Farmwithjunk
Super Member
At long last! A subject that is near and dear to my heart!
I'm an auction nut. (NOT to be confused with an auction cra-zee) I go to as many of them as time will permit. (Got a real good one in two weeks. FFA consignment auction that gets several hundred items every year) I buy anything that sells cheap, recondition it if needed, then re-sell for fun and (maybe) profit. Over the years, it's been a good way to make a few bucks, plus I get to keep trading up with my own equipment.
The last few years have seen the cra-zee's grow in number. There were always a few at every auction. USUALLY, they'd get "spent out" on the first few items, before the auctioneer got to the "good stuff". Well, times have changed. The CRA-ZEE'S now must have better jobs.... They pack more $$$$$$$$ with them . They don't seem to run out as fast as they once did. And the auctioneers have learned a few lessons too. They sell (at least around these parts) the "good stuff" early on in the show, while everyone still has a pocket full of coins. They get some ridiculous prices for what USED to sell for just high prices.
Another "gimmick" that is employed (again, around here, not sure about other areas) is the "Buyers Premium". Usually 10%, it's tacked on to the final sale price. That's the auctioneers take for selling the item. It replaced the once popular "auctioneers commission" (sp). Now when you pay too much, you pay too much +10%, and then any applicable sales tax. This "smoke and mirrors" trick makes the sale price LOOK deceivingly low. But when you head to the cashier to pay out...........BAM!
And then my REAL pet peave. The auctioneers that allow "back bidding", shill bidding, and their employees to bid on items in the sale. I SAY FRAUD! One auction I quit going to, a regular monthly consignment sale, the auctioneer allows dealers to bid up each others items. If it doesn't sell outside the "ring of thieves" that are bidding up the price, he doesn't charge the dealers any commission on that item. They can then bring it back the following month. I've seen items go up for sale 5 or 6 months in a row before they actually "sell". There's a term used when an auction is advertised that I THOUGHT they must follow. ABSOLUTE AUCTION...... (Which I understand to mean an item sells at the sale price, to whoever bids the top dollar, and with no reserve price unless announced before selling that item) Apparently I was wrong.
Obviously, when these guys go to their "auctioneers school", they don't teach "Ethics 101".
OK, Anyone need to borrow my soapbox before I put it away?
I'm an auction nut. (NOT to be confused with an auction cra-zee) I go to as many of them as time will permit. (Got a real good one in two weeks. FFA consignment auction that gets several hundred items every year) I buy anything that sells cheap, recondition it if needed, then re-sell for fun and (maybe) profit. Over the years, it's been a good way to make a few bucks, plus I get to keep trading up with my own equipment.
The last few years have seen the cra-zee's grow in number. There were always a few at every auction. USUALLY, they'd get "spent out" on the first few items, before the auctioneer got to the "good stuff". Well, times have changed. The CRA-ZEE'S now must have better jobs.... They pack more $$$$$$$$ with them . They don't seem to run out as fast as they once did. And the auctioneers have learned a few lessons too. They sell (at least around these parts) the "good stuff" early on in the show, while everyone still has a pocket full of coins. They get some ridiculous prices for what USED to sell for just high prices.
Another "gimmick" that is employed (again, around here, not sure about other areas) is the "Buyers Premium". Usually 10%, it's tacked on to the final sale price. That's the auctioneers take for selling the item. It replaced the once popular "auctioneers commission" (sp). Now when you pay too much, you pay too much +10%, and then any applicable sales tax. This "smoke and mirrors" trick makes the sale price LOOK deceivingly low. But when you head to the cashier to pay out...........BAM!
And then my REAL pet peave. The auctioneers that allow "back bidding", shill bidding, and their employees to bid on items in the sale. I SAY FRAUD! One auction I quit going to, a regular monthly consignment sale, the auctioneer allows dealers to bid up each others items. If it doesn't sell outside the "ring of thieves" that are bidding up the price, he doesn't charge the dealers any commission on that item. They can then bring it back the following month. I've seen items go up for sale 5 or 6 months in a row before they actually "sell". There's a term used when an auction is advertised that I THOUGHT they must follow. ABSOLUTE AUCTION...... (Which I understand to mean an item sells at the sale price, to whoever bids the top dollar, and with no reserve price unless announced before selling that item) Apparently I was wrong.
Obviously, when these guys go to their "auctioneers school", they don't teach "Ethics 101".
OK, Anyone need to borrow my soapbox before I put it away?
