Our Products: Estate Sales, Auctions, & Appraisals
Estate Sales
How does an estate sale work?
An estate sale, also known as a tag sale, is the process of selling all or most of the contents of a home. Estate sales are typically held after a death or other major life event, such as moving, divorce, or bankruptcy. Although they can be run by the homeowner or family, estate sales are typically held by professional service providers and operate at a larger scale than a yard or garage sale.
Purchasing and Selling the Items
At the sale, customers simply pick up smaller items that they wish to buy and take them to the check out station to complete their purchase. They may also tell sale attendants to mark larger items as sold. We will also allow bids on more expensive items, using a system similar to a silent auction in which a customer sets out a price that he or she is willing to pay, but only retains claim on that item if someone else is not willing to pay more. The item is sold to the highest bidder at the end of the day. Traditionally, many estate sales only take cash, but we accept credit and debit cards also.
What services are provided by estate sale companies?
Whether an estate sale company is assisting with an entire estate liquidation or helping with the downsizing process, they typically offer an end-to-end set of services that help families transition out of the existing home.
- We will prepare for the estate sale
- Meeting with an estate attorney if necessary
- Helping decide what to sell, what to donate, what to keep in the family, what to move, etc.
- Determining what can and cannot fit in a new home
- Organizing and sorting personal belongings according to individual wishes and/or a will or trust
- Cleaning items for sale as necessary
- Inventory and photographing items for sale
- Appraising items to be sold and determine most profitable sales method
- Cleaning and preparing the house
- Advertising and marketing the sale
- Running the estate sale
- Staging the home and its contents for optimal flow and visibility
- Organizing items for sale attractively with clear pricing
- Managing the sale the day of, including customer service, traffic flow, purchases, inventory management, bookkeeping, and hosting
Benefits of hiring an estate sale service include:
- Saves time and energy. Family members don’t need to personally sort and price every item in a home, or worry about how to set up and run the sale.
- Reduces stress. Professionals offload the burden of managing all of the “stuff” and provide an objective, experienced perspective in an emotionally fraught process.
- Increases revenue. Estate sale companies know which items are most valuable to buyers and price your items accordingly, helping families make the most of the downsizing or liquidation process.
- Boosts visibility. By marketing and advertising your sale, service providers ensure that you attract as many buyers as possible.
- Adds credibility. Professional estate sales carry a greater perceived value than family-run sales, attracting a higher quantity and quality of customers – sometimes up to several thousand people in a day!
Auctions
Most people, confronted with the overwhelming and unfamiliar task of disposing of personal property due to a family member or friend dying, have little or no idea what the key differences are between an auction and a tag sale (tag sales are sometimes called “estate sales”).
A tag sale involves, basically, a person hired by the fiduciary who will “price” each item with a tag, indicating that the item is available for sale at that price. Too, most tag sale attendees assume that there is room to negotiate, so a fair share of items marked with a price sell for less. Tag sales are sometimes spread over more than one day, where prices are systematically lowered on the second day, third day, and the like, to facilitate further sales. Typically, at a tag sale, a fair share of the items do not sell.
An auction involves, basically, a person hired by the fiduciary who will market and sell items “to the highest bidders.” Most auction attendees understand that items will be sold to the highest bidder, and that they will win any item where they outbid all others. At an auction of personal property, the market sets the ultimate selling price. Typically, at an auction, all the items sell.
Let’s begin with an overall statement in regard to the basic sales mechanism used by tag sales versus auctions:
A tag sale uses a price discount model where items sell for, at most, the price tagged on the item, or less.
An auction uses a competitive bidding model where items sell for whatever the highest bidder is willing to pay.
The other major difference between a tag sale and an auction is a tag sale service provider must know how to price every item being offered, or suffer less than optimal results. An auction service provider (an auctioneer) relies on the bidders to realize full price discovery.
Let’s use an example; an estate has a signed and marked Rookwood Vase dated 1921. However, this vase has an unusual scene on it, which is not documented in any Rookwood books or reference guides. At a tag sale, how is the tag sale service provider to price this vase? This presents the basic flaw in tag sale marketing:
If this vase is under-priced, it will sell for less than market value.
If this vase is over-priced, it will not sell at all.
This same vase at auction will sell. It will sell to the highest bidder. What will it sell for? Whatever it is worth — market value.
Then, there is the dark side of tag sale marketing:
1. Upwards of 80% of the items in a tag sale are sold below market value.
2. Upwards of 20% of the items in a tag sale will remain unsold.
3. 100% of the items will sell for no more than the “tagged” price.
4. Almost always, the tag sale provider lacks the expertise to properly price all items, therefore full price discovery is not accomplished.
5. Regulation and licensing of tag sale service providers is almost nonexistent in the United States. A harmed seller would have no choice but to sue in court for damages.
6. Most tag sales lack sufficient marketing to attract the most qualified and interested buyers, therefore applying downward pressure on sales results.
An auction attracts large crowds of ready, willing and able buyers, through extensive widespread marketing, who have to compete to purchase items they desire. Full price discovery is accomplished, and nearly all items sell, and all items sell for market value.
We brought up a 1921 Rookwood Vase earlier in our story. This vase was purchased at a tag sale for $30 and sold six months later at auction for $3,500. This type of thing happens all the time at tag sales, estate sales, garage sales, and yard sales — where an item is sold at auction later for more. In fact, this would hardly be a record.
ABC News reported in October, 2009 of Teisha McNeal of Shreveport, Louisiana finding a Picasso painting for $2 at a yard sale, and later discovering auction estimates of nearly $2 Million. See the entire story here: http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Weekend/finding-art-Picasso-treasure-trash/story?id=8904941
Appraisals
St. Louis Estate Sales has extensive experience in valuing personal property. We can assist in valuing everything in the estate, furniture, jewelry, art, household goods and other residential items. Our staff of Certified Appraisers are qualified to work with executors, financial planners, homeowners, insurance companies and attorneys to help establish the value of personal property for probate, estate, divorce, inheritance, charitable donations, casualty loss or estate planning purposes.
We are members in good standing with the Certified Appraisers Guild of America (CAGA).
Fees for appraisal services are charged at an hourly, per diem, or flat rate depending upon the assignment. Our fees include inspection, a written appraisal, and research if necessary. Two complete written reports with pictures are given to the client. To schedule an appraisal please call us at (314)413-2491.