Entrepreneurs! Self-Starters! Independent Business Persons! It's time to make some "easy" money with storage units.Well, OK... maybe it's not so easy all the time, but it's certainly entertaining.
Every year (and especially in bad economic times) regular people fail to make their monthly payments to Self-Storage facilities all across the country. The reasons can be quite varied: divorce, death, and job loss are but a few. But when people do fail to make those payments the clock starts ticking. They are called, and sent formal papers. And ads get placed advising the world that an absolute auction will take place to liquidate (sell) their stuff.
There are auction services that put on 50 or more auctions daily, and almost all of these are completely cash... all sales final. You go to the unit; they open it up; and the auctioneer starts the bidding. You get only less than a minute to "evaluate" the goods. Most times, things are stacked up, boxed up, and generally "difficult" to figure out their true value(s). The bidding may last up to two minutes before you hear SOLD! -then it's on to the next unit.
Bring your cash to the office, and in a few minutes the office is telling you you have 24-48 hrs to remove your treasures. You'll end up paying up to 10% more than the end price as an auctioneer's fee, and you might have to pay sales tax, too. Many bidders bring their enclosed truck or trailers with them, so as to limit transportation expenses.
Now, the dream of every seller is to find hidden guns, cash or jewels in the mix; but it's been my experience that people who have left such nice things generally have the money to pay their rent. What you do find, on a regular basis, are things like spare furniture, X-mas decorations, clothes and almost everything you would see at a flea market or garage sale. And by the way, you'd best value things in your bids accordingly. Stories of bidders "overbidding" are common, but so are the exotic Japanese Sword finds, or the complete set of The Incredible Hulk comics, etc.
You must have a strong stomach, too. Many people use their storage units as a trash dump, with things strewn everywhere. And it's up to the buyer to sweep the unit clean. Don't be surprised to find very, very personal items, too. We've seen artificial limbs, sexual toys, and enough "porn" to start an x-rated store.
What has made us money is furniture. Not all bidders relish the labor required to remove and move whole house-fulls of furniture, but I've found furniture to be a consistent earner. Next are the electric items; lamps, toasters; clock radios seem to go quickly. Almost nobody leaves "real" jewelry. No gold, a little silver, mostly quartz movement watches. Just don't overpay. I haven't seen a "drug dealer's money box" in storage units I've purchased, but then, I wouldn't be telling anybody if I had! Happy bidding!
Jake Earl is a staff writer for http://www.TrueCasinoStories.com
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