After our experience, and stories shared with us by other auction hunters, we've compiled a list of tips to help you be successful
Tips for a Successful Storage Auction
1. Three things: When you look at the items in the unit, you need to find three things that you can sell, and sell easily. If you find these three things it's a good start.
2. Buy what you know: Look for items that you're familiar with. If you see a set of golf clubs, but have never set foot on the greens or picked up a club, it's probably better that you don't attempt to buy them. Chances are, someone else at the auction knows more about them than you do and will run the bidding up on you (the more money you spend on that unit means the less money that you can spend on later units).
3. Organization: Look at how the items are stored. If they're tossed in their like they were shoveled out of the back of a truck, chances are there's nothing valuable. If it's packed and stacked nicely, someone thinks it has some value. "If there's bubble wrap, that sh*t ain't crap!"
4. Plastic "lock and lock" type boxes: If the items are sealed in a plastic box there's less a chance of rodents, bugs, and other critters you didn't bid on.
5. Know the neighborhood: If the storage facility is in a nice area, chances are the people storing things there will have purchased nicer things, and the reverse of this is true... do some research on the local demographics and you'll have a good understanding of what could be in the units.
Good luck, and remember that each unit is a gamble!
