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Are these estate sale prices out of whack or am I?

Aren't most estate sales because someone passed and family are trying to deal with loss and expense at the same time or maybe someone is having to go to a home ? If things are too high, then wait until the next day or so and they should still be there waiting for you to buy and turn at the original asking price.
 
Exactly. Estate sales are often to help the owner recoup the best they can in a short amount of time. The person may be widowed, elderly and of low income.

The professionals who provide the service take a significant cut, but they are also there to maximize the return for the client. Estate sales are not there for the benefit of people like us to make "scores". It might happen but I would never count on it

Oh, and I sold a Pioneer PL-514 for $160 locally. Of course it was fully serviced and had new parts. $200 for a 518 might be high-ish but is not out of line.
 
I thought the Bose prices were reasonable if they don't need refoaming.

The thing about what price is fair is easily settled - a fair price is where someone is willing to pay what the owner is asking. If the price is too high, nobody will buy and there is no sale. It isn't unfair.

The owner is entitled to ask whatever they want. I see lots of craigslist / kijiji ads where I shake my head and think the owner is going to keep those for a very long time but that is his right. he is the rightful owner and can ask whatever he wants.
 
Often, in my experience, professional estate sales will price anything with an easily ball-parkable value at roughly eBay prices. I find this puzzling, because rather than a taking your item to a national audience, you're relying on local people who see your advertising, and the segment of them who will buy the item on the spot for the same price they'd likely pay, at their leisure, by shopping online.

I understand that there's an audience for that kind of purchase, and a powerful rationale (why should they sell it for less than market value?). It must keep them going. This just isn't my favorite way to shop for second-hand goods, and I can count the number of times I've bought stereo equipment at a pro estate sale on one hand, with a finger left to pick my nose.

On the other hand, these professional estate companies are hard-working, fast-moving merchants who specialize in non-collectible household goods. Their understanding of antiques, collectibles, and decor often ends with an eBay search. The really fantastic deals come on stuff that doesn't have a label.

Records and CDs are often priced higher than thrift stores, but go fo a flat rate per each. Occasionally, there will be a a handful worth $1-4 an album.
 
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Don't know about estate sales, but based on a recent hamfest and what I see elsewhere, it seems like prices are up but sales are down. I think a lot of people use eBay prices, but don't bother to look at completed sales to get the true value.
 
I once saw a low end mid/80s (silver face, but digital tuning) JVC stereo including receiver, tape deck, and small (six inch two-way) speakers at an estate sale priced at $300. It included the original manual complete with notations handwritten by the owner. On the second day it dropped to $150.

About two weeks later I saw the same stereo (verified by the marks in the manual) at a church rummage sale sitting unsold around noon with a price of $10.

That was the worst example I've seen, but the local estate sale company tends to overcharge pretty severely on stereo gear. I'm thinking that someone who works there has some sort of back door deal with a local flipper so that the good stuff advertised is never publicly offered at anything near a reasonable price or is often gone before the estate sale even opens.
 
I go to estate sales regularly. Around here, there are a few regular estate sales companies. One starts on a Friday, one is random, and one normally starts on Saturday's.

As I see it, one of the reasons I go to estate sales is because there I can normally find interesting reasonably priced items in good condition. The people are selling them not because the stuff is no good, is being replaced, or they don't want it anymore. They are selling it because they are down sizing, going into a home, or because they can't take it with them...

Sometimes the stuff is bargain priced. But it is not junk, and likely works. If I go, it is because I want something, so I intend to be one of the first in the door. Otherwise, what is the point? I may as well go in the last few hours of the sale. If the item I want is no longer there, I let the estate sale manager know I am not happy. They will stop doing that if enough regulars complain.

If I want to furnish a place, estate sales are the best. If I want to flip, same thing. If I want something unique, I pick the better sales. I have done reasonable well on audio. But I also collect vintage pottery, glass ware, and other unique interesting things. And Art. Did I mention I don't have a lot of space?
 
No wood plinth. I am using recent sales as they are the most accurate IMHO if I were to resell. The highest price in the last month was $225 the lowest $52 the average was just over $116. As pointed out earlier if I buy through ebay, I have buyer protection while an estate sale is as is.
 
I shop estate sales all the time and have even helped my wife run a few. The point is to sell the goods for the highest price possible in a limited time.

First day prices are usually high, but discounts of 25% on Day #2 and 50% on Day #3 are common, so if you like a piece, but don't want to pony up, take a chance and wait a day. It's not too often I find nice audio stuff on Day #3, so it seems to be working. Although I did get a $500 set of KEFs a few weeks back for $250 earlier this summer.:D

But there is something to be said for being able to inspect an item first hand and not pay shipping too. Sometimes, there are little details that are overlooked. I've often bought turntables for the over looked high end cartridges in them. What was that Pioneer wearing that day? A Shure V15 in good shape would have made that a very worthy buy :yes:
 
My wife and I go to estate sales frequently as we're always looking for new inventory for our Etsy shop. While I agree that the point of an estate sale company is to get the highest dollar amount I feel that they also do a disservice to their customers in that most of them don't realize that their target market are the resellers. While they do get off the street end user traffic to a certain extent it's amazing how often I'll go to a sale on the last day and see the house still stuffed. At the same time I see the same people at these sales. They're all resellers.

