Expectations

Have you ever asked someone a question and only heard what you wanted to hear when they answered you?  Then later, you've been disappointed when things didn't turn out like you hoped (heard)?  Unfortunately, that happens with our business sometimes.  We sometimes have to tell people (in the most diplomatic way possible), that an estate sale or auction will not likely make them rich.  Most people understand this from the outset but there are those who truly believe that everything they want to sell is worth thousands of dollars.  It's a rude awakening when it plays out like we said...

Some of the reasons some estates don't make a lot of money when liquidated are:

1. The contents of the estate are too specialized for general consumption.  For example, when you have hundreds of dolls that are very ordinary dolls, not rare or vintage, not even in pristine, unopened boxes condition, the number of people who will be interested in this estate are limited. 

Cute dolls, no boxes, all purchased in the 1980's.

Not everyone collects dolls and people who are serious collectors look for1950's and 1960's vintage dolls in great condition.  Dolls from Walmart and Target purchased in the 1980's are not big draws.

2. The contents of the estate are not in great condition.  When you have a leather sofa but it's scratched by dogs, we can't charge a premium price. 

Too many scratches to buff out.

When the house has been smoked in and everything has nicotine stains and a smell, the value of those items is significantly affected.

3. The estate is located in a town that is too far away from our customer base.  It is frustrating to us but most customers are not going to drive more than about 10 miles to attend a sale and only that far if it doesn't involve crossing a bridge! 

Sales in Lake Charles do GREAT, Westlake has really good sales, Moss Bluff, Sulphur and Carlyss sometimes do great and sometimes just OK. Sales is towns outside this area are a total crapshoot...our last sale in DeRidder was AWESOME.  Unfortunately, Vinton, and points further are just not big success stories for us.  We have had amazing antiques, great deals and perfect weather and yet, none of that mattered.  This is one of the reasons we developed our auction app.  If we can't bring the customers to the sale, we'll bring the sale to the customers.  Southern Estate Sales Auction App

4. The estate sale is held at the wrong time of the year.  This very seldom comes into play but it does happen once in a while.  For example, if we have lots of beautiful Christmas decorations and it's July...we will sell them but not on Friday at full price.

Christmas in July...hard sell.

  They are going to sell Saturday afternoon and Sunday at 50% and 75% off.  

5. The estate contains lots of very nice, expensive older brown furniture.  Formal dining rooms are a thing of the past, people want open concepts.  So a beautiful cherry dining room suite with a table and eight chairs and a china cabinet and a buffet only appeals to two kinds of shoppers:  the one who has been waiting for years for a set like this and has the perfect room for it and the one who is going to sand it, paint it and break it up to repurpose in their self-styled home. 

Thomasville Furniture, formal dining room suite.

Those two kinds of shoppers are not available at EVERY sale.  Sometimes everything just works and someone gets just what they have been wanting and we sell something at a great price but lots of times, it sells Saturday afternoon to a smart buyer who needs part of it and will resell the rest after a makeover.

There are lots of other factors that can affect a sale but these are some of the most common.  Fortunately, we have a great loyal following and find buyers for these items at the best prices we can get for them.  After all, the more money you make, the more we make!  My point in all of this is that even though we discuss all these things with prospective clients and try to be as honest and upfront as possible about possible outcomes, some people only hear the "best scenario" part of the discussion.  When things don't work out exactly as they hope, it's always the "incompetent estate sale company's" fault.  And that's not fair.  We work extremely hard to maximize profits at each and every sale, not just some of them.  So please, be realistic when evaluating your loved one's estate and listen to the professionals you hire for help, whether it's us or another company.  We do this all the time and trust me, we know what sells and what doesn't and at what price it will sell best.  That's our job!

Old Recipes

There are two best days when we are conducting a sale...the first day we begin working and the last day of the sale.  The first day is my favorite because everything there is new to us, all those treasures just waiting for us to discover!  And yes, every home has certain things that most all homes have but each one also has something that is unique, quirky, rare or just weird.  (More about that later.)  The last day of a sale is always fun because it signals a job finished, another family that has allowed us to help them liquidate their loved one's estate and another opportunity for us to learn and deepen our commitment to this calling that also happens to be the way we make a living.  Ok, and yes, by the last day, we are tired.  So it's a good day because we get to rest for a minute afterwards!

