posted on May 15, 2005 09:13:32 AM new
I don't usually stop anymore for garage sales but Saturday on our way home my husband and I broke from our normal routine and stopped. What a mistake. On the table there were two video games with cartridges and there was a paper in both of them. I noticed eBay in the corner and right then I knew they looked up their video games on eBay,printed the auctions and put them in the boxes with the games and that is what they were charging. The auctions had no bids. I turned and left. Now I know stopping at garage sales most are baby items and if there ever was an ebay item that I could sell is rare.
I do stop at Estate Sales and go to the thrift shops and find some nice items. Yesterday I found a 14k pair of pierced hoop earrings at an estate sale 25 cents. Even my favorite thrift shop searches eBay.
posted on May 15, 2005 09:42:59 AM new
Here in the NW, at least in my area, garage sales seem to have taken a real hit. Either there is nothing I am looking for, or they have it, but their prices are well above what I can sell it for (and usually that is for very common items) - I have many other sources, lately garage sales are still kind of fun to go to because you never know what you will find, but I am not really getting much from them.
posted on May 15, 2005 10:02:39 AM new
I've run across the same thing. People have printouts or mentioned well I saw thats the price on ebay. All I can think to myself is,"yeah, then you try selling them on EBAY in a totally saturated and competitive market."
A couple of the dealers at the flea market know I buy to resell. Some of it has been some with disastrous repercussions. But others approach me the same as anybody else, they know what they expect working their table before I got there. One guy goes to the auctions (which I can never seem to get to) and buys box lots and whatnot, so I always ask him what he goodies he got. If its reasonable for me, I will buy it, if not, I walk away. But I think some of them think I am pulling in gold on every sale.
Sometimes have to laugh at the ridiculousness of all the buying and reselling alldown the line though,......
posted on May 15, 2005 11:47:26 AM new
I rarely stop at garage sales anymore. Either the stuff is junk or its over-priced. I do visit out local flea market, but only on Sunday when most dealers mark their items way down. If you go on Saturday, you pay the price. I've also noticed in our local antiques stores that I find myself either thinking, "What can I sell this for on eBay?" or, "What can I buy this for on eBay?" Almost always I find I can get it cheaper on eBay. How most of these stores remain in business is beyond me.
I'm fortunate in that when I do get antique or vintage things to sell it's either because Ken (who does home remodeling) brings home old hardware and the like or someone I know gives the stuff to me rather than throwing it away.
posted on May 15, 2005 12:24:09 PM new
Oh ye naysayers ... keep the faith! ... don't give up!!! ... yes, yard/garage sale-ing is just a tad tougher than it was ... but there is *still* a big percentage of the u.s. population who never do go near a computer to look anything up! ever! ...
Keep looking ... pop in at those sales ... you *will* find "stuff"!!!
posted on May 15, 2005 12:58:26 PM new
Ditto estatesalestuff - I shop thrift store, estate sales and garage sales. I find that I get the best deals at garage sales. Thrift stores & estate sales both use price guides and ebay to help set their prices.
It happens at garage sales too but not as much and not where I shop.
posted on May 15, 2005 01:09:45 PM new
I won't be giving up on garage sales, I've made some incredible finds. I rarely find ebay printouts, just very occasionally. The problem I run into is people thinking their stuff is worth way more than it is. I see nice things at a high price, but I just move on. There isn't room to bargain when their asking prices is a much larger amount than you can pay. I do occasionally hear that people can sell it for more on ebay. I have a standard answer to that. My answer is that they can do that if they want to. I then tell them that if they want cash now, then they should sell it to me. When they see the cash in my hand, they usually sell it to me.
posted on May 15, 2005 03:09:41 PM new
I am just about fed up with "Estate Sales" & garage sales. There are no bargains anymore. I went to an auction today bought a mint Coke display from Xmas '96 unopened. Only $5.00, may make a shekel on it.
posted on May 15, 2005 03:19:19 PM new
Yeah, but Sanmar, you da man! You can pick up something from the absolute bottom of the barrel and KNOW that it is worth a mint! BTW -- What the heck is a shekel?
posted on May 15, 2005 03:34:45 PM new
Ebayvet: I liked your response, next time I'll have the cash in my hand. Mom was with me and she's on a fixed income, she asked if the lady would "take less" on a cookbook marked $3 and the lady said no, she could sell it for more on Ebay. On the other hand, I picked up two pieces of Lladro later that day for a total of $5. The price was on masking tape which covered the bottom of the pieces including the markings. The seller didn't have any newspaper left and so she wrapped the pieces up in a baby quilt I bought and said "don't forget those are in there". Well of course that night I got home and wanted to look at the quilt and yanked it out of the bag until I heard a clink clink and then thought oh no but lucked out and didn't break anything. One piece I love so much I am keeping it.
