When Is An Estate Sale Not Worth The Trouble?

[kcowan]

We made money on 2 out of 3 estate sales. That 3rd one just contributed to the cost of disposal. But as some of the posts have warned, outsourcing is no guarantee of success.

Only one of the sales happened while we were working. Did have to take some time off work then.

 

[Midpack]

There is no right answer, but after more than a week of research, though we always assumed we would conduct an estate sale - we don't plan to any more. Takes too long, too invasive (my sister will continue to live in the home until it's sold) and it appears the net $ will be far less than other options after price and commission.

We will sell the house and valuable items (about 40-50 items, ourselves and thru local dealer/resellers we've found), then donate all we can, and throw away anything that's left.

Our only item left to discussion is whether to remodel/update/spruce up the house (sister) or sell it as is (me). But if I am able to give her the house outright as I expect instead of splitting the proceeds per the living trust, she can do whatever she wants with the house with her funds. In my view, there is no way she'll net more putting money into remodeling the house than just selling it as is - it's out of date, but in very good condition in a wildly popular neighborhood where houses of all types move very quickly.

At least we know what will work best for us. Thanks!

 

[ncbill]

Currently getting a relative's home ready for sale.

The relative wanted as much as possible to go to other family members so I've spent the last month cajoling them to get up here and pick what they want.

Has taken linger than I wanted so I've finally let everyone know that everything that's left goes in a little over a week.

Then I'll have people paint/re-carpet before listing it.

 

[Teacher Terry]

We always do it ourselves. I also did it for some friends of mine. On that one we made 2k in 2 days. They were very happy.

 

[youbet]

^ And that is one of the reasons I have grown to love paying for "experiences" and not "stuff."

That's good as long as your experiences don't involve using "stuff." My workshop, ham radio station and antennas, canoe and camper, and fishing gear all support experiences I love.

My conservative estimate of the current market value of this pile-o-stuff is $18k, a significant amount. But I'm not giving it up yet. If DW and/or DS fire sale it for half of that, so what? A $9k loss to my estate is easily offset by my continuing to own and use this "stuff" to enable the experiences I enjoy.

I've documented the estimated value and hints on how to dispose of the significant items.

 

[Katsmeow]

On the issue of whether an estate sale is worth it, I think that if you are paying a percentage amount for the sale and would otherwise discard the stuff then it is almost always worth it. That is -- something is more than nothing.

Now if there was a flat fee for the estate sale company that had to be paid if nothing sold then that would be an issue. If the cost to do that included clean out though and it was less than I would have to pay for cleanout then it would still be worthwhile.

Now if the alternative to you doing an estate sale is you selling the stuff then it is a closer call. Obviously if I am not paying 40% to an estate sale company and made the same sales myself then I would make more money. But I have to consider two things. First, will I make the same sales? In some cases, I might sell stuff on eBay or elsewhere for more than it would be sold for at the estate sale. But, for some things I may sell less. Also, it would be hard for me to run an in home garage sale type thing so those are sales I would lose entirely.

Second, is my time. I have a lot to do. Do I really have time to run a garage sale and potentially sell a couple of hundred items on eBay? I could do it...but that is where I think paying someone else works better for me.

 

[Midpack]

On the issue of whether an estate sale is worth it, I think that if you are paying a percentage amount for the sale and would otherwise discard the stuff then it is almost always worth it. That is -- something is more than nothing.

Now if there was a flat fee for the estate sale company that had to be paid if nothing sold then that would be an issue. If the cost to do that included clean out though and it was less than I would have to pay for cleanout then it would still be worthwhile.

Now if the alternative to you doing an estate sale is you selling the stuff then it is a closer call. Obviously if I am not paying 40% to an estate sale company and made the same sales myself then I would make more money. But I have to consider two things. First, will I make the same sales? In some cases, I might sell stuff on eBay or elsewhere for more than it would be sold for at the estate sale. But, for some things I may sell less. Also, it would be hard for me to run an in home garage sale type thing so those are sales I would lose entirely.

Second, is my time. I have a lot to do. Do I really have time to run a garage sale and potentially sell a couple of hundred items on eBay? I could do it...but that is where I think paying someone else works better for me.

Something is better than nothing and that's why we just assumed we'd be doing an estate sale, and I still don't know for sure. So others please correct me if I'm wrong.

What has discouraged us from going with an estate sale:

1) Their objective is not to get the highest price, it's to sell everything. A percentage on a low price is better than no sale for the estate sale company. First day prices are low, second day is 25% off, third day is 50% off everything is not atypical. Then the estate sale folks will take 25-40% of the total sale $. And I've read the people who attend estate sales are looking for ridiculously low prices, possibly for resale, they're not going to pay top dollar for anything.
PLUS
2) Estate sales can take months between sorting, staging, pricing, holding the sale. If I sell stuff on eBay, I can sell everything in two weeks (list for auction one week, ship the next) if I am willing to take below market prices like the estate sale folks do.
AND
3) My sister lives in the house, and we're told she has to remove all her stuff for the sale, we can't just seal off a few rooms with her belongings. She'll be living in the house after the estate sale and we're not keen on moving her stuff out, and then back in again for a sale that will net 5-10% (a number we've heard) of what we'd make overall.

I hadn't heard about a minimum charge but I wouldn't be surprised. I have heard the first thing they do is look over everything you have and if it doesn't look like it will be worth their while, they'll decline to conduct a sale for you - that may be how they ensure their "minimum."

And finally, we enjoy donating things to others who can actually use the stuff, always have. There is some satisfaction there too.

 

[Elbata]

I'm going to comment having not read any of the comments.

