Things You'll Need

Instructions

1

The most important step in determining a bid is knowing what you can charge for an item. Many successful buyers specialize in just a few categories of merchandise and are very well versed in the value of specific items. Many other buyers own resale businesses where they have a venue for selling just about any kind of merchandise. In either category the first step is to research the secondary market for items you are interested in purchasing or used items in general.
2

The majority of the items found in storage auctions are household items. Everything from clothes to appliances and furniture. Use sites such as Craigslist and eBay to find the value of used clothing, furniture and appliances. You can also browse antique and thrift malls as well as flea markets to get a good idea of what used items are worth. It may be impossible to learn and remember the value of every used item but the more research you do the more successful you will be.
3

Once you have a working knowledge of the price of used items you can find an auction. Upon opening the door to the storage unit you will be given a few minutes to look inside and determine a bid. A good approach when starting out is to pick out the biggest items you can see such as appliances, furniture, large tools, sporting equipment etc. Note the condition that they appear to be in as well as their relative age. Work out a rough estimate of what they would sell for used and then bid up to half of that total. You may not win a lot of auctions that way but you will most likely make a very good return on the ones you do.
4

Another approach, especially in dealing with large units where you cannot see what is in the back, or units packed with boxes and bins where you cannot see the contents is to value all of the items you recognize and bid up to the total. In this approach you know that you will make your money back with the items you have seen, and your profit will be obtained from whatever you find in the boxes.
5

It is important to remember that it is not an exact science and even seasoned auction buyers occasionally overbid and lose money on a purchase. Following these steps will be a great help in starting out. Once you have a little experience and are more comfortable in the process and have found more avenues for selling used items you can tweak the process to cater more towards your business.