posted on May 15, 2005 03:37:22 PM new
or 17 pesos
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Baseball season has started,but they have it all wrong.3 strikes and you're out,4 balls you walk.I can tell you right now a man with 4 balls could not possibly walk
posted on May 15, 2005 03:50:14 PM new
You know, I was reading this thread and thinking back ... I drove up to my parents this weekend. I had to take 27 and drove through many small towns. I saw so many flea markets, yard sales, and the like, and could only think "my fellow Vendonians would have a FIELD DAY at this stuff!" I could see it driving by and there was some verrrrry interesting items. I don't know anything about "stuff" and didn't even try. But I couldn't help but to think about you guys (and gals!)!
posted on May 15, 2005 07:09:36 PM new
I sure do - same day I got my boomerang bar.
I just hope I do as well as you did. I still have not listed my find but plan to in this month.
Point made!!!!
posted on May 15, 2005 07:23:11 PM new
I have made GREAT "scores" on estate sales, garage sales, live auctions, antique stores, flea markets, antique shows....takes time, research, developing a fast "eye", being willing to dig, ask, bargain, schmooze.
I just consider it part of the job of selling...and it's FUN!
posted on May 16, 2005 04:24:22 AM new
Since you mention 'box lot' purchases at auction, let me tell you that you are missing a good source of "stuff", if you overlook them as possibilities. Find out which auction houses do box lot; the date and time. Is it every week or once a month? Think of it as a business call, (which it is), and give yourself time to look through the boxes before the crowd gets too thick. Have a small note book and pen with you to take notes. The boxes may be numbered or marked in some way to tell the auction house who the consignor is. Use that as reference. Do not carry a heavy purse or have lots of small children with you that need watching. Know where your auction card is at all times. You never know when a two dollar bid may be the winner.
Box lots are also a great way to dispose of those items you were positive would sell but for some reason, still sit there. Write them off and move on. While there, find out how to bring stuff IN. You can probably tell that I 'shop' box lots so much I have trouble spending money at other venues, as the prices differ so much. Remember the stuff in the box has been stuck there by someone wanting to get rid of junk. It may have no relation to anything else in the box. I once bought, for five dollars, a box containing, among other things, a 1900's Odd Fellows turbin AND a 1936 Dionne Quintuplits (pictured)china platter with no chips or cracks. Or a box with 1950's Halloween costumes and a 1940's gold assay scale in mint condition. Also five bucks. Try box lot if you don't like the other possibilities!
posted on May 16, 2005 06:10:41 AM new
ruthiebabie
Remind me to tell you about my "box lot" experience. Oh I might as well tell it now!
My in-laws are huge auction fans so my wife and I tagged along to an auction just down the street from our house. The husband had died and the wife was auctioning everything off. This guy had done everything, just about, in his life including sailing, boat-building, piloting, had been in the civil air patrol, architecture, surveying, you name it. There were box lots everywhere just waiting to be auctioned off. My wife spotted a box with some decorative yard signs that she was interested in and asked her dad to bid. He won the box for $13.00. Also in the box were some tubes, the kind you mail blueprints or posters in. When we got home we opened the tubes and found 10 Ferry Seed Company posters from the 1920's and 30's. We did a little research and found that they could be worth something. Put them on eBay and sold 9 of them for almost $10,000! The highest sold for $4500! We've been looking for mailing tubes ever since!!!
posted on May 18, 2005 05:03:58 AM new
Try storage unit auctions. Recently I got two of them for $35--one for $5 and one for $30. I donated tons, sold off big stuff I didn't want to sell on ebay and came out with over 4x what I put into it...and I haven't even begun to list the "good stuff" on eBay yet. We got a great Weber bar-be-que grill and my husband kept a router and other tools...plus a few other "goodies" that we can use.
posted on May 18, 2005 03:32:18 PM new
I had about gave up but then I bought a BOX and it was all old Navajo silver. One a Choncho belt! I did about 350.00 so far for my 5.oo
My art is still doing well but most I sell privately anymore.
What I have gone bak to is buying the whole estate. Picking out some goodies then having a sale. The other Ebayers ( tampa Bay love my sales cause I make it real cheep and I make money off the estate plus what I get for say the oils and better stuff. But yes it is getting so darn hard.
Plus all those fees!
I am now just hosting my pic of things and I have a list of privite buyers.
I pay vendio and PP but I dont have to pay ebay. Thease are NOT outside sales but old customers and I put cards with all my ebay sales so they can give their frinds my email.
