The Ultimate Guide To Estate Sales: How to Prepare to Go to an Estate Sale
"Estate Sale Today" sign indicates where the estate sale is and has a smaller orange "50% off Today" sign.
The Ultimate Guide to Estate Sales Series
What You Should Know About Estate Sales: How to Prepare to Go To an Estate Sale
Picture this: You’re scrolling through local estate sale listings online when you find THE ultimate estate sale. The listing is incredibly detailed and the photos reveal an absolute treasure chest of everything you’ve been dreaming of finding one day. Of course, you’re going.
But wait! Are you actually prepared to go to this estate sale?
How You Can Prepare to Go to an Estate Sale
In this first installment of The Ultimate Guide to Estate Sales Series, I share my process for preparing to go to an estate sale.
As simple as it seems, navigating an estate sale can get quite tricky, very fast. It’s always good to take some time and consider several situations before you head over to the sale.
I’ve been attending estate sales for over twenty years in multiple states and while every estate sale is different, I feel I’ve gathered quite a bit of firsthand experience with them that you can use too!
As I share my experience in this series, I’m also going to imply the following:
You know what an estate sale is.
You know how estate sales operate.
You may have already been to a few estate sales yourself.
Here’s a few tips I recommend you consider before you go to an estate sale.
Where is the sign-up sheet?
For nearly every estate sale, there’s a sign-up sheet (sometimes it’s referred to as a check-in sheet). Most estate sales limit the number of people they allow into the location for shrinkage and crowd-control. While it may seem like an inconvenience, I really appreciate when the organizers regulate the number of people allowed to shop at a given time for a few reasons. I know I’m not going to be shoulder-to-shoulder trying to look at items and no-one is going to block me from getting to a particular area. I also know by regulating how many people are actively shopping the sale, I’m not going to wait 30 minutes in line to check out because someone wants to wait for their friend to get into the estate sale before they start looking around and shop.
The sign-up sheet will be posted in the advertisement for the estate sale. If you’re looking at an estate sale listing online, the sign-up sheet is usually listed after the “about” or “items listed” section, followed by the methods of payment that are accepted.
The listing may note a sign-up sheet will typically be posted the night before the first day of the estate sale. Otherwise, there is usually be a sign-up sheet posted at the entrance of the estate sale. It’ll most likely be a taped to the main entry door or on a clipboard closely nearby. Estate sale sign-in sheets allow you to enter your name for entry to the sale and is usually on a first-come, first-served basis. If online sign-up was not an option, you’ll want to arrive early to check in. The sooner you arrive on site and sign the check-in sheet, the quicker you will be allowed into the estate sale to shop.
Remember to arrive early enough to find parking and have a good place in line after you sign in! I typically arrive 30 minutes before the estate sale opens for the day. If I feel it’s going to be a particularly popular estate sale with many attendees, I’ll arrive an hour beforehand.
Do you have the correct forms of payment accepted with you?
All estate sale listings will note what forms of payment are accepted. Fortunately, most estate sales take debit/credit, however, some only accept cash or Venmo. Others may only take cash or PayPal. Some only accept debit or credit cards. It’s incredibly important to scour the estate sale listing to know exactly what type of payment is accepted - NEVER ASSUME! I find one of the biggest holdups at the checkout counter is someone who was not aware debit/credit cards were not accepted. When in doubt, always have cash and at least one form of card for payment on hand!
Study the Estate Sale Listing Photos.
Estate Sale listing photos reveal a good deal of information beyond determining if you want to to go to the estate sale or not.
An online estate sale listing will typically reveal photos of items in the sale one week or less in advance of the sale taking place.
Prices for items shown in phots are almost never revealed online. I know, frustrating right? This is where a bit of detective work comes into play. To estimate how much an item will be listed for at the sale, try to find the item on another resale site such as eBay or 1st Dibs. You can type in the description into a search engine of what you’re looking for. You can even screenshot the image and upload it to Google Image. There’s a good change that item you’re interested in will appear in search results. Always assume the highest price you see the item listed as is what the item will be priced at. Remember, estate sales are typically full price the first day of the sale and 50% off the last day of the sale. This detail will be confirmed in the estate sale listing, or verbally communicated by the organizers.
Where is the item located? Is it on a table? Is it on the floor? What color are the walls of the room where the desired item is located? Save yourself time knowing details such as these beforehand is incredibly helpful when you’re at the estate sale and cannot find what you’re looking for. Estate sales can get very crowded and very busy, very fast. You can always ask a member of the staff to help locate the item for you and sharing this detailed information is always appreciated.
Always bring packaging to take your goods home with you.
It’s happened to me too many times: I fill my arms with goods stacked precariously on top of each other thinking I’ll be fine as soon as I get these items into a bag…only to find out no bags are available at checkout. Don’t be in the same situation I was in!
I recommend bringing:
*1 large foldable bag. This bag should be larger than a brown paper shopping bag that you get at the grocery store. It should be able to stand on its own and not flop over. There’s nothing more frustrating than not being able to put an item in a bag because you cannot balance things to open the bag.
*1-2 compact grocery bags. These bags should be the size of a typical grocery bag and collapsible enough to fit in a pocket comfortably. For me, I just use plastic grocery bags. Be sure to inspect the bags for holes before you go to the estate sale! I too learned this the hard way.
*Newspaper to wrap breakables in or to wrap around pointed objects so they don’t damage your vehicle during transport.
5. Know Your Measurements and Bring the Tape Measure!
Are you looking to purchase a larger piece?
Take the time to measure out the space you’d like to place it BEFORE you go to the estate. sale.
Measure the available space of the vehicle in which you’ll be transporting the piece in.
Once you’re with the item you want, measure it out. Will the item fit in the intended space and the vehicle it’s going to be transported with?
6. Bring hand sanitizer and gloves.
Let’s face it: you have no idea who or what has touched those items before you. Dust, grime, old perfumes, mold, and even fungus may be lurking on items at an estate sale. Bring a pair of gloves and a pocket sanitizer just in case. You may find yourself needing to get gunk off your hands!
I’ve been going to estate sales for over two decades and absolutely love them! Over the years I’ve learned quite lessons from first-hand experiences. Being prepared for what is to come at an estate sale will help you enjoy all the sale has to offer. I hope these pointers I’ve listed above will help you prepare for your next estate sale.
Be sure to check out my second installment of “The Ultimate Guide to Estate Sales: Navigating an Estate Sale”!
Happy Hunting!
Cassandra