Storage Lockers

[Twisted One]

I was notified about a new scam going on too. I guess when a unit goes to auction the auctioneer gets their cut, then the storage unit gets what is left over, if it exceeds the amount owed to the storage facility by the owner of the locker, then the owner gets whatever is left over.

So a storage unit is in default for $200, and the auction sells it for $2000 then the auctioneer gets his cut <know idea what is typical, but guessing at least 20%> so $2000 - $400 to the auctioneer leaves $1600 to the facility, which takes the $200, plus probably some late fees, so say $300. that means the person who owned the locker gets a check for $1300.

So people are intentionally renting storage lockers, packing them full with garbage in brand name boxes to make it look like there is a lot of good stuff in it. They even leave little indicators like you see in the show, like tire marks, or small oil stain, etc... to make it look like something is hidden in behind the other stuff then they intentionally default on the locker.
In reality you pay $2000 for a large unit of stuff that belongs in a dumpster, the auctioneer gets paid, the storage facility gets paid, and the person that staged the locker gets a pay day.

 

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[diggummup]

With today's "reality series" shows there's a lot that's not seen behind the camera's. First, a good majority of what you view has been set up by the directors and producers, to get you to wish and watch. Two good friends of mine have been doing this thing for years and they are not getting rich by any means. Just think about it and put yourself in a storage situation. If you have very valuable items would you really store them in a unguarded in a area where insects and rodents and even moisture can get to them ? Now there are storage area's rented that a heated , climate controlled , and even inside. And most of those are kept by responsible renters who pay there storage rentals by lease 6 months to even two years in advance. Those can have some goodies no doubt, but not every one that's left and open to auction. And the only time they become available to buy in auction is when they pass away without any known relatives, hospitalized or out of state without the means to pay the rent or are in prison. The reality show hype you see on TV is set up more times than it isn't for ratings and not based on the real world of storage, it's good to dream like it is easy money and sometimes you may hit a home run but most of the time you'll be hitting foul balls. IMHO, Woodstock

In the meantime you have all these "dreamers" who watched the TV show and think they are going to hit the lottery, so to speak.

 

[diggummup]

I was notified about a new scam going on too. I guess when a unit goes to auction the auctioneer gets their cut, then the storage unit gets what is left over, if it exceeds the amount owed to the storage facility by the owner of the locker, then the owner gets whatever is left over.

So a storage unit is in default for $200, and the auction sells it for $2000 then the auctioneer gets his cut <know idea what is typical, but guessing at least 20%> so $2000 - $400 to the auctioneer leaves $1600 to the facility, which takes the $200, plus probably some late fees, so say $300. that means the person who owned the locker gets a check for $1300.

So people are intentionally renting storage lockers, packing them full with garbage in brand name boxes to make it look like there is a lot of good stuff in it. They even leave little indicators like you see in the show, like tire marks, or small oil stain, etc... to make it look like something is hidden in behind the other stuff then they intentionally default on the locker.
In reality you pay $2000 for a large unit of stuff that belongs in a dumpster, the auctioneer gets paid, the storage facility gets paid, and the person that staged the locker gets a pay day.

Yeah I got the email too. I just wonder how many storage facilities actually follow the law to the T and send out those certified letters to the former tenants or leinholders. I don't trust them either. Everyone has an angle nowadays, that's what's wrong with this country.

 

[SnakemanBill]

Bought my first one today. Paid $200.00 Besides the two or thee pieces of furniture there were 5 pairs of inline skates with helmets and pads, a box full of lacrosse pads and equipment. a Foosball table, an air hockey table, a three story Barbie dollhouse and assorted boxes of toys knickknacks and such. There was also a box with a bag of change including 4 Indian head pennies 1890-1892. Taking the sporting equipment to a Play it again sports to see what they'll offer. The rest I'll clean up and sell at auction next month.

 

[billjustbill]

I saw an ad from a storage company here in the North Texas area that stated what type of items were in each storage bay up for auction.... "Dining room funiture and boxes......"

In reality, it has already been "Gone-through", so what's the honest chance of finding anything worth above what you'd pay for the actual furniture

It's like selling an empty piggy bank!!!

 

[diggummup]

I saw an ad from a storage company here in the North Texas area that stated what type of items were in each storage bay up for auction.... "Dining room funiture and boxes......"

In reality, it has already been "Gone-through", so what's the honest chance of finding anything worth above what you'd pay for the actual furniture

It's like selling an empty piggy bank!!!

When you rent a storage locker there is a form you fill out. On that form, there is a place for the description of what you are putting in the unit. Typically, this is where that information comes from, when they list what items are in the unit. I'm not saying that the manager of the facitiy may or may not have pilfered through any of the units, because we all know this happens from time to time, but it is not the norm. Look at it this way, the "renter" has until the time of the auction to pay up his bill. How could a manager explain it if all the "good stuff" was missing from his unit? I'd be filing a police report and demanding to see the security tapes. I carry insurance on my units, for me it's worth it, so i'd be getting paid. I know in my state, it is against the law for any lock to be cut before the time of the auction.

