Tag - Auctioneers

Benefits of Online Storage Auctions for Auctioneers

July 7, 2014

Online storage auctions are undoubtedly beneficial for buyers and sellers. The convenience of online auctions can also be used to an auctioneer's advantage, however, and learning to use this tool for your auction business can put you ahead of the competition. While it may seem counter intuitive, online storage auctions can greatly enhance your auctioneer career.

If you use OnlineStorageAuctions.com to list your auction, you have the option of running the auction concurrently with a live auction. The way this works is that you would place the unit for auction on the site first, then have that auction end right before the live auction begins. You start the live auction at the high bid from the Internet. If no one outbids the starting bid, the unit goes to the online bidder and you move on to your next unit. This sidesteps the legal concerns in states where exclusively virtual auctions are not allowed, and it saves you a lot of time.

Here are the benefits of using online storage auctions as an auctioneer:

-- Bids are often substantially higher than they would be in person. This means that you can pocket more money from your commission, making these auctions more valuable.

-- The live auction will be a lot shorter than normal since you'll have a higher starting bid. This saves you time and lets you schedule more auctions for one day.

-- In some cases, you can post auctions on behalf of the storage facility and earn a commission on the sale without actually having to conduct a live auction.

-- The auctions are well-advertised through the site's network, which gives your sale more exposure and helps attract more bidders.

If you're never considered using these virtual auction services, now might be the time to do so. As technology changes, the most successful businesspeople are those who can adapt to those changes -- and becoming a pro at online auctions can give you an edge over other auctioneers in your area. Sites like Storage Battles won't allow you to use their service, but OnlineStorageAuctions.com will. And since it's free, you lose nothing by giving it a try.

Meet Some Of Texas’s Best Storage Auctioneers

March 20, 2012

Travis Lane

Storage Auction News

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The following auctioneers specialize in storage lien sales in Texas. I decided to highlight these auctioneers for two purposes. The first reason is to familiarize new storage auction buyers with the auctioneers in our area. The second reason is to provide a resource for storage facilities who are currently looking for a professional to conduct their auction. We did not receive any compensation from these auctioneers for this endorsement, we are recommending them based on their professionalism alone.

Davis Auctioneers is a family owned and operated business that has been in the auction profession since 1988. A large portion of their business involves conducting lien holder sales for storage facilities, including a majority of the U-Haul storage centers located throughout Texas. Besides storage unit auctions, Luther Davis also handles estate auctions, real estate auctions, online auctions, benefit auctions & farm, ranch & business liquidations. In June 2008, Luther Davis was selected as the 2008 State Champion Auctioneer at the Texas Auctioneer Association's annual meeting and convention. Luther is a member of the following associations; National Auctioneers Association, Texas Auctioneers Association, Texas Self Storage Association, Burleson Area Chamber of Commerce, National Association of Realtors, Texas Association of Realtors, Greater Fort Worth Area Realtors & the Fellowship of Christian Auctioneers. For more information, you can reach Luther at luther@davisauctiontx.com.

Buddy Thomas is the owner and principal auctioneer for Thomas & Associates Auctioneers. He specializes in self storage lien auctions and currently services over 60 locations in Texas, from Sherman to McAllen. Buddy has been licensed as an auctioneer by the state of Texas since 1993. He also is a past President of the Texas Auctioneers Association, having served as President in 2006-2007. He has conducted auctions throughout the United States, while employed by a national auction company. Auctions conducted include major business liquidations for Fortune 500 companies, FDIC, hospitals, machine shops, IRS, hardware stores, major banking entities, farm liquidations, and large & small estates. He is a member of Texas Self Storage Association and Texas Auctioneers Association. You can contact him for your storage auction needs as well as on site business and estate liquidations. Update: Buddy Thomas passed away on October 31st, 2014. He will be greatly missed. Chad Larson has taken over Buddy's accounts. You can reach Chad at Auctions@BuddyThomas.com.

Colonel Walt Cade retired from a position in a tax accounting firm where he specialized in tax law and financial planning. He completed the program at the Texas Auction Academy under Mike Jones, and now works full-time as an auctioneer. As one of the most productive auctioneers in the country, Walt runs about 50 storage auctions each year. In addition to storage auctions, he also works on real estate and ranch auctions. Walt appears as an auctioneer on Storage Wars Texas and maintains a website that shows his upcoming auction schedule. You can reach Walt at taxman14865@sbcglobal.net.

Terry Waters Auctioneering is a family-owned business located in Aledo, Texas that services cities throughout the state. Terry Waters handles storage, consignment and estate auctions as well as business liquidations. His wife, Lou Ann, assists with bids and handles check-in/check-out with Auction Flex software. They both work with other auction companies to provide bid calling and ring work services. Terry and his wife are graduates from the Texas Auction Academy and a professional member of the Ringmen's Institute. You can contact Terry at terry@twauctions.com.

Storage Auctioneers Had Record Earnings In 2011

March 13, 2012

Travis Lane

Storage Auction News

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In the past, storage facilities rarely ever recovered their lost rent & fees from the sale of a delinquent tenant's unit. Nowadays, this is not the case. Storage auctioneers, however, have always made a good living off these sales, especially the auctioneers who handle the larger storage facility chains like U-Haul Storage Centers, Extra Space Storage and Uncle Bob's Self Storage.

I have several acquaintances that are auctioneers and from my understanding, it’s a good time to be an auctioneer in the storage auction niche. Fueled by shows like Auction Hunters & Storage Wars, there has been a migration of new bidders attending storage auctions in America. Storage units are selling for double, even triple the amount they used to sell for and storage auctioneers & storage facilities are laughing all the way to the bank.

Most storage auctioneers earn 10-25% of what the storage unit sells for at auction. On average, there are 3-5 storage units for sale at each facility, and on some days, an auctioneer may have 10 or more facilities to conduct auctions at. These auctioneers could easily earn several thousand dollars or more in a single day. Not too shabby for a days work.

In 2012, storage auctioneers are expected to have record earnings as well. The storage auction reality shows have renewed their contracts for additional seasons so, there doesn’t appear to be any signs of a slow down in their near future.