When I first started in the estate sales business almost 13 years ago - hey, what did I know - not much…

My first estate sale was in Point Reyes Station, Ca. When I went to look at the estate, it literally was under tarps in the front and back yard of a small white clap board house close to the center of town. The heir had removed everything from her mother’s house to make it easier to paint the interior. I remember lifting an edge of the blue tarp and looking under it and seeing all manner of household items and collectibles…

So my partner and I moved everything back into the house, priced as much of it as we could, and then we made the premises ready for an estate sale.

I priced everything according to my limited knowledge of collectibles and antiques and my own raw instinct. The estate sale took place over a holiday weekend which I later learned is not always the best time to stage a sale - but like I said, what did I know?

I advertised the sale in two local newspapers and put up estate sale signs on utility poles around the neighborhood, and lo and behold they came. It seems that lots of people were looking for the perfect excuse to leave San Francisco, take a ride in the country and add to the trip the bonus of shopping at an estate sale in the country.

On the morning of the sale my partner and I made our final preparations to the staging of the house; having no idea what was in store for us. It was just the two of us, we never thought we would need extra help.

The house was set back from the street surrounded by a tall hedge in front of which was a white picket fence. You could not see the street from the house, it was private and cozy back there. I left my partner in the house and I waked towards the gate to let the people in - I was kind of excited. As I got closer to the gate I could hear the sound of many people talking, and when I arrived at the gate I saw that there was quite a crowd of estate sale shoppers there.

But like I said, what did I know? I let them all in at the same time…it was like a stampede - 50 or 60 people intent on finding bargains descended upon and entered the house.

I followed them all in, and standing at the front door, I can still remember looking across the front room, over the tops of their heads, to my partner, both of us with puzzled faces and shrugging shoulders as if to say, who knew?

People loved this estate sale, they snapped up armloads of dishes, linens, collectibles of every shape and size, and then proceeded to my hastily arranged cashier’s station in the front yard. It was incredible. There was a line at times as long as twenty or thirty people, and the holiday shoppers just kept on coming all day.

I learned a lot about the estate sales business during this sale, and the first thing I learned was that people will buy the most surprising things. And the second thing I learned was that I had to do much better homework, and learn how to properly price things.

One of my fondest memories of this sale was when the owner of the largest estate sales company in San Francisco arrived. She and her family had a second home in the Point Reyes Station area. I had shopped her sales many times in the city, so I knew her fairly well. She asked me if I had any costume jewelry for sale, and I said that I did, but that I had not put it out because I did not know how to price it. She asked if she could see it and I set her up in the bathroom, away from the clamoring masses to look at it. Every once in a while I would check on her, and there she was, the undisputed queen of the San Francisco estate sales business sitting on the edge of the tub, in the bathroom of my first estate sale, going through a mound of costume jewelry…which she of course she bought for a song…but like I said, what did I know?

My name is Martin Codina and I am an estate liquidator who loves his job…

Do we have an estate sale or auction? This is the question many people have to answer when dealing with the personal property of a decedent.

Let’s take a look at these two options:

Estate Sale

Estate sales are a fairly new phenomenon. Sure in certain areas they have been going on for years, but overall in most places in this country, estate sales are a relatively new option for selling a households contents.

Here is some good news!

Estate liquidation as an industry is becoming professionalized, and more and more estate sale signs can be seen on street corners or hanging from lamp posts. All across the country younger, fresher, and educationally more savvy people are starting estate liquidation companies and conducting estate sales.

Look in your local phone book under Estate Liquidation to find them. Or go on line and key word estate sales, or estate liquidation. Also make sure to include the name of your area in your keyword search e.g. Estate Sales San Francisco, Estate Liquidation Los Angeles.

Estate Sale Pro’s and Con’s:

Pros

1. Everything can take place in one central location.
2. There are no moving charges.
3. Everything can be sold individually, which creates larger incomes.
4. There are professionals to do this for you.
5. Commissions and other fees are usually lower.
6. Because they take place over a 2 or 3 day period more buyers can attend.
7. Prices are set, all items are marked.
8. Estate liquidation companies use better and more highly effective advertising strategies that let a greater number people know about estate sales in their areas.

Cons

1. There will be strangers in the decedent’s house.
2. Potential liabilities. Ask your estate sales company for a copy of their insurance policy.

Auction

Auctions have been taking place for centuries. All over this country you can find auctions being conducted; from out of the way farm auctions, to high end big city antique auctions. In many parts of the country there are simply no other ways to liquidate personal property than an auction.

