Do I have enough items to hold an estate sale?
Typically if you are looking to liquidate an entire household you will have enough items to warrant a full 2 day estate sale. Average household being a minimum of 2 bedrooms, living area, kitchen etc. However, despite the size of the house we usually recommend that there be at least $5,000 worth of sellable items. These items should be a good mix of everyday household items (small appliances, electronics, cleaning supplies, books, clothes, etc.), furniture, tools or yard items, decorator items (mirrors, candlesticks, artwork), table and bed linens, kitchenware, collector items or antiques.
Why should we hire an estate sale company versus doing it ourselves?
Running a successful estate sale can quickly turn into a full-time job. For most families it is hard to juggle and find the necessary time to devote to the project. Pricing, organizing, research, set-up, marketing the event, working the event (and finding enough volunteers to help), bartering with buyers, and final clean up is not only time consuming but can also be mentally exhausting for family members trying to stage their own sale. How do you know which items are worth what? How will you guarantee a good turn out to your sale? What happens when your 2-3 week project has suddenly turned into months? By hiring Estate Sales of South Florida it’s as easy as handing over the key and letting us do the work. We handle on average 3 sales per month and have this business down to a science. We know how to price accordingly and research items quickly. We have an extensive list of buyers and dealers and our extensive advertising and marketing always insures a good crowd. We take the stress off you and turn what would have been a few months long project into 2-3 weeks tops. Factor in how much your time (and sanity) is worth to you and we think you’ll find that our commission rate is well worth the service!
Should we clean up the house or dispose of items prior to bringing in an estate sale company?
NO! Please, whatever you do try and leave the premises “as-is.” We appreciate the fact that many times families want to clean or de-clutter the house before bringing us in, however we have found that many times items that families threw out or donated ahead of time were items that could have been sold in the estate sale. Please leave everything as is. It's our job/service to go through and determine which items are sellable.
We’ve sold, hauled off or cleared the home of all the “small” stuff, would you still be interested in selling the furniture only?
Unfortunately many times we have been called in after the families have decluttered the home of all the small stuff, thinking they were making our jobs easier, however, in cases like this we usually have not been left with enough items to be able to hold an estate sale. A successful estate sale needs to be a good mix of small and large items. A good majority of the sale comes from small items such as household cleaners, books, tools, linens, clothes, décor items, etc. In order for us to market a sale we have to take lots of pictures, our buyers wants to see that there are lots of items for them to pick through. Rule of thumb is the more items you have in the sale the better.
What items sell well at an Estate sale? Do we need to have lots of antiques?
Don’t get me wrong, antiques and collectibles always help a sale, however, they are not required to have a successful sale. Some of our most successful sales have been in homes where there was not a single antique or collectible. In these cases having good clean furniture, lots of small items, décor pieces, etc. helped the sale tremendously. In today's economy most buyers attending estate sales are looking for good bargains on everyday use items. Here is a short list of items that are selling really well at our estate sales right now:
Are there any items that traditionally don’t do well at a sale?
Right now there are a few items that see at almost every other sale that typically are still remaining after the sale:
Regardless, if you have any of these items in your estate we ask that you leave them in place until we have had the opportunity to assess them.
What if you find personal items (money, paperwork, photographs, etc.) while preparing the house for the sale?
Actually this is quite common. Even in cases where the family has thoroughly gone through the house, by the time we clean out every drawer, closet cabinet, etc. it is inevitable that we will find something. No worries though, we box all of these items up for you and either make arrangements for you to pick them up or ship them to you if you are out of area.
How long does the estate sale last?
The average estate sale is a 3 day event (Friday, Saturday and Sunday). Prior to the sale we need on average 2 weeks to prepare the house, price all the items, market the sale etc.
How much does the average estate sale make?
Because each house is different this is a hard question to answer. Upon our initial consultation we will try and provide you with a baseline ballpark figure. Please keep in mind though this could change if we discover new items while preparing the sale or if items are removed from the sale.
How successful is the average estate sale?
99% of the time we are able to sell 80% of the estates sellable items. The remaining items are items that usually should go to donation or possible trash. If anything of value is left after the sale we can call in a liquidator, send to auction or consign certain items on E-Bay. Any items the donation companies will not take we can call and get an estimate for large trash removal for our clients.
Do you clean the house after the sale?
No. Our job is to liquidate the house of its assets. We can recommend cleaning services at your request. For any large/excessive trash removal we can call to get an estimate for an outside service.
When is the best time to hold an estate sale?
Anytime is a good time, but we have noticed that Spring and Winter are usually our busiest months. Don't get me wrong, we can have a successful sale anytime of the year, but Spring and Winter seem to be our busy time!
How is Estate Sales of South Florida paid / what is your fee?
We are paid on commission only. It is in our best interest to insure you have a successful sale! Our rate varies between 30-35%. At the end of the sale our commission is deducted from the proceeds of the sale. No upfront fee’s, no minimum guarantees. The commission rate is based on the scope of the project as well as the final sale amount. Most estates will fall in the 30% range (unless there is an extreme amount of clean-up, haul off or other unique circumstances).
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