 

[mts]

I might add that auctionzip.com does not list all the auctions going on in your area, only those auction companies which use their site.
By law all public storage auctions must be publically advertised in the newspaper after written notice has been given to the person renting the unit and the alotted time with which he has to respond has expired (2 weeks in my state). The advertisement shall include:
1. A brief and general description of what is believed to constitute the personal property contained in the storage unit, as provided on rental application.
2. The address of the self-service storage facility or the address where the self-contained storage unit is located and the name of the tenant.
3. The time, place, and manner of the sale or other disposition. The sale or other disposition shall take place not sooner than 15 days after the first publication.
(b) If there is no newspaper of general circulation in the area where the self-service storage facility or self-contained storage unit is located, the advertisement shall be posted at least 10 days before the date of the sale or other disposition in not fewer than three conspicuous places in the neighborhood where the self-service storage facility or self-contained storage unit is located. The more you know about the person who was renting the unit, the more you know whether you may want to bid on it, after just an initial look inside the unit. Here is a typical ad that would be posted in the paper-

12/28/2011
Miscellaneous Notices

Warehouse Sales
Notice is hereby given that on 01/06/2012 at 10:30AM
at U-STORE-IT #497 10755 Pembroke Road, in the city
of Pembroke Pines, state of FL the
undersigned, U-STORE-IT #497 will sell at Public
Sale by competitive bidding, the personal property
heretofore stored with the undersigned by:



All items in storage units contain household items
unless otherwise mentioned



Lourdes C. Denize Loiseau -

Unit 0499D

Melody Gay - Unit A0024

Trevor R Reid - Unit A0066

Shastri W Deosaran - Unit A0141

Lashanda Renee Shaw -

Unit A0268

Ivy Kendall - Unit A0315

Miriam Criado - Unit A0320

Maureen Fidler - Unit B0577

12/21-28 11-S-107/1803184B



If your any good at research, you can find out all kinds of information about the person named as the rentor of the unit up for sale. Where they live/d, how much there house is/was worth, what they do for a living, any civil or criminal proceedings, etc.,etc. This can give you clues sometimes as to what kind of items may be "hidden" in the storage unit. Later when I have a chance, i'll see what I can come up with on one of these people.

Update- I just ran a records check in the county courthouse online info. and property tax appraisers office, as well as sunbiz.com, and found out that everyone of these people are pretty much low lifes with at least one "removal of tenant" eviction case against them in the past (several with multiples). None of them own a business, none of them own a house, one of them has owned a house in the past but it was foreclosed on in 2007. Most have prior traffic offenses, one has a felony conviction for workers comp fraud and grand theft, one has a prior domestic violence against a woman whom he married several years later, then divorced shortly thereafter (go figure). This tells me that I probably wouldn't put much stock in anything they may have in their units, other than what I can actually see to bid on. They've all been evicted recently in the past year, they put their household goods in storage and are shacking up with whomever and still couldn't pay their storage fees. Anything valuable other than some furn. and maybe a tv or stereo has probably already been removed by them. The "treasures" will be few and far between at this auction (IMHO). This took about 25 minutes for these 8 people, so it's not too time consuming if you know where to look.

diggumup, I just came upon this thread and was reading through the posts. Everyone has given a lot of really good info. But I wanted to say a special "thanks" to you for going above and beyond the call of duty with this post. I know you spent a decent amount of time showing people some very useful techniques for gaining an advantage when looking for storage lockers. It never occurred to me to do this type of research. Very clever stuff. Easy, yet very clever.

Classic diggumup stuff. Keep up the good work.

 

[cyberdan]

When you rent a storage locker there is a form you fill out. On that form, there is a place for the description of what you are putting in the unit.

If I had to fill out one of those forms I would put a very vague description.

What should I put, antique slot machines, gold jewelry, Babe Ruth uniform

 

[diggummup]

When you rent a storage locker there is a form you fill out. On that form, there is a place for the description of what you are putting in the unit.

If I had to fill out one of those forms I would put a very vague description.

What should I put, antique slot machines, gold jewelry, Babe Ruth uniform

Yeah, alot of them just say "household items" I'm with you on that, less is best.

diggumup, I just came upon this thread and was reading through the posts. Everyone has given a lot of really good info. But I wanted to say a special "thanks" to you for going above and beyond the call of duty with this post. I know you spent a decent amount of time showing people some very useful techniques for gaining an advantage when looking for storage lockers. It never occurred to me to do this type of research. Very clever stuff. Easy, yet very clever.

Classic diggumup stuff. Keep up the good work.

Thanks mts!

