STORAGE WARS FAKE???

In my opinion, Storage wars is as fake as a three dollar bill. Yes, I know I said that it all looked real, but as I see more episodes, I am picking up on the game. Last nights show in Las Vegas called auction Royale was the icing on the cake. I never share an opion until I am sure. So in my opinion Storage Wars must be put on the shelf with all the rest. After living in Las Vegas for 9 years of my young life, and working for casinos in managment postions, I can tell you alot about these Las Vegas epsiodes. In part one, you need to watch to see the cast and crew are staying at the Golden Nugget downtown. ( Wow a hit show and they don't even get the Palms Hotel uptown, instead they are downtown ).

If you watch the show, Jarrod and his side kick Brandi find $712.00 in poker chips. Wow, what a find!  Let's all get on a plane and go to Las Vegas and buy units. NOT! After living  and working in Las Vegas I can tell you one thing, poker chip must be cashed in at the casino they are from.  You can not take a Palms chip to the MGM and get cash.  The chips are made for one reason to keep you at the property they are from. If you watch the episode at http://www.aetv.com/ you will see that Jarrod and Brandi cash in their found chips at the Golden Nugget.  Now people listen, Las Vegas is all about odds. What do you think the odds are that someone could go out into the 40 mile wide city of Las Vegas, purchase one shed unit of about 30,000 units in the city and find a stack of poker chips, and that those chips just happen to match up to where you're staying. Let's all play Megabucks because we have a better chance to win that one then this chip fantasy.

I also ask you if you were going to lose your belongings for owning 300.00 in back rent (shed rents are cheap in Vegas) would you not go to your unit and cash in your chips and get your stuff. COME ON ALREADY! The definition of reality is: real.   The new definition by reality TV must be real with a twist of  B.S. Unfortunitly, the B.S. is growing.

Another thing I need you all to be aware of is you might hear the cast members saying, "Well this won't fit in the car so I need to take the valuables.  Not how it happens folks.  If you buy a 10 x 10 full of crap you own 100 square feet of crap.  You own it all and you haul it ALL. Watch the shows for fun  but beware it's not real life. And the casted Auctioneers will have to answer soon as to how they are placing these items in legally liened units. Thats right  the units are part of a legal process and no one is to ever enter into someone elses stuff prior to it being truely sold. The owners of that stuff have up to the time they raise that door to pay the rent and pull it from sale.If you want to learn this business this is where you need to be on Wednesday nights:  reading my blog and learning the true in and outs of the business.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA AUCTIONS GOING STRONG

I ran southern California these past two weeks and things are going strong. The new buyers are coming out in large numbers. One thing I noticed is that many new buyers are MapQuesting their routes. People, go to WalMart and buy a GPS, they cost next to nothing. Your time in this business is priceless and getting to the next location before the other 150 buyers is also priceless.

I saw about 75 units and bought none. The junk is out there, and the high prices are there too. Units that should bring $200.00 were bringing $600.00 and up. Remember: If you're going into this business and over paying this will not help you. Keep this in mind, I know it is hard to hold back because you want to start the treasure hunt. Many new buyers I met have big hopes, I witnessed one new couple buy 6 units over paying big on all of them and then they realized they only had 24 hours to get them all out. So, out they ran to rent a Uhaul. These buyers won't be back.  You can't start in this game by throwing large sums of cash at units and then lack the equipment to remove them. Buy to fit your means. If you have a pick up and you're 70 miles from home buy a 5x10 and fill your truck. Start slow and stick around a lot longer.

BUYER ALERT!!! Many of the auctioneers in California are charging $300 and up on cleaning deposits per unit. This means if you buy three units at $500 each, you will need $2535.00 in your pocket to pay for them. You will get your $900.00 in cleaning deposits back as long as you clear out the unit 110%.  This includes sweeping it clean in the allotted time to get items out. Otherwise, you will lose the $900.00 in deposits back to the property. All things you must to watch out for.  Most auctioneers welcome you new or old, but I found a few very against the new buyers and treated them like crap. So, my suggestion is to have strong shoulders because you might find yourself in unwelcoming territory even from the Auctioneers. I find this NUTS since the buyer is who we, as Auctioneers, need to be welcoming with open arms if we want to make our living.

