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!