How Much Time is Needed?

Published: Sunday, 28 April 2013

One question that I frequently get about estate sales is how much time is necessary before the sale can be held?

I’ve had people call on a Wednesday who needed a sale that Friday. I’ve also had clients call months and months in advance.  The latter is definitely preferable.

There is no hard and fast rule about how much time is needed. A lot depends on the size of the house, the amount of the clutter, the cleanliness and whether the items that will not be in the sale have been removed from the house.

Our preference is to have at least 2 full weeks in the house once the items that are not part of the sale have been removed. The first week is used for the set up and sorting, cleaning the items, displaying them and beginning to research the prices. Once the sale has been “staged” the photographs are taken and the advertising begins. The final step is to put prices on the items. Estate sale shoppers today want to see photographs, and we prefer not to show prices prior to opening the sale to the public. This two-week procedure allows enough time to properly advertise.

Another consideration when trying to plan your estate sale is our schedule. The further out you can plan, the more likely we’ll be able to get your sale on our calendar.

Give me a call if there is an estate or moving sale in your future.