Estate sales are somewhat like auctions, though most are held after someone has passed away. At times estate sales occur after a divorce, foreclosure, a move to a nursing home, renovations, bankruptcy or if someone is planning a long-distance move. Irrespective of the reason, estate sales can help pay off debts or be a way to make money off unwanted possessions. One can often find true bargains, unique items and even antiques at estate sales.Estate sale items often include furniture, electrical appliances, curtains, carpet, linen, crockery, paintings, clothing, tools and garden equipment.
Yet at times, one can purchase cheap cars, motorbikes, car trailers and outdoor lifestyle equipment such as tents, camping gear, caravans and boats. Estate sales are also known as ‘tag sales’ in some instances. Estate sales differ from garage sales in that they are usually organized by professional companies whose main goal is to seel all items remaining in a house. Thus, real estate agents, banks and finance agents often host estate sales. Lenders could be hoping to recoup monies from a reprocessed home. In the case of a deceased estate, family members may be selling unwanted items.
Estate sales which are hosted by agents often have the higher price tags. This is due to the fact that they usually charge between 25-35% commission for their services. The professionals certainly earn the commission considering they do so much work to set up the sales. They will need to take an inventory of items, set them out in the house in an order to warrant interest, appraise as well as price the items, advertise the sale, clean items when necessary and also clean up after the sale. To find estate sales easily, one simply needs a computer and the appropriate ‘keywords’ to do a search.
Simply go to your search box on your computer, type in estate sales + the locality you wish to search and you are half way to finding what you are looking for. Try keywords such as; tag sales, yard sale, deceased estate sale. By doing this, you will be shown a host of urls which lead to online classified ads, estate listings and so forth. If hosting your very own estate sale without the assistance of a professional agent, do not advertise this as a garage sale. Unfortunately, most attendees of garage sales are looking for items which are very cheap. Consequently, they may have the misconception that you are simply doing a spring clean and are just hoping to make a few dollars whilst doing so.
Be sure to specify exactly what you are hoping to sell. You will also be led to estate sales via social networking, electronic auctions, swap meet and sites such as eBay. There are also sites which will track the latest listing of estate sales all over the globe. Once you have the urls for estate company websites, you will see their listings of upcoming sales and the opportunity to register for email notifications. Check the classified section in your local newspaper as well. It will be of benefit to know that most estate sales begin on Fridays, so start looking for those listings on Thursdays.
Check www.markosweb.com/www/estate.net/- this will lead you directly to sales you may have missed. Do sign up for their weekly updates when you visit their website. By visiting estate websites you will often find that they add more items as well as photos as the sale day approaches. Check often for the latest updates. More so if you are looking for a specific item. Bargain basement prices are usually set on the last day of the sale. Prices could be cut down by 50% or more. But do realize that you could end up missing out on that precious Llardo vase, or rosewood, roll top desk if you leave it too late. Do ensure that what you are paying for when interested in collector’s items, is what it is meant to be. Any avid collector will know that a true Lladro has the Blue Bell or Tulip on the bottom.
Most times, the public are welcome to browse through all items. Prices are usually marked on the items, but one can still haggle for lower prices. But it is imperative that you do some research, price comparisons etc, prior to attending an estate sale. Check out the estate sales photos, read the item descriptions, make contact with the sales agents and ask questions if you have any. By asking questions, researching and doing price comparisons, you will be assured that this is not simply a car boot sale full of junk and nothing more.
If you are after quality good, you do not wish to waste your time at a ‘trash and treasure sale’. But, do take into account that sometimes estate sales are deemed ‘garage sales’. Often times this is done deliberately to attract everyone’s attention, not just antique buyers and so forth. Clever estate sellers know that once people have their feet in the door, they may end up spending more money than they initially intended to spend. Do not assume that no one reads the paper anymore. Newspapers are still read by millions. Keep your eyes open all the time for estate sales which you may have missed in your local newspaper.
Spread the word to family, friends and neighbours that you are interested in estate sales. They will inform you if they happen to see an estate sale sign on their way to work. Read the notice boards in shopping centres. One of the best tips is to read the obituaries in the local newspaper. If there are a few recent deaths in your area, there are increased chances of there being an estate sale in the near future. The death of influential people in your area, local council members, esteemed land owners etc, could have one finding a host of antiques, valuable art collections, collectors items and so forth at the estate sale.
Of course, social media sites such as Facebook will help you in your search as well. Increasing your friendship list will put you in a better position in regards to awareness of estate sales. Word of mouth works so well. While scouting for estate sales, do be warned not to step over the boundaries as far as befriending people in nursing homes, elderly care homes etc. Often times this is deemed as ‘stalking for your own gains‘. The better option is to befriend people in the know. Those people who interact with high profile clients.