Anyway, one of the things we frequently find is recipes and cookbooks.  I love looking at them and seeing if I can figure out which ones were favorites...notes written in the margins of cookbooks are the best!  I especially love when they note what occasion they made the dish for and how it went over.  You won't find that at Books-A-Million!  The cookbooks we sell with these personal reviews are so much more valuable than a new one in my opinion!  

My mom was a great cook...she doesn't cook anymore but I got some of her handwritten recipe books down this weekend and copied them.  I found her recipe for bread pudding and decided to make it.  It was SO GOOD...

 The pan is a 9" x 13" so it is quite a bit.  The recipe calls for baking it 35-40 minutes but I actually baked it an hour.  I kept checking it and this seemed right.  Everyone's oven is different though so check often after about 40 minutes.

This is the sauce or "sop" as we call it.  It was also very good!  The recipe called for lemon extract, I used vanilla instead and loved it.  I think I will try rum or bourbon next time...

I stored it in the fridge, covered in Saran Wrap and warmed it and the sop when serving.  It's wonderful with some Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla too!  Now y'all know why I can't get rid of these extra pounds!  

If you'd like to try it, the recipe is pictured below.  I'll post some more as I get a chance, I copied quite a few.  This is mom...

And here's her bread pudding recipe:

Enjoy!

Remember I said we usually find certain things in almost every house we liquidate?  One of those things is a yardstick.  Care to guess what the other is?  We find it in probably 90% of the homes we do sales in and it's something most people have probably never used...leave your guesses in the comments, I'll tell y'all what it is later this week...

Books!

One of the things we frequently have at our sales is books...lots of them.  Sadly, we never sell as many of them as we would like.  I LOVE books and have hundreds of them so it breaks my heart when I know leftover books are going to waste piles.  Believe me, we have tried everything to avoid it but they are extremely difficult to source.  So I'm hoping this little bit of info might pique some interest in some of you in books as either a new collectible for yourself or as a revenue source for those of you who shop for resale.  I promise you that either way, you'll find it easy to get started by shopping our sales.

If you are going to buy books for yourself to start a collection I recommend you buy what you love.  Whether it's a particular author, a subject matter you're passionate about or even the book's appearance, that's what you should focus on.  When you buy a book it should make you happy.  Some of my favorite authors are Larry McMurtry, John Sandford and John Grisham.  When I see a new book out by any one of them, I get so excited!  

These are two of my favorite books, I love both of these authors.  They are great storytellers and keep me engaged from beginning to end.

The other types of books people sometimes collect are classics.  Whether they are first editions, leather bound or well loved copies, they always look great on a shelf.  Looking for ideas for styling?  These are some of my favorites:

You can never go wrong with classic blue and white.

The white collectibles tie everything together.

Soft, feminine, fresh and incredibly interesting.

The bright colors in this display give this room energy and life.

Simple yet eclectic. 

Grouped by color, this bookcase is the major accessory in the room.

It's easy to see from the photos that layering is the key to a well styled bookcase.  Add photos, accessories, organic pieces and anything else interesting.  Vary the heights, and don't be afraid to experiment.  Most of all, use your books as art.  Group them by color or subject, display them vertically and horizontally.  There is no hard and fast rule, make your own statement.  Just keep books as the base and you'll have a beautiful room before you know it.  

When buying books for resale, you'll need to do your homework and find out what books are selling.  A great site we use is Bookscouter.com.  They will tell you not only who is buying the book you search but also how much each vendor is willing to pay for it.  It advertises itself as a source for textbooks, but I have found almost every book I've searched on there, including novels.  Another site is AbeBooks.com.  Input the ISBN and they will tell you if they are buying that book and how much they will pay for it.  If you decide to sell it, they will send you a prepaid Fedex label and you get paid 1-3 business days after your shipment is processed through Paypal or by check.  Amazon.com buys books and gives a credit to use on their site.  Locally, Books-A-Million buys books, you bring them in for pricing.  If you have a Half Price Books in your area, they also buy books back on site.  Plus you can always do the work and check to see what is selling on Ebay and then actively search for those books.  There are lots of avenues for selling books, none of them will make you rich but it's a fun hobby and can be profitable.

I hope you will visit one of our sales soon, we always have great books for even better prices!  You can find information on upcoming sales here: Southern Estate Sales.