 

[tncreeker]

I`m not saying that everyone that sells misc. almost junk at the flea market is bad,,but in my old town/state i knew of at least 8 or maybe more FM vendors that looted the Salvation Army and Goodwill donation boxes. Not to mention the things they stole from inside the store. On a weekend when the SA was closed people still dropped off stuff. It was like a parade all weekend,,cars slowly drive by and scope out furniture, rugs etc. Brazen as heck too. Stop and get the kids out of the car and just load up. NOT poor people,,big heavy duty trucks and escalades. I knew them from flea market,,,chaffed my butt. Thats all for now,,Thank you

 

[uglymailman]

I deliver certified letters to people who are about to lose their storage units all the time. From the houses or apartments they live in, and the knowledge I have about them.........I wouldn't pay 12 bucks for one of their units.
I would think the only units worth anything are those involving a divorce or death. JMO

 

[mrs.oroblanco]

I remember a guy who used to sell farm items all the time. The going joke was that he bought "junk" and sold "equipment".

There are other types of lockers and storage units - well, I'm going to rephrase that - there USED to be, I don't know if they still have them or not.

But, we used to go to the police sales, drug sales, etc. Often, they would sell, on-site - storage units that criminals had, and the authorities had acquired after convictions. They were crated, locked, and it was a grab bag. BUT- they did not even open it when they sold them. It was THE ultimate "pig in a poke".
The most I ever saw one go for was about $800.00- gotta say - that was FUN!!! Drug dealers, etc., - don't hold junk in storage. You had to sign an agreement that, if contraband was found, that it would be turned over to the authorities. Dogs have pretty much done away with finding drugs, but, if there is an Uzi or 2, you have to contact the authorities and, if you want to keep it, you have to pay the transfer fees, or turn them in.

We bought a "crate" (a little taller than me, about 4' x 4' square, give or take) for $25.00. It had lots of neat little things in it - plus 4 or 5 REAL expensive suits (got our money back 10 times just on the suits) - but that was back around the 90's. Don't know if they still do that.

Beth

 

[ky.rebel]

used to go to police auctions,now about all of them in Tn. sell on Gov.Deals.com. I still bid on a lot of them,but do it all over internet,don't have to go out to location.Drug busts,cars,guns,jewelry,tools bout anything you can think of.Have to be a dealer to buy guns in Tn. though,but have a lot of good stuff,can get some deals.Course if you have to spend a bunch in gas to go pick it up and bring it back,it may not be such a great deal.Still try to go to all the estate sale auctions I can find. Don't usually buy to resell unless a great deal falls in my lap,I just buy junk for my own collection.Haven't seen any storage lockers on GovDeals.com though so guess they are still done through the storage buisness.Good luck to all and H.H. fred

 

[mrs.oroblanco]

Yea, I am registered with the government auctions on line, too. They sure get better prices with them online, that's for sure.

Just didn't know what they ever did with those locker-type things. We aren't close to any of the places where we live, now. We used to go to
Edison, New Jersey a lot.

Beth

 

[Historyhound]

Question, is it Illegal for storage locker
Owners to just Keep the lockers
that are in Default ?

If you own a Storage Buisness, There is very Little
Cost when someone Defaults.
Just the fact you could have rented the space to somone else

why not Keep them & sell off the Goodies

& Just auction the ones that have nothing worthwhile in ?

Or at least, Scrounge through them first.

Here in Upstate NY, I've seen some legal notices of sale, that say the storage unit owner reserves the right to also bid on the unit, otherwise saying they reserve the right to bid the unit up. I don't even bother attending those, doesn't seem very ethical to me.

 

[mrs.oroblanco]

Its a bit dumb for a locker owner to bid up too much, because, anything over what he is owed - goes to the storage locker owner. (they don't get to keep it).
Same with any of those types of sales - once the amount that is owed is reached (plus auction costs), anything over has to be turned over to the person who rented the locker. If they cannot be reached - the government gets it. (that's one of those "little government secrets" they talk about when they talk about money owed to you that you don't know anything about).


Beth

 

[GibH]

I went to an auction today and it was insane. 60 people showed up for 11 units. Prices were actually reasonable with only a couple that went for stupid prices. I spotted a new centrifugal pump in one, I should have bought it. The locker went for $450 and after I got home I found the same pump for $1600. The other people were bidding on the other contents, it was a 10x20 and filled to the top with filled trash bags, junk furniture and Christmas decorations. I didn't hear anyone mention the pump. No telling what else may have been in it, but the pump would have doubled my money easy. It also makes me think other equipment might have been buried in there.

 

[cyberdan]

The locker went for $450 and after I got home I found the same pump for $1600.

I bet if you offered that buyer $50 or $100 for they would bite.

 

[GibH]

The locker went for $450 and after I got home I found the same pump for $1600.

I bet if you offered that buyer $50 or $100 for they would bite.

I thought about that too. Just another learning experience.

 

[FreedomUIC]

The locker went for $450 and after I got home I found the same pump for $1600.

I bet if you offered that buyer $50 or $100 for they would bite.

You would be classified as a "Vulture" if you did that. Nothing wrong with it, mind you, that is just what they call people who hang around after an auction is over and try
buy things from the person who "Won" the locker/unit....

I Learned that on TV...