Auction Pro’s and Con’s:

Pros

1. High value items will realize higher prices.
2. Household contents are immediately removed from the house, so that the house can be listed for sale.
3. If there are any surprise items in the house, the right auction house can market those items, and derive a higher price through competitive bidding.
4. Many auction houses put their entire auction catalogs on eBay. This can have a high income impact; especially for collectibles.
5. Competitive bidding acts as an imperative.
6. Mid to high level auction houses have in house research staffs that have ready access to important “price realized” data bases.
7. Property can be consigned with a sale price reserve.
8. Auction house are all over the country, even in rural areas.

Cons

1. Because auctions have to sell all items found in a home during a one day sale they use “box lots” in order to move large volumes. This tends to dilute the price your items sell for.
2. The auction process can drag on for many months.

My analysis of the estate sales or auction question is that both have positive strengths. To successfully liquidate an estates personal property, my recommendation is to adopt a two tier approach.

1. Consign your highest value items to the largest auction house in your area,
2. Engage the services of a local estate liquidation company to stage an estate sale.

Note: Many estate liquidation companies are starting to adopt this two tier approach, call one in your area and ask them if they do. If you are able to find one that does it will generally be to your advantage to engage the services of one estate liquidation company to handle all your estate sale and auction needs.

My name is Martin Codina and I am an estate liquidator who loves his job.

Ask the right estate liquidation questions…

It is important to have the right answers. Information is the key to making great decisions. It is through the asking of the right estate liquidation questions that one arrives at the most useful and productive estate liquidation answers.

So I have written a list of all the estate liquidation questions I can remember having been asked in the last 12 years. You can find them here Estate Liquidation Questions, or you can click on one of the links in my sidebar.

I have visited and read a lot of estate liquidation websites. Most are informative, and there seems to be many estate liquidators who are trying their very best to give their visitors valuable information about their services.

However the trend is to:

1. Pose ten or more estate liquidation questions.
2. Answer their own questions.

These estate liquidation companies are giving you a few questions they think you should be asking, and then they give you their answers to those questions.

Seems a bit of a production to me.

Here are my suggestions for finding the right estate liquidation questions to ask, and a process for how to use the estate liquidation answers you get.

1. Follow the Estate Liquidation Questions link above, it’s complimentary.
2. Follow the outlines that you find there.
3. Ask these questions of 3 different estate liquidation company representatives.
4. Contrast their answers.

For more useful estate liquidation information visit back here from time to time or go to Estate-Liquidation-Information.com

My name is Martin Codina and I am an estate liquidator who loves his job.

The following suggestions for resolving estate liquidation conflicts is in no way an attempt to replace sound legal advice, but is offered as an additional estate liquidation resource.

Everything, all decisions about the estate - from what to do with the house, financial instruments, and personal property is about the answers to the following questions. What did the the decedent want and in the case of someone who has past away without a will, what would the decedent have wanted?

As an executor you are in a rare position, a position of trust, a position of acting on the will and authority of another person.

This post is meant to give some guidelines for how to resolve some of the conflicts that may arise between you as the executor and other heirs in relation to the decedents personal property.

A simple executor guide to resolve estate liquidation conflicts should they occur.

1. Read the will and make notes.
2. Meet with your attorney, and let them know that you are going to have a family meeting.
3. Before the family meeting, compose a letter for each of the heirs asking them to write down 4 principals that they remember as being important to the decedent.
4. Ask them to bring their list with them to the family meeting.
5. After everyone has read their list, establish and remark about any common ground.
6. It is likely that there will be some commonality and agreement on what were the principals of the decedent.
7. As the discussion unfolds about what to do with the personal affects of the estate, refer as much as possible to the agreed upon principals of the decedent.
8. One way to prevent a free for all atmosphere is to ask each heir to use the following question as a guide for choosing items from the estate: What’s important to keep and what’s OK to let go of?
9. Decide if the decedents principals can be aligned with what ever liquidations options are available to the family.
10. Your choices for what to do with the remaining personal property are fairly clear, and are narrowed by the geographical area where the estate resides and the temperament of the family - guided by the decedents principals, and are as follows: Estate Sale, Auction, Charity.

For a list of questions to ask an estate liquidator go here, and for a growing list of estate liquidation companies in your area go here.

My name is Martin Codina and I am an estate liquidator who cares…

Back to Fine Estate Liquidation, Inc.

For More Estate Liquidation Information go to:

Estate-Liquidation-Information.com

I get a lot of emails and phone calls from people who want me to refer a local estate liquidation company to them. So I created a list of estate liquidation companies located in the top 15 urban population centers of America.

I will be updating to this list from time to time, so I suggest you bookmark the page for future reference.

I have not checked with all of them. I have not sorted through their references - I leave that to you. Here is a list of estate liquidations questions you might want to ask them.

Originally I created this list as a resource for people who were looking for local estate liquidators, but it also occurs to me that people traveling across the country may want to go to local estate sales in different states.

