What Is an Estate Sale?
Have you come across a house open to the public for a weekend with price tags on everything inside? Then you’ve probably shopped at an estate sale. Estate sales serve to empty a household of its furniture and all other items, turning stuff into cash before selling the house.
Homeowners hold estate sales as a one-time event, so buyers arrive seeking everything from clothing to art, to cars. While you could try to manage one yourself, they require over a month of upfront planning, a keen eye for valuing and pricing items, and the expertise to provide both security and negotiating skills. Not surprisingly, many opt to hire professional estate sales companies.
Why Do People Like Estate Sales?
At an estate sale, everything’s for sale at a fraction of its retail price. According to The Conference Board’s Q1 2023 Multicultural Consumer Survey of 2,000 US respondents, second-hand shopping is one of the most current trends in retail. Younger and more affluent shoppers have joined the fun, increasing both the customer base and the panache of buying used.
This translates to a great time to be a seller.
Downsizing Your Life from Regular to Tiny
If you’re moving into a tiny home from a larger one and you need to dramatically reduce the number and scale of things you own, you’ll have to find a way to downsize. Some tiny dwellers, especially those who see their new lifestyle as temporary, or even seasonal, keep a primary home, rent a storage unit, or find a friend or family member with a large basement.
Depending on the number and value of your personal possessions, these approaches might be best. After all, once your things are gone, they’re gone. The cash you net from selling them used won’t cover repurchasing similar items later.
So consider what you might need, or want, in your tiny home or beyond. Also explore creative ways to organize or even to upcycle your current possessions to make use of them in your new abode.
After you consider these alternatives, if you decide that selling much of what you own makes sense, consider holding an estate sale.
Reasons to Have an Estate Sale
Bob Lang of Blue Moon Estate Sales says that, while “people often associate estate sales with someone’s passing, more often than not Blue Moon Estate Sales conducts sales for a family or individual downsizing their own belongings.”
These life transitions include:
- Downsizing to a smaller living situation
- Moving and starting fresh in a new place
- Becoming an empty nester
- Moving to assisted or independent senior living
- Selling an AirBnB or rental home
- Closing a business or office
How do Estate Sales Work?
- Estate sales begin with planning what will stay and what will be sold. Remove any personal items like financial or legal records, personal photos or journals, current clothing, and other things you plan to keep.
- Next up, choose the dates, usually a 2–4 day period. Check the schedule of your estate sale company if using one.
- Explore the value of every single item for sale, and agree on pricing. Know that when everything must go, negotiations and price reductions over the days of the sale are the norm. That said, professionals should understand current valuations, uncolored by sentimentality.
- Advertise the dates, times, and an overview of what’s for sale. Estate websites often wait to show the address until soon before it starts. Set the terms of sale, whether you’ll allow cash, card, or payment app, and how you prefer to handle unsold goods.
- If you hire professionals, expect to receive the net proceeds a week or so after the sale ends.
What Is an Estate Sale vs. a Garage Sale?
If you have some things you no longer need, you, and perhaps a few other families, might hold a garage sale outside of your house from time to time. By contrast, you’d plan an estate sale, held inside your house, to sell nearly everything you own.
Other Ways to Downsize
Bob Lang says, “While estate sales help families and individuals sell unwanted items, they are designed to eliminate the entire contents of a home or business through a more formal and structured process on a one-time basis, typically one full weekend. If you’re looking to spontaneously get rid of a few household items, then an estate sale may not be the best fit for you.”
In addition to a garage or yard sale, other options include:
Sell Things Yourself Online
If you’re comfortable meeting people to sell individual items, take a look at free online listing services.
Facebook Marketplace lets you post your items and chat through the platform to discuss an item and arrange for it to be sold. Craigslist works similarly but you converse using anonymized text or email. Next Door helps you sell to your neighbors.
Reduce the chance of falling for a scam by selling to local people who communicate through your platform of choice, abide by its rules, and agree to meet face to face.
Hire an Auction House
If you have truly valuable things such as fine art, antiques, or precious jewelry, an auction could be a good option. Unlike an estate sale, competitive buyers bid against each other, potentially increasing the selling price. You can also set a minimum price for items. Auction houses receive a commission, about 20-50% depending on the value of the item.
Donate to Charity
While any tax benefits of in-kind charitable donations depend on your tax bracket, most towns have shops that accept and then sell items at below market prices. Goodwill, one of the largest, trains workers who need job skills and accepts almost all items.
Many people hold an estate sale first, then, once it ends, give away items that did not sell.
How to Decide Whether to Hold an Estate Sale
Pros:
- You walk away with money in the bank
- Someone else handles the planning, details, and security
- A professional eye can determine pricing of both your treasures and what you might otherwise consider your trash
- You don’t have to move anything from your current home
- While upfront planning takes time, the actual sale opens and closes in days
- Professional management means more buyers learn about the event and can pay via numerous methods
Cons:
- Most estate sale companies take 30-50% of the proceeds
- Buyers you don’t meet may not value the history of your possessions
- You don’t manage the process once it’s begun
- On-site staff often reduce prices for later days of the sale
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Who Does Estate Sales?
Estate sale companies can be owned locally or be part of national franchises, Blue Moon Estate Sales is just one of several.
“Blue Moon Estate Sales is a member of the American Society of Estate Liquidators,” Lang states. “Clients can take comfort in having high quality, professional, and timely sales which put money in their pocket and remove the stresses associated with selling personal property and moving.”
He further notes that by hiring an estate sale company, you’ll have the benefit of “professionally trained staff who help clients speed up and simplify the process of downsizing.”
How to Choose an Estate Sale Company
Be clear on specific company responsibilities and ones you’re expected to shoulder.
Memories vs. Peace of Mind
Hiring professional estate sale agents gives you an emotional buffer between the memories your possessions hold for you and the transactional nature of the sale. If anything feels too important to sell, then hold onto it for now.
Transitioning to a tiny home means living with intention. That said, you might jump start the process of developing greater peace of mind with the pile of cash you net from your estate sale!
