The reality behind reality TV's storage wars (Bleeding heart liberal point of view)

CBS Sunday Morning ^ | 9/25/2011 | Conor Knighton

[ExTxMarine]

One locker I bid on was full of top quality furniture including a dining room table that would sell for several thousand dollars new. But, yes, that is the exception.

The wife and I have won about twenty units in our entire "buyer" career. We purchased one unit for $421.00. Tucked in the back, hidden from regular view were two dirt bikes which we sold for $400.00 each and there were several dirt bike parts which we were able to part out for another $350. And then we sold off the furniture pieces. Overall, we got a grand total value of $1675.00. We made $1254.00!

With that in mind, overall we are probably only up $100-$200, when you include all twenty units!

Someone else stated earlier that the only way to really make money is to cut out the middle man and have a store-front or something along those lines to move those middle-of-the-road items! Those items which won't sell as fast as you put them out, but they are valuable enough to hold until the right person comes along!

[GeronL]

It’s true that some of these shows are a bit strange and they like to copycat.

That said, these are some of the least offensive shows on TV.

[ExTxMarine]

There is a house on the property of one of our local flea markets. Inside I figure he has over 2000 different books, old 45rpm records and 33rpm LPs. He even has a few 75rpm records!

The first time I went in there, I picked up seven old albums (Elvis, Hank Jr (before the beard) and several older Tejano groups) for only $3.00! He was selling these for $0.25 to $1.00 each! He and I spoke at length about the albums and artists.

I told him that if he was really interested in making some money, I could create a database of all of his stock and then put these out on eBay.com or Amazon.com.

He told me he had plenty of money. He said that he just liked meeting and talking to people about their purchases! He said the low prices keep people coming back! LOL!

I realized that this old man had his priorities straight!

[21twelve]

I once bought a specialized piece of surveying equipment off of EBAY. I contacted the seller for photos, history, etc. He said he had got it in a storage locker auction full of construction equipment. (I figured the construction company had gone out of business like so many others at the time). A good buy for me at $12,000 (and it looked like it had been used once or twice) for something that new runs $45,000.

About a week after I won it, I got a call from a detective saying it was stolen merchandise. I contacted the seller, and he of course knew nothing about it, but would do whatever was needed to get it resolved. I called the detective back and asked for the name and number of the police department that was involved. Never did get around to calling them though. Figured if they really wanted it they knew where to find me. And wondering if the “detective” really was one - or if it was a scam of some sort?

But - I always think of that pricy piece of equipment in the black case sitting in some locker when the guy first opened it. Not knowing what it was (even after opening the case probably!) and getting big bucks for it. The “wow factor”.

[ExTxMarine]

That said, these are some of the least offensive shows on TV.

Not just these storage shows, but most of the picker, auction, etc... shows are really NON-offensive.

Not only not offensive, but often you can learn about some old pieces of history and manufacturing facts, etc...

[FreedomPoster]

>>How have these reality TV shows influenced the business? Has it been good for business?

I spent some time this weekend with a high school friend who is in that business. He has about a third of a million SF to rent total among 5 locations. We talked about that a little.

One thing it has done is make deadbeats aware that Yes, your stuff can really get sold off, and storage operators can and will really do it. Apparently many didn’t believe this before the shows.

He said it has made opening auctions more of a PITA as there are often crowd control issues, when it used to be maybe 3-4 guys would show up.

He’s really just trying to get back what he is owed on his lien, which is all he can do. Any excess has to be given to the deadbeat, which can sometimes be a problem. They’ve often skipped the area with no forwarding address.

The saddest thing he sees, and he says he sees it frequently, is grandma dies, kids/grandkids shove all her stuff in a storage room, and then stop paying. He’s liquidating a couple rooms of old furniture, a few linens, kitchen stuff, a bunch of knick-knacks, a family bible, and 5 generations of photos in albums and/or boxes. He’s a real family- and family history-oriented guy, and that stuff bothers him, which is certainly understandable.

[4yearlurker]

I believe you mean “78 rpm” records. I have been buying and selling old books and records,etc.. for 20 years. 78s are hard to sell unless they are some old obscure blues guy or “Over The Rainbow.” However, when selling books and records there are three things to remember: Condition,condition,condition.

[ExTxMarine]

I believe you mean “78 rpm” records.

Sorry, you are correct. I was going to put he had "a big 10 inch." But I was not sure if everyone would understand that! LOL!

These are all in GREAT condition! I have since found several albums that I had when I was in high school which were destroyed by a storm surge in North Carolina - UGH!

I have several older, obscure blues guys on 78s, but I also have some old Eddie Arnold on 78s as well.

[4yearlurker]

Yeah,forget about the Eddie Arnold and Mitch Miller records. Even Elvis isn't a sure sale (maybe Sun label) because the market is saturated. Ever see a 16 rpm record? They were bigger than a 33 rpm. To see if your records have any value go to popsike.com. They have records that were actually sold over the net and how much they went for.

[count-your-change]

A store front to move the less valuable items would be the way to make a few dollars since it’s more likely a person would find 300 items worth a dollar a piece than one item worth 300 dollars.

“With that in mind, overall we are probably only up $100-$200, when you include all twenty units!”

Hopefully you had a bit of fun too.

[ExTxMarine]

Ever see a 16 rpm record?

I have seen them. I do not own any.

My step-dad had a friend who was a DJ in Dallas. We got all kinds of demo albums (I got two Reverend Al Green demo discs) and we got lots of tickets to various artists and taped interviews, concerts and other little gatherings on reel-to-reel tape! AWESOME times when I was 13-16 years old!

I met B.B. King, Lightnin' Hopkins, ZZ Top and many more! It was great and I learned much about the music industry at that time!

[chris_bdba]

Exactly! We do have a storage until right now because this house is too small for all of the extra furniture and stuff we have.We do pay out rent each and every month and if I felt I could not do that very much longer I’d be putting a shed in the backyard and selling off what I did not have room for.

[Oatka]

What bugs me about “Storage Wars” is that the winners make an estimate and at the end of the show it states “They MADE $xxx”. Some of those estimates seem high and some of the stuff will take a long time to move.

I gave up on “Pickers” as it always struck me as penny ante, and had the same estimate/SOLD problem.

[dmz]

There is “Nothing” real about reality TV.

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Hilarious.

But scary to think some might not understand that.

[cornfedcowboy]

Pickers bugs me because they are trying to double their money on a $20 oil can while they are making probably $40,000 per episode.

[sheana]

I feel the same way about garages. I drive down my street and see $20-30k cars parked in the 113 degrees sun because their garages are filled full of junk. Totally stupid.

[RckyRaCoCo]

I also know that the prices that are quoted for many of the items on storage wars are just pie-in-the sky wishful thinking.

I watched a couple episodes the other day, and that's what I was thinking($60 for an old DVD player???...ummm, OK...)

I'd rather check out the deals at the local thrift stores.

[Some Fat Guy in L.A.]

People take their precious time up watching this stuff? And they say I’m boring.....

[equaviator]

Ka-CHING! That’s what I was thinking.