I hope you find this list helpful. If you know of a good local estate liquidation company that you would like to suggest for this list, please do so by sending me their info, via a comment to this post.

There is no cost. It is complimentary.

Estate Sale

610 Clipper St. #4 San Francisco

Sat. Feb. 16 and Sun. Feb. 17
10:00am – 5:00pm

3 Persian rugs, Antique tiger oak serpentine breakfront, Regulator wall clock, Victorian mantle clock, Large tree panel Japanese woodblock print, Water buffalo horns, Vintage reverse glass painted shade with original bronze base, Vintage wicker side or what-not table, Maxfield Parrish print with original blue and gilt frame, Antique oak dinning table with 6 oak press-back chairs – original finish to table, Spoolwork clerk’s or students desk, Large tabletop pieces of pink or red coral, Heart shaped white coral, Antique carved church pew, Many collectibles, Books, TV, Stereo, Tools, Kitchen, Trunk…and more.

Two Items of Special Interest:

1.) Painting By Snowflake: Here is a brief Bio excerpted from an email sent to me by the executor.

Snowflake was part of a group of very talented post-hippie-era gays who spent much time at the Ambush, which was far more of a cultural institution than it was a bar. They had art exhibits openings every two weeks. Chuck Arnett, who I referred to in my email to Gayle, was another regular and his gay leather mural at the old Tool Box appeared in Life magazine’s Gay in America special issue back in 1964 (I believe), and has become an icon.

Snowflake was the most artistic of the crew. He was also the consummate showman. His openings were always an event. One time he came dressed as Toulouse-Lautrec with top hat and monocle, and shuffled around on his knees all evening.

Descriptions of this painting:

Name Rainbow Cash Register:

The Ambush had a transom window over the door that the afternoon sun came thru’, & someone hung a crystal in that window. As time passed, other people added crystals, then it became a bigger deal, & someone built a frame to hold all of the hanging crystals, & then the frame was moved in front of the transom throughout the year so that the crystals always caught the sunlight. Jim said that when you stepped into the pitch black establishment (don’t know if the interior was painted black [YES], or just seemed that dark after coming in from the daylight), the bar would be bathed in rainbows from the sunlight hitting the crystals — hence the Snowflake painting ‘Rainbow Cash Register’ (can’t remember if that’s its ‘official’ name, or just what we call it). Jim said that from the place where Snowflake sat at the bar, that’s the view he would have had of the cash register, etc.

2.) Gay Viet-Nam Protest Poster – Protesting the Mai Lai massacre.
http://www.finesf.com/

FINE ESTATE LIQUIDATION INC.

Awesome Estate Sale This Weekend!!!

Fri. Feb. 1 – Sun. Feb. 3

10:00am – 5:00pm

2944 Scott St. (at Union) San Francisco, Ca.

Sterling, Lenox China, Good Glassware, Antique Dragon Scroll, Series of six Yaacov Agam Prints, Other artwork , Yamaha studio upright piano (black lacquer), Two Bronzes, Many collectables – Nic-Nack – Figurines – Teddy Bears - Pillows, Furniture, Danish Modern Drop-leaf Table, Maguire Style Chairs, Almost New Queen Bed, Nice Lamps, Many Books, LP’s, Bedroom Furniture, Kitchen Galore, Huge Chalk Board, Great Woman’s Clothing (size 6-10 and shoes size 5 ½ – 6 ½) Guys Clothing size 40 reg., Nice Camping Equipment – Some Fishing, Tools, and Basement…

This Sale is taking Place This Weekend!!!!

Estate Sale

1626 Diamond St. SF, Ca.

Fri. Jan 18 – Sun. Jan. 20

10 am – 5 pm (note new opening time)

Some China, Antique Carved Bookcase w/ glass doors, George Jensen Sterling Flatware (Block or Arcadia Pattern) 3×5 Silk Prayer Rug, Other Knotted Rugs, Cobalt Glass, Furniture –Some Antique, Old Andirons – One Pair Of Which Is In The Shape Of A Ships Anchor, Collectibles, 2 Ten Speed Bikes – Free Spirit FS19 and Motobecane Mirage Made In France, Ben Hogan Gulf Clubs, Christmas Stuff, Train Set, Horn, Stereo and 2 TV’s, Murano, Shabby Chic, Records, Books, Tools, Kitchen and much more…small house that is packed…

Website: www.finesf.com

Majolica: £87,000

Scrimshaw Carving Set: £33,000

Brass Salts: £66,000

Omega Watch: £33,800

Tin Litho Micky Mouse: £51,000

Fine Estate Liquidation Inc.
Martin Codina

Well some are…but not many.

Antique roadshow spoof…with a few gems…

Martin Codina