I recently blogged about a storage unit auction on my personal blog, Life Is... Well, for those of you who were there - here's the update! And those of you who missed it - well, here's the update!

Remember that storage unit auction? And those few units we couldn't get opened? Well, I found out how it turned-out! LOL!! You can surely guess how it turned out. The first one had a couple of big plastic dollhouses and drywall material, another had some junky furniture, but the last one - that was the winner! Appliances, good furniture, full of decent stuff to resell and earn a profit. Now why would someone pay rent on a storage unit for a couple of dollhouses and drywall material? Oh wait, they didn't pay rent - that's why their stuff was auctioned off!


So while I was working another auction on Saturday (tools! tools! tools!), I took a minute to capture some video.

Thanks everybody for visiting! Feel free to leave some comments.

It's time - hear that ringin'!

We are in the mode of getting ready for some new auctions: NAPD's regular auto auction, a real estate and personal estate in Jeffersonville, a big one in New Albany, and more people continue to ask Barry to look at their situation to see if they need to even have an auction. So I thought, how do you know when to have an auction or take another avenue to sell?





Well, Barry uses a couple rules of thumb: 1) if it's ordinary household, have a yard sale, 2) if you have antiques or mint vintage pieces - have an auction. For real estate: auctions are always great, but there are some things to consider when auctioning real estate.

• Have you already been using a realtor? How long? Still under contract?
• What are some reasons the real estate has not sold under a realtor? Market demands? Expected price too high? (This one is two-fold tricky. Sentimental value on your part and the determination to get a "good deal" on the bidder's part are going to be at war. Try to be realistic when setting a bottom-dollar expectation, and you may be surprised at the outcome!)
• Are their any leins against the real estate? This one doesn't get thought about a lot, but it happens. Make sure to check your credit report if it's your real estate (you should do that annually anyway) and check with the courthouse concerning your real estate or that of your family member's if you are handling their estate. It never hurts to be prepared.
• What are the strengths and weaknesses of the real estate. Does the roof leak? Is the foundation cracked? Don't be afraid to be honest. Is it a new furnace? New carpeting, cabinets, bathroom, plumbing, etc.? All the better! If your weaknesses outweigh the strengths, pick a few to work on before the sale. This will increase the value and chances of a successful sale.

So how do you know whether to do an auction or not? There are a lot of positives about an auction. The main one is that it's quick (in a sense). There's preparation, but it's pretty much over in a day. Someone else does all the heavy lifting. Someone else handles working with the public. Someone else does the negotiating. Someone else does the legwork. Someone else does the promoting and advertising. So what's my vote? Do an auction!