TV REAL OR NOT

Okay we are seeing alot of shows hitting the air about storage auctions. The only one that I have found to be possible real reality would be the A&E hit Storage Wars. But Iam still watching this one close and will give my views at a later date. I am not saying the others are not watchable just some are not the answer you're looking for. You would have to be the judge and you have to watch the ones that teach you what you want to know.

I have been on two sets of two different shows and the Storage Wars set is not a set at all it is a real auction happening right then (reality?). They used real people off the street that happened to showed up at the auction and happened upon the filming of the show. You have to sign a short release and you're on the tube. So I will see what happens as they air these. The other show I was on I will put it this way the crowd was paid $35.00 each to stand there. They then sold the same shed five times to get the right mix. That, my folks is not reality and the real will rise to the top and the copy cats will disappear like many auction shows that came and went fast.

If you want to learn this business TV will not do it for you.  After all, if you watch any of these shows the buyers kind of double talk.  In one breath, they are saying you can make money in this business, then they say the industry is a secret and will break you. Which is it ? Think of it this way if you found a way to make 100's of thousands of dollars, how fast would you be on the soap box selling your find to build your own competition. Unfortunately, I feel many of these folks that are on TV are there because business is not so good for them. This business will truly either make you a honest living or break you.

I have been  in this industry for over 13 years and I can tell you one thing buying a unit for $1000.00 or more rarely ever turns out $10,000 to $20,000 in profits like many of these shows are putting out there. You can bet that many IRS agents are sharpening their pencils on this one. I can tell you this get into the business right, pay your taxes and hope for the gold mine hitting one day, but keep in mind many times the gold mine is in the auctioneers pocket and your just knee deep in crapola. The best thing about this business is you will gain one close friend that knows you by first name and might even send you a Christmas gift each year. Who that would be? The trash dump manager.

Again, when it comes to TV shows remember take the pointers and run will them.  Just keep in mind they are just that pointers and you must look at the source.  People who sell out their trade tend to be the ones floundering in the trade. The true buyer making money will be stone faced and look like he or she should be at a poker table not a auction. You will soon see when you attend one of these sales you have the pro-buyers, they are the ones against the wall and talking to no one. Then, you have the ones telling tall stories about how they bought units and found Harley's, guns and cash.

I leave you with this simple fact if you were storing a Harley cash or guns and you owed $600.00 or even $1000.00 in back rent what do you think you would do?  Go to your unit and pawn a gun or two and ride your Harley into the wind with some cash in your pocket or let it go to an auction buyer?  The only time that happens is when someone goes to jail or has passed on. bI don't know about you but I sure wouldn't want to meet that 1% from some motorcycle gang with his bike between your legs and his cash in your pocket.  You will have one route on that one and it won't be an invite to their next club party. This is a fun business if your sharp and smart. Leave the dreams at home and be a business person. After all that is what this is a business.

THE SHED RESULTS

Okay, we gave you some homework. Let's see how you did. If you decided to spend $200.00 to $275.00 youR on the right track.  Now, just remember with all the new buyers out there you may not get this unit. My simple answer to that is a motto I live by, "Go home empty and lose your gas money, buy uncontrolled and lose your ass!"  Let's break down this unit. You're looking at 3 older TVs.  That's fine so we value them each at $15.00, the wheel barrow $10.00, the camp stoves, well here you need to think. Who has two or three camp stoves? If you don't see a boy scout uniform hanging from the rafters chance are your looking at a unit of a collector, garage saler, or just a shopper who likes to buy doubles. You see the TVs were okay at three many folks have a TV in many rooms but, when you start seeing doubles, triples and more, of items that most people only have one of, that is what we call a flag in the business. At that point you have to look at the rest of the unit and be able to see tell tale signs of what this unit is truly about. Some of us are born with the gut reactions and others must learn as they go. The best way of looking at it is, at $200.00 you're not going to get to hurt, and if $200.00 does hurt you too much then you're in the wrong business. You may buy 20 units before you see anything of real value. You have to have that disposable income to do just that, buy 20 or so units. Now, also looking at the door of this one we know we are not going to lose all of our money with just what is on the eyes. As for the boxes, I look at as they belong to Billy. Many men are called Bill but not many carry the "Billy" to older age. They leave that behind in childhood which means these boxes go to the garage for several reasons. 1:  They belong to the son and they are full of toys not played or the child has outgrown and are well used and are stored away, or 2:  They are the outside toys of the son, or 3:  What we all hope, they are full of a guys tools and stuff and he is comfortable with his manhood and is still called Billy. Well, I would and have, for this equation valued them at $5.00 per box. This leaves us with the possible tool box in the back. I would value the tool box as a possible and as always I value all tool boxes at empty rate, so I allowed $70.00 for the box for a total of $200.00 low and allowing myself room to go as high as $275.00 if I need to. This may seem like a curve ball but you will get alot of curve balls throughout your stay in this business. But if all of our hunches are right and we get this unit for $250.00, we just made money! In my market the wheel barrow would be $25.00, the boxes an average of $15.00 each depending on whats inside but the $15.00 would be selling item by item at yard sale prices. the camp stoves if working (which you noticed I didn't value in my bid to allow room) $25.00 each, the tool box comes up empty and sold for $225.00 the TVs sell fast at $25.00 each for a total income of $600.00 or a profit of $350.00. Not bad, many folks work a 40 hour work week to do $350.00. All you did was had a blast dinging through treasures to make the cash. Next blog we will be talking about the new TV shows. Are they the real deal or just TV?

