no more storage unit, not a question

[keziak]

I've gotten a lot of advice here over the years about sitting on stockpiles of unlisted material. I still have some left but I  just emptied my storage unit. First time since Covid that I no longer have one. On some level I feel nervous about not having one but I know that the last thing I need is to add to the piles. I no longer push myself to do this work overtime. I make enough to keep money in my bank account for what I want to buy and that's good enough. I'm  63 and want to spend a lot of my time reading and on arts & crafts.

[chapeau-noir]

Theoretically I could rent a small unit at the facility that just opened a few minutes away and store listed lots in there with regular rotations out.

DON'T DO IT!

You're a lot younger than I am, and I can tell you - other things in life await. 

[nh_sales_lv]

I've got a 2nd story storage unit and i get to know my neighbors fairly well. There was one in particular that had big curtains at the back of his unit and one day i stopped by to talk to him and the curtains were slightly open. I saw a twin bed in the back behind the curtains. This was like a year ago.

Well last month the 2nd floor started to smell like the stench of death. Like a carcass. The smell getting progressively stronger each and every day. It got so bad i started using my Laboratory PPE to enter and exit the building.

Coincidentally I haven't seen my neighbor in about a month. 

[lakefor94]

Way to go @keziak 

Congratulations are in order.

[keziak]

That's right, traditionally January is good for books. I had my last "harrah" for the foreseeable future in getting in "single title" books which I will get listed this week. Then it's working on the boxes of stuff to lot up.  I used to be able to move "lots" via auction but it's tough these days so I'm not sure of the game plan.

[keziak]

I don't know what to do about the "lots" that don't sell  in a week or two via auction. I have to list the stuff and then what. That is my main problem at this time. I've already gone through the boxes and tossed or donated a lot. I have saleable stuff but the current difficulty in selling via auction is a problem. I wish I had a climate controlled garage or something but then where would I put the car?  ; - )

[ryry-jj]

I think the ability to get rid of things that no longer have a purpose for you is important.  I didn't say, no longer have a value($)...but a purpose.  Once you can do that, you can be at peace 🙂

[tobaccocardyahoo]

Many of us who sell antiques and collectibles and even media are in the business as an excuse to buy. Selling is a necessary evil.

My primary residence has only two areas which contain inventory and the public areas and our bedroom are merchandise free.

I do not have a storage unit, but I have another 6 bedroom house, with a three story garage which has a huge amount of inventory which is not for sale anywhere. That home no longer serves any recreational purpose and this is the first winter that it will not be heated.

The house cannot be sold unless we can empty it.

My auctioneer friend who ran auctions every Saturday night for 30 years runs occasional online auction. I used to be able to count on him to send a box truck, and a van, fill them and send me checks for months based on sales. We he still doing business as he did, my house would be empty and the stuff in his warehouse. He no longer owns the warehouse or his auction hall.

[keziak]

That is an interesting remark. I kind of like the stuff I lot up. I don't source it unless it find it interesting on some level. It's fun when it sells. So that's a purpose. The main problem is turn over and storage. My peace-o-meter is at a better setting since some brutal culling when emptying the unit. I may just have to do what hubby suggests, give the stuff 1-3 shots at an auction then dump what doesn't sell. Very little long-term storage.

[gloryglorygifts]

Enjoy your reading & arts & crafts! I really need to get back into my painting. I haven't done it since early Spring tho there are a few pictures I have in mind that I want to start painting.

No time like the present, right?

[sin-n-dex]

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@keziak wrote:

I've gotten a lot of advice here over the years about sitting on stockpiles of unlisted material. I still have some left but I  just emptied my storage unit. First time since Covid that I no longer have one. On some level I feel nervous about not having one but I know that the last thing I need is to add to the piles. I no longer push myself to do this work overtime. I make enough to keep money in my bank account for what I want to buy and that's good enough. I'm  63 and want to spend a lot of my time reading and on arts & crafts.

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That's a big step, you'll save a lot of money in the long run without that expense. I've been trying to cut back on expenses here too. You'll have to work through what you have in your house to get inventory down to a reasonable level to manage. I recently purged a bunch of stuff from my store and returned it to the shop (that I'm selling the items for) and it was a relieve to be packing up boxes of stuff I no longer wanted to sell to make room for new items.

Of course after I purged and spent some time organizing, I went right back out to obtain new stuff.

C.

[onefootflipper]

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@keziak wrote:

I've gotten a lot of advice here over the years about sitting on stockpiles of unlisted material. I still have some left but I  just emptied my storage unit. First time since Covid that I no longer have one. On some level I feel nervous about not having one but I know that the last thing I need is to add to the piles. I no longer push myself to do this work overtime. I make enough to keep money in my bank account for what I want to buy and that's good enough. I'm  63 and want to spend a lot of my time reading and on arts & crafts.

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Congratulations. 

I have always been of the opinion that off site storage should only be for that once of a lifetime (or once every 5 years) bulk buy that you just cannot pass up. Not for general unlisted merchandise. If I sold all 2000 of my real items tomorrow and emptied my basement completely I could fill the entire thing again in under a month. I don't need a monthly payment to keep extra death pile around.

Not to mention the fact that unlisted inventory sitting in storage can flip from sellable to unsellable all while it is sitting unlisted in that storage unit.  Oops, fad is over or market is flooded, item recalled, etc.

[lovincloud9]

Alot of people have actually asked me how to keep from being a hoarder since I've started selling on ebay and I dont know if anyone cares about this advice but if my items dont sale in a certain amount of time I put them in a garage sale to make my money back! I have 2 or 3 small garage sales per year. Just a little advice for yall if that helps. 

[keziak]

A few years ago I told myself to stop waiting u ntil I retire to do something besides work. Before then besides raising kids all I did was work. Now I read lots of books for one thing. I am playing with various kinds of art, taking classes at the library, etc. I do a lot of embroidery. Well this is off topic but I agree,  NOW is the time.

[keziak]

I found good stuff in the unit sitting around doing nothing for me. But also a lot that I knew I would never do anything with or which has not worked out like I'd hoped.  that was disappointing but at least now I don't have to pay rent to hang onto it. 

[anjofak]

Have seen inside our packed 8x20 since mid summer no idea what's in it, these last time we bought units in that city we used a semi trailer...hmmm