Last Updated on Feb 27, 2020 by James W

Working from home is a dream for many people — a chance to escape the 9-to-5 grind and take control of your own earnings potential. Storage auctions are an increasingly popular way to do that.

When people fall behind on the rent on their storage units, the contents can be auctioned off to pay the costs. You can buy the unit whole for a low price then sell off what’s inside for a profit.

Here’s what you need to know about how to make money with storage auctions and work from home:

Attend Multiple Auctions

Bidding on and winning auctions is a skill, and it will take time to get good at recognizing what units are valuable and how much to bid on them to be profitable. Start by attending multiple auctions to observe and learn what you can. Don’t bid. Just pay attention to what people bid on and why, how much they bid, and what strategies they use to win units.

Study the Unit

When you bid on storage units, you can’t go inside and inspect the contents. You have to bid based on what you can see from the door. Therefore, you have to get good at assessing the potential of the unit from clues from the inside.

Are the boxes carefully packed and stacked? Do you see brand names on the boxes or other equipment inside? Do you see vintage or antique furniture? Signs like these can indicate great value.

 

Adopt a Bidding Strategy

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Once you quickly assess the potential value of a unit, set a maximum bid on your unit and stick to it. Without a strategy, it can be easy to bid far more than you intend and far more that will be profitable in the heat of the moment. Your maximum bid should be based on how much profit you would like to make. In other words, if you would like to double your money, set your bid no higher than half what you think the unit is worth.

Choose a Good Venue to Sell

Where you try to sell your goods will have a big impact on how much potential profit you make. Potential options include online auction sites like ebay or Amazon, as well as online classified marketplaces like Craig’s list. You can also sell at a flea market, yard sale, or similar space.

Explore what options are available in your area and have a plan for how you will sell. The more prepared you are, the better your chances of maximizing your profit.

Buying storage units and selling the contents is an easy way to make money by working from home. However, like other entrepreneurial ventures, success relies on proper research and effort. Following these tips will help you to maximize your profits.

Have you experimented with purchasing storage units at auction? Share your tips for success in the comments!

 

Author Bio:

Charissa Newark is a writer and manager for Accountingdegree.net, where she has recently been researching accounting degree requirements. In her spare time, Charissa enjoys gardening and volunteering at animal shelters.

Author

Founder and chief editor of makemoneyinlife.com Blogger, Affiliate Marketer, Tech and SEO geek. Started this blog in 2011 to help others learn how to work from home, make money online or anything related to business and finances. You can contact me at makemoneyinlife@gmail.com