Hit the local auction this week, not as impressive as I thought

[HawkinsHollow]

By hit I mean, looked at the catalog online and bid online. I was not as impressed by the deals as I was hoping. I won on 2 things; a small water pump that is powered by a weed eater sized engine and 3 rolls of that thick cardboard floor protectant. The pump, not a banging deal but decent if it works without tons of work. I made the mistake of not recognizing that it was at their other yard and hour and 20 mins up the road, which makes it even less of a deal. The floor protectant was a pretty good deal, 3 rolls for $55 BEFORE all their BS fees, so still about 60% off retail. All in all the experience was a bit underwhelming. They nickel and dime you to death with all of their fees (13% for commission, 3% for credit cards, $X for transfer fees) and setting up pickup times, etc. I am sure my story would have been a lot different if I got a smokin' deal on exactly what I was looking for.

What are your experiences with auctions?

 

[dodge man]

There are deals to be had but as a rule I hate them. They take forever but if you have the patience. They have a car auction 2 or 3 times a year, mostly classic cars but some newer stuff thrown in. There was a 15 year old convertible we were going to bid on but it went past what we were going to bid quickly. It seems the on line bidding is going to stay and I’m ok with that.

 

[oldnslo]

I am not a fan of the on-line bidding vs being there in person but like dodge man it appears to be the way things are now.

 

[ultrarunner]

I bid once in pallets of autoparts...

The catch was Saturday only pickup and auction was Friday.

Arrived Saturday at 8 am gate opening and found the pallet I had bought had been pilfered...

Raised a fuss but didn't get anywhere...

 

[CliffordK]

I do the auctions a bit. Perhaps too much. A unique environment. Some of the auctions are getting filled with new off brand china import stuff.

I watched a TopCat mulcher go up for sale. I decided to look up the online reviews which seemed somewhat mixed. It probably would have done what I wanted, but I would have needed to also come up with a high flow skid steer. Nonetheless, the prices seemed to be much less than others reported for the mulcher, and much much much less than anything made in the USA.

A couple of months ago I picked up a lifetime supply of chains, including a few pretty heavy duty (but short) ones.

As far as credit card fees, that is easy enough to deal with. I can either do cash, or cashier's check. Or, even wiring money. The $30 wiring fee may be cheaper than the credit card fees. One local auctioneer takes preapproved personal checks. The auction house fee is annoying, but part of the process.

Anyway, keep in mind, every time you use your credit card, from the coffee shop to the gas station, somebody gets hit with a 3% fee. The banks get rich for simply moving your money.

Most of the auctioneers that I've talked to have been very pleasant to work with. They are quick to compensate one for any lost items.

 

[LouNY]

I have almost completely stopped going to auctions since they have started this ridiculous bidders percentage fee garbage. I view a few online ones occasionally once in a while I'll bid but not often and only low enough that I'll still be happy with all the tacked on garbage. I much prefer live auctions were I can put my hands on the item. We have an annual winter auction close by, I haven't gone since they added the bidders premium.

 

[2manyrocks]

I think the on line auctions end up costing more because they attract more arm chair bidders. You also have to go inspect what you are bidding on before the auction close because there's nothing like a in person inspection to spot problems.

 

[ponytug]

I bid once in pallets of autoparts...

The catch was Saturday only pickup and auction was Friday.

Arrived Saturday at 8 am gate opening and found the pallet I had bought had been pilfered...

Raised a fuss but didn't get anywhere...

That's unfortunate. The one time it happened to me, they offered me the remaining lot for free. (I declined, as the missing bits were the reason that I had bid on it, so they refunded the bid.)

Win some, lose some. I see lots of bidders paying well over new for some items, and multiple lots of the same item in a parallel auction where two bidders lose sight of the "clones" and someone ends up paying 3-4 times what the other lots went for. Not everyone is a rational consumer...but I have seen the same behavior in person and on line.

All the best,

Peter

 

[CliffordK]

Win some, lose some. I see lots of bidders paying well over new for some items, and multiple lots of the same item in a parallel auction where two bidders lose sight of the "clones" and someone ends up paying 3-4 times what the other lots went for. Not everyone is a rational consumer...but I have seen the same behavior in person and on line.

I have seen some variation, and have wondered if I missed something to make one item 20% more valuable that another similar one.

Sometimes the first couple of items to hit the auction block will be 20% higher than the following items, but that isn't always a bad thing because bidders often go bonkers on the last one after passing up several earlier similar items. So perhaps there is some rationale to get one's bid in earlier and get the item.

I do try to keep in mind low retail prices for common items like ratchet straps. However, it is hard to attach a retail price to some items, so it is a game of what is it worth to you?

There are some people who will buy at auction then flip on Craigslist.

 

[ultrarunner]

For years there was a local Real Estate Agent and Auctioneer that specialized in liquidating small single family home/estate.

They were honest and did a good job.

Basically, the executor would hand over the keys after removing items wanted and the team would empty, prep and sell the property and contents. The removed items were sold, donated, recycled or otherwise disposed.

One of my friends mentioned the team yesterday... he and his brother were kind of lost loosing their father and said it was just too painful because every item was a memory...