Trend Alert: if you want to grab the best bargains now — and throughout the year — shop estate sales.
Now we can get almost anything right at our doorstep, and moving to another store is just a matter of opening a new tab in a browser. The convenience offered by online shopping is great but the way in which estate sales are able to have our visitors physically and tangibly engage with us and the items they’re shopping is a remarkable experience.
Experience shopping is the hottest new trend.
Listen up! Slowly step away from shopping for products strictly on your screen. You know what happens when the box arrives it’s never what you expected it would be (read here for a laugh).
Stop your disappointment, bring your gloves and flashlight, your family and the family dog: we’re going estate sailing!
Below are the top ten things that you should be buying at estate sales.
There’s no need to rush as there are deals at EVERY estate sale. Plan ahead! Sign up for our mailing list OR sign up for saved search results on a websites like estatesales.net, estatesales.org or estatesale.com.
1. Art
Don’t rush to fill every empty wall at once. Start with one or two key pieces, live with them for a bit, and build one by one from there. Enjoy the process of discovery and allow your collection to develop naturally.
2. Furniture
Are you looking for a solid piece of furniture with some history instead of a future of incomprehensible directions and baggies of labeled hardware? Shop at Hunt Estate Sales events we WILL help to load.
3. Clothing and Accessories
My love for fashion is how I found estate sales.
Flashback to 2010 when I was slinging vintage clothing. Thrift stores had become stale and my sister told me to try estate sales. I scanned estate sale ads for weeks until I saw this pink home with a frog collection and overflowing closets.
I bought this dress, wore it to a Kentucky Derby party, won best dressed and had it sold the next day for FOUR TIMES what I paid for it.
Whether you’re a re-seller or adding to your own closet when you shop at estate sales you’ll be adding both staples and stand out pieces.
4. Cleaning Products and Office Supplies
People always ask us what we collect. Our favorite thing to buy at estate sales is laundry detergent, zip lock bags, tinfoil, and printer paper.
As most of our clients downsize from sprawling suburban homes to downtown pads they just don’t have the same amount of storage space. Some of our sales look like the shelves of Costco but ALL the sales host like new office supplies, cleaning supplies, and paper goods. So, be like this guy. No matter how fancy your car is it will not know the windshield washer fluid came from someone else’s garage.
5. Rugs
Rugs are like art for your floor. As open concept fads tear down walls (and leave you with no place to hang art) consider decorating your space with handmade carpets.
6. Books
There’s nothing like finding a four leaf clover pressed between the pages of a classic book. You never know who owned them before you. Which is kind of exciting, right?
A couple of dollars will get you something to read on the beach and something on your kids summer reading list. I go hunting for books I love so I can pass them onto a friend without giving up my personal copy.
7. Fine Jewelry
The price of jewelry at an estate sale is deeply discounted from the original time of purchase. Often older pieces were hand-crafted using techniques that aren’t used anymore and could not be reproduced today. Don’t forget: stones can be reset, rings can be resized and pins can become pendants.
8. Fitness Equipment
Buying fitness equipment at estate sales is a great investment for your health and your wallet as long as you know what to look for. Before you buy check the brand, wear, features and warranty.
9. Cars
We’re hired to manage the sale so you can be assured that the title is clear and in hand, a bill of sale ready to be completed and, most likely, a complete service history available.
10. Plants
Just as all of the other things on this list need to be rescued, so do plants. Whether you have to nurse it back to health or learn how to care for a rare species when you buy plants at estate sales you are saving them from being discarded.
Tips for Estate Sale Shopping
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Test it out! Inspect it! Get comfortable, plug it in and make sure you know what you’re buying
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If you can’t live without it: get there early!
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Negotiating is part of the fun so make your best offer known!
Experience the thrill of the Hunt!
