Search
Related Links




    

Informative Articles

What You Can Learn From Competing Ebay Auctions.
If you've a savvy businessperson, the chances are you've already taken a look at your competitors' auctions. What you might not have realised is just how much you can learn if you know what you're looking for. To begin with, don't bother...

Storing your categories when looking for ebay auctions in the future
Currently, each month there are over 14 million people whom are looking for ebay auctions online in order to purchase goods and services without having to leave the comfort of their own home. If you are one of those shoppers looking for ebay...

Top 2 Ways to Learn About Car Auctions
If this doesn't get you excited, than nothing will! Car auctions are a fantastic way to save money on a car. There are a lot of ways to save money on a car that don't include insurance fraud or outright theft. Buying a new car can certainly seem...

How to Make a Full time Income With Ebay Online Auctions
First let me tell you a little about myself. I'm an eBay Powerseller. I did about $100,000.00 in sales on eBay over the last year. I love eBay, and I regularly preach the virtues of eBay to my friends and family. I even gave out eBay...

Your First Car Auction
You are about to go to your first car auction. You can feel the excitement in the air. There are so many cars to choose from. But do you really know what to expect at a car auction? Do you know the legalities that occur at a car auction? ...

 
Secrets of My Favorite Government Auction

I love bargains. And there’s no better place to find bargains than an auction. And there are no better auctions than government surplus auctions. My favorite government surplus auction takes place the 3rd week of September every year in the County Park. I won’t tell you which county park as this is my best-kept secret! Even though the auction is advertised in the local papers (as required my law), I usually find the same 20-30 people mulling around, looking at all the lots. And many of them I know are not high-bidders!

This annual auction is the county-wide surplus auction. You will find everything and anything here as the county has various and departments. They have the typical office equipment and furniture, cars, trucks, law equipment, etc. But some more unusual things that have been auctioned off have been things like a street sign maker (for making stop signs and the like), a row of metal lockers (from the old county pool), playground equipment, 5000 plastic cafeteria trays (that sold for $8!), a stainless steel chef’s cart, a chrome torpedo trash can, and a fully operational dump truck that went for several hundred dollars.

Since I have been attending for many years, I know what to expect and I know how much to pay. For example, they typically have a dozen retro office chairs that sell very well on ebay. The opening bid on the chairs is usually $5.00 each. However, by not bidding, I can usually wait (and luckily no one else knows what a gold mine these chairs are…they just look like dirty old chairs!), and the auctioneer will lower the opening bid to $3.00, then $2.00, then $1.00, then fifty cents! Still, I am patient and wait as he throws in two or three more chairs for fifty cents! My last trip to the


auction, I netted seven chairs for $4.00! I turned around and sold them for $25.00 each!

This is just one of the examples of the deals that I have found at the County Auction. The secret to my success is three-fold:

1.I know what is “hot” in the market by browsing ebay, watching HGTV, and flipping through home magazines.
2.I know what the going retail prices are and keep these in mind when I am bidding. I usually arrive at the auction early with a notebook and check out all the lots that will be auctioned. I jot down the lots numbers and the highest price I am willing to pay for that lot.
3.When the bidding starts, I wait for someone else to start the bidding. I place myself so I can “read” how badly they want the item. I will wait to place my bid. I never get caught-up in the bidding. And I always bow out at my high price that I wrote in my notebook. This way I can avoid buyer’s remorse!

Using these tactics, I have successfully won many items at the local auction and have made a huge profit reselling these items. If you use these techniques, you will also be successful at your local auction. I just hope you never find my gem of an auction, and never bid against me!

* * * * * * * *

More of my writings can be found on my blog at http://www.novosat.us/wp.

About the Author
Dean Novosat regularly attends local government auctions and participates online. Much of what he wins, he resells. He has several informative websites including http://www.buy-sell-gov-surplus.com and http://www.government-deals.com .