FAQ’s
What is the best way to dispose of my estate?
Most often the sale is conducted as an estate sale. We have found that for most items, this works best. But depending on the type of item we are selling for you, we sometimes use other methods. If we think it would be more advantageous for you, we may opt, with your permission, to sell an item online through a site like EBAY, market it directly to a customer, or send it directly to high end auction houses like Christie’s.
I am just moving, can I have an estate sale?
Believe it or not, most estate sales are moving sales. It is far more common to have people move out of state, downsize to a smaller home, or move into an assisted living center.
Do I have to have valuable antiques or art to have a sale?
No. Most sales really do involve normal household contents such as kitchen items, furniture, and clothes. Although we have a strong market to sell antiques and art, the more common items are often more saleable because everyone can use them. Whereas not everyone can spend $2500.00 for an oil painting, almost anyone can use a new shirt, an extra frying pan or a pair of pliers. All these items add up. We suggest you donate these to a local charity, we can help you with some ideas of local charities in need in your area.
I am thinking of doing the sale myself, why should I hire someone:
Very simply, it is about experience. We know how much different items will command on the secondary market. You would be surprised how often people will sell the valuable items for nothing and turn around and overprice something else and not have it sell. This usually results in a lot of stuff left over and the sale earning much less than it would have had it been contracted out. The next thing to think about is time. Do you and your family really want to spend a month setting up a sale? If you are set on doing the sale yourself, the best thing you could do is to hire us to do a market value appraisal on the more expensive items and collectibles, just to make sure you don’t sell that $5,000 doll for $75.
What happens to everything left after the sale is over?
While often adjust the pricing in tag sales throughout the weekend, we are willing to sell all the left over contents to one buyer at the end if one materializes. Just remember, everything still belongs to you and you can decide how to dispose of it. If you want to keep the remainder, we just leave it for you. If you don’t, we will try to work with someone to come pick up anything left over. You may also opt to donate the leftovers to charity, we can help partner a good one with your sale if you would like our assistance.
When do I get the proceeds for the sale?
We usually cut you a check for the proceeds (less our commission and advertising expense) within a few days after the end of the sale. This give us time for the credit cards to deposit and allows us to process the checks and make sure that any “hot” checks are collected. Even in the event that a check does “bounce”, you are paid regardless of whether we collect on it or not.
Do you accept credit cards?
Yes, we accept cash, checks, credit, and debit cards. In some sales, almost half our sales are credit/debit cards and we are one of a very few companies that accept them. Any legitimate company should accept credit cards.
What happens if there is bad weather?
Weather is rarely a factor in estate sales. Unlike a garage sale that can be rained out, a estate sale is inside and snow, rain or wind rarely will affect you. If in the event of a weather emergency, we may opt to reschedule your sale
Can I put out flyers to sell my house at the sale?
Absolutely. Our main partner is Ashley Lewis who is a licensed real estate agent and would love to help you market it on that day. Be sure to mention this to us when setting up the sale! What better way to “show” your house than when droves of individuals are already there?
How will you market my estate?
We will market your estate in many different ways, but you will have the choice as to what level of advertising you want to use. We will supply you with a choice of the different levels of advertising and we will work out the details from there. Choices may include our mailing list direct mailings, website advertisement, newspaper ads, flyers, posters, personal contacts, and many more methods for marketing.
Should I wait for spring to do a sale?
No. The best months to do a sale are November, January, February, and March. Although fewer people will be shopping, you have very little competition with garage sales in these months. When spring comes, there may be hundreds of garage sales the same weekend and it is simply not possible for customers to make it to every sale. This isn’t to say that spring is a bad time, but don’t let it be a factor in waiting to have a sale. Weather is usually not an issue for an Estate sale, people will come!
Do I have a say in what you price an item?
Yes once on an item. We price the items, then we walk thru with you, if you wish and you can request that we raise, or lower, a price…once. Then we will attempt to sell an item for the first day for that price. If we see that it is over-priced, then we will start dropping the price on day 2 and again on day 3 if it has not sold. We want you to know this is a partnership.
Can I have items in my house during the sale that I do not plan to let you sell?
Yes, but they must be moved by the owner to a “safe room” and clearly marked not for sale. We have found that an extra closet or BR works well and we will clearly make this as a “do not enter room”. Also those items will be marked as NFS (well known in the industry as Not For Sale.)
What if I change my mind on an item and decide not to sell it?
When you give us the contract to sell the items, those items are to be sold by our company per contract. So we encourage you to make sure that it is to be sold when you clearly tell us what is to be sold. Items can be added at anytime, but before the first sale is made is best for everyone.
Do we (sellers) have a right to add items to the sale to sweeten the sale?
Yes, unless the owners disagrees. Keep in mind we want more buyers to attend. Any item from you or us could draw that buyer to the sale.