Auctions

[sparr]

I am considering getting back into the business of buying and selling things at auction. In general that means buying large lots of things at particular types of auctions (liquidation, government, surplus, estate), then selling individual things at other types of auctions (ebay, etc). When I lived in Nashville a great source of things to resell was the Nashville Metro government's auction site, eBid, and Essex Technology's online auctions. I still peruse them, and have bid on things (but not won) since leaving, with the plan to have a friend pick them up and ship them to me. Before I can devote the time to really get back into it as a moneymaking operation here in Atlanta I need to find some local sources of bulk consumer products.

In that light, I attended my first USPS Mail Recovery Center auction this morning. About once a month they auction off abandoned, undeliverable, and insurance-claimed packages. The lots range from books (a shitload of books) to household items to high end electronics.

The first lot was a trailer load of books, including novels, cookbooks, and textbooks. The bidding started at $40k and finished at $109k(?), which was stated as a new record for the facility. After that came a number of small lots of high dollar items, including computers, mp3 players, cameras, perfumes, shoes, and game consoles. Most went for 50-75% of retail price and appeared undamaged (having arrived late and missed the lot inspection period, these "Special" lots were the only ones that I got to actually see). After that came the bulk of the auction, comprised of about 80% books (in large lots of 100lbs+*), 15% misc or household items, and 5% larger lots of high dollar items like computers and cameras. Starting prices for these lots ranged from $10 to $2500, with final prices from double to ten times the starting prices. I left before that portion could complete, not being willing to bid without having seen the items.

I will definitely be going back next month (3 weeks from today), better prepared both in terms of scheduling and financially.

* - Most of the lots are grouped by how many items fit in a given size postal sorting container. Thus "Physician's Desk Reference - 40LB hamper" indicates a hamper designed to hold 40 pounds of loose mail filled with significantly more than 40 pounds of books.

Comments

[idav5d.livejournal.com]

Check some of the self storage facilities in your area for their auction dates. I've picked up some cool stuff at those for great prices.

[sparr0.livejournal.com]

I have done storage auctions in the past. Great places to get nifty stuff for myself, but not as efficient for reselling because, in my experience, they tend to have a lot of on-off items. Resale value can be high, but effort required to sell a dozen single items is a lot higher than selling a dozen of the same item.