YOUR NEXT SHED

Now you have felt that rush of the first unit in front of you and you have escaped the wrath of bags of clothing and dirty old mattresses to live yet another day in the cut throat business of auctions. you have seen first hand there are tricks you need to learn.  First, you need to learn how to value things standing at the door. To do this you must spend hours upon hours simply walking local stores.  The best of course is the Walmart store.  They will be your biggest competition when tring to sell any item. Tour the camping area, auto, as well as electronics. Look at what items are selling for. I will give you some examples. The Coleman camp stove, a propane one that works off of the little propane tanks, retails for $55.00 so if you see one in a unit out of box and looks used you would figure that stove into your bid at $15.00 of value this gives you the room to up your price to a profit easy. I can get $20.00 for one that looks new and about $35.00 for a new one, so you want that room on your bid.  Next you need to know your stoves, a Coleman liquid gas stove sells for $99.00 and can bring you a fast $50.00 used and $75.00 new, so what would you factor this type of stove into your bid?  The answer in my book would be $25.00 value. U sing this equation allows you room for mistakes. You never want to over value something because it may be broken, missing parts, or not what you thought it was. Always remember to leave room!  The old addiage is, if you double you're OK if you triple your in, if you break even your gone. You have to remember you are not here to break even!  You have to make money on every unit you buy or you won't last. Now walk around your store and notice shapes and sizes. This may sound odd now, but if you come to a unit that is packed beyond packed you won't be able to value the unit unless you can see outside the box. You have to be able to look into cracks and holes and be able to identify items by the corner of the item the size color or shape. for example a roll around tool box with rounded corners and sheet metal appearance is most all of the time a homeowners box valued at below $500.00 new, but a box that has the heavy metal look with square blunt sides and corners with metal pull drawer handles most every time is a Snap On or Mac tool box and can be worth thousands empty and can be worth $10,000 if full of the tools. Shapes, colors and sizes are the thing you need to study when shopping. Heck you can learn a lot about this by looking in your own garage or shed. Now, let's look at the big picture so to say, the TV market, we have TVs out there worth $10.00 up to thousands, the best rule of thumb here is you're looking for LCD or plasmas but lookat it as a parts TV. Yes folks, many of those LCD and plasmas that come out of units might be broken and it is a minimum of $200.00 or more to fix them. I value mine at parts level a 52" LCD I value at $300.00 and if it all works I just made $700.00 ($400.00 profit). Again this all depends on your market and no one even myself can tell you what an item is worth in your area. That is another thing you will need to learn, your market. The other type of TV is the oldie but the fast selling 20" to 35" regular everyday TV. They sell super fast and I love to have 5 or 6 on the floor at all times for the folks that want TV but can't afford a $300.00 TV.  Never value a older TV for more than $15.00 into your bid since they have more of a chance of being broken. Let's review this now, you walk up to a shed it is a 5x10 and it has three old TVs, two propane stoves,and 15 boxes most marked garage and "Billy's stuff", plus you see what looks to be a home owners tool box buried under the boxes on wheels in the back and a used wheel barrow up front. what should your bid be? You always look at lowest and highest bids. let's break it down. The items on view are guys stuff the boxes have a man's name and say garage on them. What would you bid on this 5x10 shed high and low figure? Come back next week and I will break it down further and see if you match a pro's view. If this seems like a confusing math problem you're on the right track it is all about numbers that you have to have in your head in seconds. It all comes in time. Try to figure out what you would bid on the 5x10 and see if you match me.

