WOW!! I had a GREAT morning!

[Thumper]

I went to an estate sale this morning and I think I did pretty well. I'm tellin' ya', I came home with a literal truckload of stuff. Nothing too terribly exciting, but a bunch of stuff I can make some good money on.

I picked up some decent cast iron .... a Griswold 9" skillet, a Gris 10" skillet and a Gris #9 large logo griddle for $5 apiece!

I dragged home 3 old license plates ... one is a 1956 California plate and in nice shape, they'll bring $300. I also picked up a 1956 Florida plate as well as a 1949 Illinois plate. Again, $5 each. My SEAL buddy in California is in the business of restoring these things and can make 'em look like brand new. I'm sure a restoration on the California plate would be an excellent idea, I think I'd leave the Florida and Illinois plates original.

Oh, how 'bout this one! I was digging through a pile of junk in a backyard shed and dragged out two plastic totes full of Jadeite D-handle coffee mugs. They look brand new with no chips or scratches. These things will go for $25 each and I bought them for $1.50 each. Get this, I pulled them out to get an accurate count so I could pay for them and there are 58 of 'em!! ;)

I paid $25 for a box of old razors ... I counted 18 of them, many still had their cases. I haven't even dug through them yet, but one really stood out ... a gold Aristocrat ... it can bring $150, so the others are just gravy!

I picked up an old brass desk lamp with cast iron base for $1 ... it'll bring $50-$75!

Heck, I just finished dragging the stuff in the house and haven't even unloaded it yet, so I'm going by memory. I wasn't really exaggerating much when I said I bought a truck load ... I spent $285 and you can tell by the prices quoted above, that's a LOT of stuff!

Heck, I just realized today is Thursday ... I have 3 more sales to hit tomorrow!

Man-o-man! I love my "job"! :D

[Thumper]

Well DAYUM!! I dumped out that old box of razors and just THOUGHT the Aristocrat was the biggie in the bunch. I just dug out THREE Schick Paul Revere's! Those puppies bring $90 - $100 each! Cool!

I can't wait to find out what other treasures I have that I don't even know I have! (Huh?) :D

[quercus alba]

Wow, I had a sucky day. I've been ripping up carpet in a building with no air conditioning. The carpet had been laid then offices built on top of it.

Glad you hit the mother lode Jimbo. Hope you make enough to get that sex change, I mean full body transplant you've been wanting

:fine

[Arty]

You are my hero and I mean that.
Maybe it's the area, but there ain't no estate sales around here. Must be a lot more old peoples in Florida. :)

[Thumper]

What'chu talkin' 'bout Willis? People die everywhere. (that sounds kinda sick, I know ... but you get used to the idea with time)

Arty, I hit these things every weekend I'm home. If you just want to drop in one day and check one out, you "could" be disappointed. It's like deer hunting. You normally can't simply walk out into the woods and shoot a 10-point buck, then be back home for lunch. You may shoot a few small does in the process, but if you hunt hard and often, you'll most likely score big, sooner or later. You also need to attend regularly to get to know the sellers (estate sale companies). There are some I don't even bother with unless I don't have anything else going on, because I know they're always too high-priced for me to purchase and sell at a decent profit. Now, if I'm looking for something for myself (to keep), that may not be a problem because it could still be a deal. Then again, they're sometimes even so high, you may as well spend a couple more bucks and buy new. Then there are those who have "good" prices where they make their money, but there's still enough room for me to make a buck. Of course, there are also those who are dirt cheap as their main goal is to empty the house asap so it can be sold. Again, just like hunting ... you need to learn the "lay of the land" so to speak. Another benefit of being a "regular" is to let the sellers get to know YOU. Down the road, once they know you, they'll be willing to deal and give you opportunities others may not get ... basically an unofficial "regular customer discount". You also need to learn the seller's habits ... I know one seller who will let me in as soon as he shows up to the house. The sale may start at 9:00 am, but I'm in there at 7:30 looking around. (this is NOT particularly a good thing as a starting time should be a legitimate starting time) Others don't even empty drawers and cabinets .. it's like a real treasure hunt (my personal favorite). These won't even have prices attached, just dig out what you want and negotiate a price. Others have EVERYTHING neatly displayed on tables with price tags on everything.

Here ya' go ...

https://www.estatesales.net/VA/Norfolk-Virginia-Beach-Newport-News

Now, on this site, don't overlook the listings at the bottom of the page. (many of these come from Craig's List, etc, so read the note at the bottom of this post)

http://estatesales.org/virginia-beach-virginia-estate-sales

Here is another one .... (enter your zipcode)

http://www.estatesale.com/sales/advanceSearch

You can also check out Craig's List under "Garage Sales". Many individuals will list their estate sales there to sell off their dear old Aunties belongings. Note: People on Craig's List are notorious for listing an "estate sale" and when you get there, it's nothing but a yard sale (plus they seldom have pictures, so it's a gamble). I usually avoid most of those unless they put details in the ad such as: "Grandma just passed on, so we are clearing out her belongings to prepare the house for sale." (or something similar) I always get a kick out of listings like, "Huge 4-Family Estate Sale!!!" Ummm, did the whole neighborhood die at the same time? :confused:

Ok, now you have no excuses! :D