» Self Storage Auctions

From its beginnings, one of the issues facing Humber Summit storage companies has been how to handle customers unable to pay their rent.  There is a legal process for invalidating leases similar to what you find with apartment complexes, and this is where companies can recoup some of their lost income.  Once a tenant has been legally “evicted” from their Humber Summit storage unit, the storage company is permitted to auction off possessions left in the unit.

In fact, storage auctions have become so popular there is actually a TV show featuring the process.  Watch a few episodes of that program and you’ll learn there is some risk in buying the contents of a storage unit, but there can also be a big, big payoff.

Does taking part in a Humber Summit storage auction sound like something you’d like to try?  If so, here are a few things you should know before heading to your first auction:

• Prepare yourself before attending your first auction.  Spend some time on websites like eBay and Craigslist.  Look through the classified ads of your local paper, attend local flea markets and tour area garage sales.  Finding out what is, or is not, selling will give you an idea ahead of time as to what you do, or do not, want to be on the lookout for.
• Bring a truck.  Most storage auctions are for the entire contents of individual units rather than the sales of individual items, and most companies will require you to haul away anything you’ve purchased within 24 hours.  Having a truck at the scene will open up your purchasing options.
• Bring cash.  Most companies are not going to accept checks or credit cards for your purchase, so it’s a good idea to have a few hundred dollars in cash on hand to increase your purchasing power.
• As stated before, most auctions are for the entire contents of a unit.  The trick here is you won’t be allowed into the unit prior to the auction.  The process will typically involve a lock being cut off, a door being opened and then the beginning of the auction within minutes.  Bringing along a high powered flashlight will allow you to get a better idea of what’s lurking in the back of a storage unit.
• Know what to look for when that door opens up.  Labeled crates and boxes will give you some idea of what’s hiding inside.  Factory sealed boxes may be an indication of retail goods that have never been used.  A poorly organized unit may conceal valuable treasures, but it may also be an indication of items that were never properly cared for and have thusly not retained full value.
• Don’t get discouraged by failure.  If you attend, and make purchases at, enough auctions, you’re going to get burned with a unit full of worthless junk at some point.  The key is to learn from those experiences so you’ll know when you should, or should not, get into a bidding war.  It should never become a competition between yourself and another bidder because there are no guarantees.  If you let something go, you may be passing on a unit full of valuable items, but you may also be passing on a hollow victory that nets you a unit full of trash you’re now responsible for hauling away.

Learning these lessons ahead of time will leave you better prepared for the Humber Summit storage auction process.  Now it’s time to get out there and hone your skills so you can make self storage auctions a fun way to supplement your income.

Tweet This Post 

Are you looking to make a little bit of money in your spare time?  If you are, it is entirely understandable.  Many people are finding themselves in dire straights nowadays, so working a little bit on the side is certainly not going to hurt.  But really, when you think about it, you are not going to have to get out there and find a new job to make more money.  You could, but you could also make use of the resources that are already at your disposal.  Indeed, if you have a few hundred dollars lying around, then you might choose to look into the broad world of self storage auctions.  If you have never attended an auction before, then there are a few things that you are going to want to know.

First and foremost, reader, know that you are not going to want to attend a self storage auction without a nice, handy flashlight.  Of course, when the units are opened up for you to see, you are going to want to be sure that you have a way to see the items that are in the very back.  Because the larger units are going to be harder to view, and because these units are typically going to have your big ticket items, you cannot hope to succeed without the help of your trusty flashlight.

Next, you are going to want to be sure that you know what to look for when it comes to the units that you are viewing.  If a unit looks incredibly sloppy when it is opened, then you are not going to want to bid very high on it.  True, those messes of boxes might be hiding something great, e.g. a car, a jewelry box, an entertainment.  Really, though, you are going to find that the sloppy units are usually going to yield what they look like, i.e. just a bunch of junk.

Moving on, here, you are also going to want to be sure that you are familiar with the auction policies of the sites that you are using.  If, for example, your site requires that you clear out the units that you win within twenty four hours, then you are going to have to be sure that you have the means to do so.  If you do not have a truck of your own, then you are going to have to be sure that you have rented one.  Also, you are going to have to find a place for all of junk.  Typically speaking, self storage facilities are not going to give you access to their dumpsters when it comes to throwing away the contents of the unit.  Also, you are going to have to be sure that you have a firm understanding of how you are going to sell your items once you win them.  There is nothing worse than finding yourself with a ton of items that you cannot sell, left only with the option of going to the local pawn shop.

At the end of the day, you are not going to have much trouble when you set out to make some extra money at your local self storage auctions .  When you start to get your feet wet, and when you know what you are doing, you are going to be able to rely on these for a little bit of additional income.  Of course, you should not despair if you do not turn a profit the first couple of times that you attend these.  As with everything else, you are going to have to practice to get better and see the profits that you are looking for.

Tweet This Post