NEW TO THIS BLOG? STARTED AT BOTTOM TO GET ALL INFO

STILL HERE WELL LETS GET YOU BUYING

You have gone over my blog and you're still here. You're either ready to work your butt off or you're crazy. Either way let's see if we can get you going.  Now go out and buy yourself a good flashlight and about four keyed alike round locks.  You can get them at any hardware store. Buy yourself a flashlight with power.  Get the lightest one you can buy. Many go out and buy the big spot lights. I can tell ya, you will be tried of carrying the spot since they are heavy. If you have the capital get a Stream Light Ultra Stinger. They are rechargeable and are top quality weighing in at less then a pound. They are costly at about $159.00, but well worth it. I can get them for you for $98.00 if you want one email me.  First thing you need to do study is your local legal ads in your local paper. There are websites you can go to also but not knowing where you live I can only guide you to the auctions through your paper. This will result in your meeting the auctioneers and getting their websites and info for future sales. Now when you arrive at your first location, where you are hoping to buy something, there are many things that happen just as you drive up. The major things you need to worry about is focus. What type of area are you in? Are the homes slums or are they million dollar homes?  Are the stores around clean or south of the border looking?  What type of people are walking down the street? Are there commercial offices and warehouses around?  These are all things you look at driving to the location. Oh, just a heads up here, buy yourself a navigation system to get around. online map services are a thing of the past and some times you are running too fast to the next sale, due to lack of time between sales, to be reading a piece of paper for directions. Okay now you pull up to the storage company. What does it look like? Ask yourself would you store there? These questions will all help you evaluate your course of action. Now if you get to a location and you have 15-20 minutes, best thing to do is stay in your car or truck. The least amount of time you give the regular buyers to size you up or get you in a conversation is the best. The worst thing you can do is get out and start asking questions, like your new. This business is like a poker game you can't give away your tells or you hurt your position.  Look like you're busy in your car, talk on your phone call you favorite friend or check on where your going to eat that night. Don't just sit there. Now when it is time to get out, walk straight and tall look like you have a purpose to be there. Right at this time you will see the regular buyers sizing you up and talking among themselves. This is where you do not want to get involved. Stand off alone against a wall and look right at the regulars make them wonder if you're sizing them up. Alot of regulars will approach you with tricks. I have had people come up acting like they have seen me somewhere before just to find out who I was. If this happens be short, polite and sweet. Kind of like the military, you know give them only your, name rank and serial number. Don't get into a conversation. What I do, is ask, "Do you know where the bathroom is?" and I head that way.  Now, the auctioneer approaches, they usually sound off the terms to all but some will yell out if you have never done this before come see me. At this point you want to position yourself close to, without approaching, the group of newbies. Get just close enough to hear the terms. The terms are pretty much the same cash money, no checks, no credit cards and no going to the bank. You can not enter or touch anything in the unit and you have 24 hours to remove the items (all of the items trash and all). It is that simple. Now they crack the gate and you are on your way to your first unit. Your heart beats faster, your palms are sweating and your eyes are wide as the door rises. There it is the unit of all units the 10 x 20 full of mattresses, garbage bags, and dirty laundry. It brings your palms to a dry chapped feeling your heart skips two beats and your eyes close quick. Well lets run this down. The garbage bags 9 out of 10 times are clothing or a sign that someone moved fast and grabbed what they had to pack with. Meaning they were thrown out on the street and have very little to their name. The mattresses trophy, stained or not, if they are used, can not be resold in many states and in some states cost alot to toss away, you must figure this all into the cost equation. Now you stand back and the bidding starts. You saw nothing of value and the bid goes up to $400.00 You're standing there second guessing your walkaway. Number one, never second guess your first gut reaction, most of the time it will cost you big. Second, you and all the other newbies are being scared off buy seasoned buyers with disposable income. They bid high to make you walk away. You just have to remember never throw away money. Just wait for that one you want.