So we all wait around to the last day and buy it at the true pricing which is that 40-60% off. If these companies truly wanted to deliver highest dollar to their customers it would be to find a way to sell it on line in a timely fashion.
 
kbott said:
So we all wait around to the last day and buy it at the true pricing which is that 40-60% off. If these companies truly wanted to deliver highest dollar to their customers it would be to find a way to sell it on line in a timely fashion.
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That only works for small that are easily shippable, but I agree that is the best way. We have done that with a few friends and advised them what items need to go online and what doesn't. But they have to sell for enough to pay for our time and fees a plus bring a return to the owner; we don't do $10.00 eBay items....

Unfortunately, that only applies to a small portion of the goods as much of it sad to say is basically worthless bag sale items that many already own.

Face it, we all have a bunch of stuff in out homes that has little resale value, ie tools, kitchenware, clothes, domestics, pictures, books, glassware and knick knacks are all common items that they are lucky to get dollar one for...
 
kbott said:
I feel that they also do a disservice to their customers in that most of them don't realize that their target market are the resellers.
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I disagree. With the free advertising available with the interweb, most all companies, estate sellers and otherwise, target the end user now.

Perfect example - mini-storage auctions. Used to be just a handful of "regulars" showed up at the sales. Now, they are auctioned off online, and end-users can buy without even going to preview.

This cute little box on our desk that makes things easier, also increases exposure and competition in the marketplace, thereby increasing prices.
 
Andyman said:
That only works for small that are easily shippable, but I agree that is the best way. We have done that with a few friends and advised them what items need to go online and what doesn't. But they have to sell for enough to pay for our time and fees a plus bring a return to the owner; we don't do $10.00 eBay items....

Unfortunately, that only applies to a small portion of the goods as much of it sad to say is basically worthless bag sale items that many already own.

Face it, we all have a bunch of stuff in out homes that has little resale value, ie tools, kitchenware, clothes, domestics, pictures, books, glassware and knick knacks are all common items that they are lucky to get dollar one for...
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I agree. At the same time though take those large bulky items like furniture. This past weekend I saw a really nice vintage dresser and men's chest listed for around $450. At the 50% off it was a good deal and if we had a storefront I would have considered taking on the risk of purchasing it. Now there may be people out there that say, "hey we need a bedroom set so lets go around to estate sales and buy something" but I would conjecture that the majority of people that are buying the large stuff are the resellers not the hey we need a bedroom set off the street crowd. And as a reseller you're simply not going to buy a piece that you don't think you can make profit on.

So again if the purchasers are resellers why go through the dance. If they priced it right from day one what would happen is: A) resellers would flock to your sales as they know they can get a deal and make money. B) merchandise would move quickly - amazing how often companies here in Atlanta will extend there sales a day or two. C Maybe ultimately you could hold a little higher profit by not going down to that 50-60% if things move at the 30-40 discount
 
bentpencil said:
I disagree. With the free advertising available with the interweb, most all companies, estate sellers and otherwise, target the end user now.
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This would not be true locally. Many professionally operated estate sales here run on weekdays and run from 9:00 to 3:00 PM. Some may finish on Saturday but some end after day 2 which could be Thursday or Friday. This timing is not exactly condusive to sell to the end user. This is great for me in the summer when I'm off but not so much during the school year. The sale I posted about was two days only Sat/ Sun but when I arrived five minutes before the scheduled start time some buyers were already leaving and there were less than 10 people there. In the summer there would be five times that or more and no one gets in before the start time even on a weekday.
 
Went to an estate sale on Sat where a pair of Bozak e300 were asking close to $600. I left an offer for 250 but they called late on Sunday and I couldn't make it. Even at 250 they were higher than recently eBay sales, thought to me it was fine as I wanted to listen to them and were very nice. The point of this is that sometimes the pros ask way too much and are likely to not be able to sell the piece. At the same sale they had a MAC 4100 for $300 and sold immediately as it was a great price even for flippers.
 
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DublinTrader said:
This would not be true locally. Many professionally operated estate sales here run on weekdays and run from 9:00 to 3:00 PM. Some may finish on Saturday but some end after day 2 which could be Thursday or Friday. This timing is not exactly condusive to sell to the end user. This is great for me in the summer when I'm off but not so much during the school year. The sale I posted about was two days only Sat/ Sun but when I arrived five minutes before the scheduled start time some buyers were already leaving and there were less than 10 people there. In the summer there would be five times that or more and no one gets in before the start time even on a weekday.
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A couple of estate sale companies around here have either started earlier than posted, or sold to a flipper they know. I have never attended their sales again, what is the point of arriving early if they won't honor their posting?
 
I went to a recent one day local estate sale advertising some fitness equipment (dumbbells/rack/bench) The stuff was like new and had a price tag on it that read "$995 original cost $2400" I asked and was told that most, but not all things (including the weights), went to half price at noon. I made them an offer of $500 and left my cell number. They called around 1:30and said the owner accepted my offer and that a couple of the auction helpers could load everything for me.

It never hurts to make an offer if the auction is local.
 
I used to go to one woman's auctions until a record buddy of mine told me that she had a "preview" the night before for her regular customers and friends. My buddy said if there were any records at the sale she would notify him and he would buy it up early. I couldn't see any reason to go to sales after finding that out.
 
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