As seen on A&E channel "Storage Wars" episodes when the renter of a self-storage unit can't make the payments, the stuff inside goes up for grabs. What treasures might one find at a storage auction? The short answer is, anything and everything! Antiques, collectibles, appliances, kitchenware, linens, baby furniture, sofas, chairs, dressers, dining room sets, home decor, clothing, toys, games, bicycles, motorcycles, power tools, lawn mowers, barbecue grills, hobby supplies, hunting supplies, camping gear, sports equipment, seasonal decorations, books, DVD's and CD's, jewelry, electronics, business inventories, patio furniture, cameras, musical instruments....There are no limits. Check it out here: www.aetv.com/storage-wars. You can watch full episodes, meet the players and get bonus footage online.
About Self Storage Auction
In the United States, most self storage facility auctions are held to vacate non-paying tenants. There are an average of 800 California storage unit auctions on any given month. Each storage units auction site will have a different amount of units or lots to offer for auction. These storage auctions are opened to the general public with most bidders buying for the purpose of reselling for profit. Storage auction is a great way to buy secondhand merchandise for pennies. If you are someone who sells at flea markets, garage sales or on e-Bay, you will probably find self storage online auctions to be one of your best sources for merchandise.
How Does The Public Storage Auction Work?
Be sure to arrive 10-15 minutes prior to a scheduled storage unit auction. Before the auction storage starts, the mini storage auctions auctioneer will have a sign in sheet and a set of their company’s rules going over the terms and conditions of the storage units auctions. Most auctions are "live" or "verbal". The sale will allow the storage facility to recoup some of their losses. Any profit over the actual amount owed on the unit is paid to the renter, but the winning bid seldom covers the past due rent. Cash is the acceptable form of payment and sales tax will be charged if the buyer cannot show a valid resale license and proper identification. Storage locker auctions are very different then most types of auctions. Usually you are bidding on the entire contents of a unit. Units or lots are usually viewed 1 by 1 with the viewing limited to the doorway entrance of the storage unit or container. The bidding starts after all bidders have had a viewing of the property. Bids sometimes start out as low as $1.00 and can proceed upwards with the property being sold to the highest bidder. Based on our experience average lots or units seem to sell for around $300.00. Don't forget, the high bidder must remove all contents of the unit purchased within the time specified by the self storage facility. Facilities do not allow the use of their garbage cans or dumpsters and units are expected to be broom swept clean.
What Can I Expect To Find if I Buy Storage Units at an Auction?
You really never know what you will find. Most storage shed auctions yield general household goods, furniture, electronics, clothing and personal records. Bidders do find money, jewelry, antiques and collectibles at these auctions. It is not uncommon to find someone's whole household or business in a unit, with that in mind, you never know when you might stumble on someone's life collection of who knows what! Remember you are usually viewing the property from an open entrance into a storage unit or container; this means that boxes and plastics storage containers can yield anything. Some units are packed so tight that you won't have the luxury of getting a view of the items that are behind what is blocking the entrance area.
How Can I Find Out Where The Storage Unit Auctions Are Taking Place?
You can find out through various sources where storage building auctions take place. Public storage unit auction in ca are required to post legal notices in newspapers. There are also web sites and auctioneers who all provide very limited schedules of self storage auctions. By using all these action storage sources it is possible to find out when and where all these auctions will be conducted. Contacting the different self storage companies will yield you the highest results.
