Good new is only about 10 bidders and 15-16 people total. Unfortunately, the units were: 1) crap $50 2) crap $60 3) crappier $20 4) crappiest $5 (this unit was a 5x10 LOADED with furniture, but all broken - the crowd scattered like gas-on-ants
) 5) junk - not quite crap! $275 Mostly broken furniture, matresses, box fans, tons of clothing....these units were so bad even our local whale only bought one $60 unit. (He was outbid by another guy for the 5th locker). Things were so bad even the photo I took of Unit #5 didn't turn out on my phone.....
Auction #2 - About seven or eight of us drive across the street to the other place - it's a nice facility where I've gotten some nice smalls in the past - and we're told "all paid up - nothing to auction." Figures...
Bottom line: In my area, it seems both the crowds and the prices have come down - but now the quality of the merchandise has also gone down. There have been some great lockers, but they are now about 1-in-20 or 1-in-30. Anyone else noticing this in your areas?
Good luck out there !!