My wife's mom passed and it took 9 months getting the estate settled and the house ready to rent (after spending over $30K). Her brother and I were willing to clear out the house soon after mom's death, but allowed wife to work it all out in her time frame.

It worked out for my wife, we have a lot of stuff now clogging our garage, but she did it the way she wanted and that's what matters. From a practical standpoint, the house could have been cleaned out in a few weeks, and up and rented in 2 months. What the house could have collected in rent would have covered the $30K.

 

[Katsmeow]

What has discouraged us from going with an estate sale:

1) Their objective is not to get the highest price, it's to sell everything. A percentage on a low price is better than no sale for the estate sale company. First day prices are low, second day is 25% off, third day is 50% off everything is not atypical. Then the estate sale folks will take 25-40% of the total sale $. And I've read the people who attend estate sales are looking for ridiculously low prices, possibly for resale, they're not going to pay top dollar for anything.

I think this is basically true. If you as an individual are willing to put the same effort or more into selling items as will the estate sale people then you will almost certainly net more money.

Looking at it a bit more deeply:

I think that estate sale stuff can really fall into 2 categories -- garage sale items and more valuable items.

For garage sale items I have no doubt what you say is true and people coming to the sale are looking for garage sale prices.

For the more valuable items I think it is a bit more complex. A big part of what estate sale people do is advertise the estate sale. They probably do a better and more thorough job of it than most of us can do. The garage sale part of it I think I can do just as well as the estate sale company (if I wanted to), but I know I don't have the means and knowledge to advertise the other stuff.

That said -- there is no doubt that many people who come to buy at an estate sale probably are looking to buy something to resell. They have to buy at a low enough price to make a profit.

I could perhaps sell some of that stuff for more money. But I am not sure I would be able to advertise as effectively to get the buyers in the house to buy my mom's more collectible items.

Still -- if I did it all myself I could perhaps net more money even so. But it would take a lot of my time and I am not sure I could get the buyers in the same way as an estate sale company.

PLUS
2) Estate sales can take months between sorting, staging, pricing, holding the sale.

I am a bit puzzled by this. There is going to be about 30 days between my meeting with the estate sale company and the sale occurring. It would actually be a week less but for the fact of the intervening Thanksgiving holiday. So -- most of the time it is a 3 week process (subject to the estate sale company availability).

I guess some highly valuable sales could take longer to do or maybe the estate sale company is booked. But I just don't see it most of the time being months.

Now -- I did spend some time to go through my mom's stuff first but I would have done that even if I was selling everything myself or tossing it or donating it.

If I sell stuff on eBay, I can sell everything in two weeks (list for auction one week, ship the next) if I am willing to take below market prices like the estate sale folks do.

I am sure that for many many items you can sell it yourself on eBay and may even net more money. Part of it depends on how much eBay worthy stuff you have. For a lot of people there are many items that are collectively worth a fair amount but each item might be worth $20 or $30. I figured that if I eBayed stuff it would take months unless I just wanted to devote all my time to eBay. But -- if you have only a few items to eBay or you want to really devote yourself to it for a time, then this is very much a viable

3) My sister lives in the house, and we're told she has to remove all her stuff for the sale, we can't just seal off a few rooms with her belongings. She'll be living in the house after the estate sale and we're not keen on moving her stuff out, and then back in again for a sale that will net 5-10% (a number we've heard) of what we'd make overall.

That would definitely give me some pause. Have you talked to more than one company? I would think sealing off might work. There are also companies that can do an offsite sale and that might work better for your situation.

I am not sure what you mean by a sale that will net 5-10% pf what we'd make overall. Do you mean the estate sale will net you only 5 to 10% of you would net overall if you sold everything yourself? Maybe. Although I don't think I could do that well selling on my own. I think I could do better but I would have to be able and willing to do the sale all on my own.

I am not trying to discourage anyone from selling on their own. If you can do that effectively, then it clearly nets more money. I am more saying it is financially worth it as compared to simply throwing out or donating everything (I recognize people can have non-financial reasons for choosing to donate).

 

[Midpack]

Great comments above thanks.

I’ve sold almost a hundred items on eBay from $10 to $500, so I know how to do it efficiently. Most of my items sold in 7 day auctions, and shipped on day 8-9. Many of the items we now have, similar items have sold on eBay in the $50, $100, $200 and more range. eBay and PayPals cut is bigger now, and sadly there are way more cutthroat buyers these days. OTOH some of the items are fragile, and I’ve had some bad experiences with buyers lying about damage in shipping. But eBay is an option.

Fortunately there’s an antique dealer nearby, who sells all sorts of items. We’re going to have him by to look at all the valuable items, I am guessing he’ll take 50% on each sale but it would be painless for us, he’ll take everything to his shop. From what I’ve read we won’t get even 50% (of market value) from an estate sale.

I assume if we sell all the valuable stuff, no estate sale company will want to bother with what’s left, furniture and mostly garage sale stuff.

 

[kcowan]

In my view, there is no way she'll net more putting money into remodeling the house than just selling it as is - it's out of date, but in very good condition in a wildly popular neighborhood where houses of all types move very quickly.

At least we know what will work best for us. Thanks!

During MIL estate sale, the realtor suggested leaving everything alone. We wanted to change the shag rug! The realtor brought a full price as is offer.

So my advice would be to follow the advice of the listing realtor. But it should be on her dime since she will get all the proceeds.

 

[ncbill]

With my relative's house, I was going to tear out the 25 year old carpet and replace, but the Realtor just said to tear it out so buyers could see the hardwood underneath, even if it hadn't been refinished.