The newbies and wannabees will get their tax refunds and blow it and hopfuly be gone in another 60 days..........

I hope what you are saying is true as well...I have heard it from quite a few veterans here that these huge crowds will be long gone come the HOT FL summer and I need them to be if I am going to make any money doing this.

Have you seen this "tax" time spike in years past?  I assume yes?

wow, so bright and snappy!  Can't we add a photo of Ton Jones' belly to it?  j/k

Please give us the report on those (with pics) when you go to them.

Will do thanks....and thx for dropping this thread link on the lookey loo thread...haha  I didn't post it there originally because many..in fact MOST of these peeps were actual buyers (not at all skilled at it) but all bidding and loosing their shirts none the less....haha

I just returned from an 8 hour marathon auction tour of 6 facilities and saw a total of 31 units auctioned off today.  Of the 31, maybe 5 were pretty nice but I can tell you, even with my limited experience, basically every one sold for WAY more than it should have. I saw many piles of pure junk go for 300 or more and the nice units were all around 1400 to $1500 and up....there might have been some potential in a few of the nicer ones I guess, if I am fair

The last stop of the day was a newer facility all indoor and it had a whopping 12 units on the block....the crowd was a record for this auctioneer...and they stopped counting at 100 people....kids, pets, wheelchairs....it was a total circus and a total sweatbox as well....haha .....I think there was about 130  to 140 people there and the bidding was furious....

There were so many cars there, they filled the entire lot, all of the grounds around the building and both sides of the street leading out from the facility all the way into a neighborhood....so much so that the sheriff was called during the auction by homeowners and was issuing parking tickets to many cars causing a big stir...

Obviously, I need to find a less popular and less advertised route as you will almost always overpay in this situation... and even with a nice wad of cash in my pocket, I sat tight as I am sure I can find better deals...or wait till the summer heat drives many of these people away!

I took some photos of the crowd but they simple do not do it justice..haha the ole iPhone cam is so limited
Honestly, this was ONLY a part of the crowd and a small part of the cars and trucks that were there that you see here!

Hey thanks for your insight!

I know starting "small" is the most prudent strategy and makes the most sense for most, but for me, after running a 7 person warehouse operation for so many years...I'm just not an "out of the bedroom" type of guy...haha

Not only because I don't want roaches, lice, bed bugs and rodents in my spare bedrooms, but I prefer to think of a business as a separate entity and desire to have all of the resources necessary in order to ensure it is a success and so that "giving up" isn't an option.

Being well enough capitalized to withstand some bad buys and noob mistakes at the onset will be paramount and staying persistent and consistent over the long haul will be absolutely necessary as well ....but the way I play the game, failure is not an option!

Nice!

I'd say that is a successful business for sure!

If you don't mind me asking...In your "business expenses"

I'm sure you factor Fuel but do you have insurance on a truck factored in as well? Or a truck payment?

In addition, do you have a facility that you own or rent to sort and store items? OR do you pay to park your truck somewhere?   

I'm not at all trying to pry into your "personal" situation...just trying to model a successful business plan and be realistic about costs and profits

Thanks again!

Movieman,  Not to get off topic here but I would like to see one bit of additional info here as well. That would be that whatever your ratio is, has it caused your overall business to be profitable?

As you stated, success and treasure are relative terms...so for example with your ratio of 1 in 50

did you only break even on the 49 in between, double your money on average on the 49 or?

and on the 1 in 50 that you consider super deluxe, was it a 5X's your money return, 10X's or ?

I know I am in this game to make coin and to see a return on my investment in lockers so I am very interested in seeing the "success ratio" from an ROI perspective

Because if you even double your money, to me thats a winning locker?