Great place. Great people. Almost all of the reviews have some truth to them, even the negative ones. So it might not be everyone's cuppa tea.
This is family run. And no, they're not going to modernize. They've been in business for a very long time. It works. Oh, and their buyer premium is 10%. Try finding that at another auction house. Their seller premium is lower than other auctions houses in the area, too. They also pay- FAST. VERY, VERY fast. Your check is normally ready in less than a week.
This past year, they have been much more selective on estates they take because they already have quite a few they're already processing and more waiting.
If you notice, there's no bad reviews from sellers or estate executors complaining.
There is rhyme & reason to their selling. I'll skip going over it, but, really, there is. Yes, they do make up lots on the fly while the auction is going on. That's one of their pluses for a seller and buyer- for the seller, everything is SOLD, no unsold lots donated or thrown out. For the buyer, you can often get more items combined for a good price.
You can get really good deals, as a reseller, I've found some pretty amazing stuff in the boxes "on the porch." However, those are getting harder to find. Stuff is selling for nice prices, but above what I want to pay for it, so not everything is being sold for pennies on the dollar. But most of the time, crap does. All houses have crap. Including houses of estates they're tasked to sell everything... EVERYTHING.
They post pictures throughout the week, but if you check Saturday afternoon, you should be able to see pictures of everything that's going to be sold. Of everything in the boxes? No. But you can usually get a pretty good feel for stuff, but the items in the back building & main building are well shot. If you want furniture or if you collect items they have in pictures, there's a good chance you'll get a good deal. A great deal? Maybe. A steal? Possible. But if you're there, check out the box lots. Dig around a little bit. You may find something.
It CAN be an all-day thing, or a partial day... Go during the 1 hour preview and you should be able to figure it out. Richie & Eric are VERY used to being asked what time they think the auction will be at the back building or main building. Having done it for so long, they're pretty accurate on their estimates.
Another issue some visitors have is that they run up the bid/bid on items themselves, etc. Yes, they do bid on items. They have never hidden this fact. There's many reasons why they do: 1. They want the item. Instead of just pulling it and appropiating it, they include themselves in the bidding. 2. They are not getting what they think is the fair bid for an item. Both of these 2 examples are for the benefit of the consigner. And if they are the high bidder, well, they now own the item. It happens often. 3. They bid for other loyal/longtime sellers who aren't there. This is also for the benefit of the consigner but also to their benefit and to the benefit of their best customers. I used to grumble about this until I heard Richie (not Ron, get your facts straight, folks) rattle off what 2 or 3 of their big buyers buy from them each year. It's alot. Yes, some auctioneers may make attempts to run up bids dishonestly, but I can assure you as a customer for 2-3 years, I wouldn't be going back if I felt being ripped off. I could easily give you an A-1 example of being ripped off at a local Phoenix auction. If you're interested, lmk and I'll tell you.
Oh. And don't move stuff from 1 box to another or 1 row to another. And don't offer to buy something from a lot someone won, or to sell something from a lot you won. It's their business, not yours. Take it home and sell it.
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