Should I hire a professional estate sale company? 8 reasons you should.

By Aaron Siepierski

Hire an estate sale company or do it yourself?

Losing a loved one is hard by itself but when you are faced with dozens of decisions to be made quickly getting overwhelmed is pretty easy. One of the most overwhelming can be the handling of the estate household itself. Families often find themselves needing to sell the contents of a house so it can be sold or passed on to a family member. In Michigan this is usually done through an Estate Sale or even an auction.

When faced with what to do with a loved one’s estate the questions I hear most are:

What is the best way to go about it? & Do we hire a professional, or do we do it ourselves?
The choice is ultimately up to you and your family. But with all the emotions surrounding loss of a loved one I don’t personally believe worrying about how to ensure their belongings are handled with dignity and respect should be one of them. I compiled this list of 8 reasons I think you should hire a professional estate sale company to help you decide. It would also make a good checklist to choose which company to hire if you do decide that is the best choice.

1- You will have less Stress –This is the #1 Reason because I know how much goes into doing an Estate Sale and I guarantee the stress it will bring you and your family if you do it yourself will be far more than you imagined. A truly professional estate sale company can ease your burden and give you peace of mind when you need it most.

2- You don’t really have the know-how –Think about it. How many estate sales have you done? Even if you added “yard sales or garage sales” (which are a far cry from a professionally run Estate Sale) I am sure the number is between zero and two. Our estate sale company has done hundreds.

WHEN YOU HIRE AN EXPERT TO DO YOUR ESTATE SALE ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT REASONS IS THEY HAVE KNOWLEDGE YOU DON’T HAVE.

You hire a professional estate sale company for the same reason you hired an attorney to help through the probate process – They know what they’re doing.
A reputable estate sales company will have a vast knowledge of antiques, vintage, collectibles and newer household furniture and products. This knowledge determines the results of your sale.

EVERY HOME AND ESTATE IS DIFFERENT.

3- Organizing an estate sale can be a nightmare –A professional estate sale company will have their own supplies like tables, display cases, pricing tools, cash registers, etc. We bring all these to every estate sale we do.

SETTING UP A PROFESSIONAL LOOKING ESTATE SALE IS VERY IMPORTANT.

It takes experience to rapidly sort through the estate items, decide what is salable, how to price for high sales and profit, how to display and present the home. Doing it on your own is emotionally and physically exhausting. A good estate sale company will have the expertise to make a welcoming atmosphere and attractive displays that honor the home and produce high sales. It has been our experience that the more care put into these pre-sale set ups, displays and merchandising ensures your estate sale items get the best prices possible.

4- Saves you time –Setting up for an estate sale and sorting through household contents acquired in a lifetime is a daunting task. Just think about the last time you moved. I bet you told yourself it would be the last time. Now add the emotions involved.We have held sales in 4000+ SF homes and sorted and set up 60 years of collectibles in just a few days. What would take you weeks or longer, an estate sale expert can do in hours. Sorting treasure from trash is something we have done many times. A professional estate sale company should be able to set up most households in just a few days and make it look great.

5- Customers!!! –Aaron’s Estate Sales, LLC has a large following. We routinely have 500 to 1000 people at our two-day sales. We aggressively promote your Estate sale online including EstateSales.net, EstateSales.com and locally through craigslist.com and our growing Facebook fan base. Our Estate Sales Email notifications are sent to more than 2500 local buyers the week of the sale.

6- Bartering and Negotiating –People come to estate sales to get a good deal, but that doesn’t mean giving things away for less than you should. A professional Estate Sale company, like Aaron’s Estate Sales, can help. We price items so AFTER bartering you will still get the best price for your valuables. On top of that WE deal with the stress of haggling from customers, not you…that alone is priceless to most people.

7- Accounting – We offer cash register print out at the end of the sale and in most cases we will give a list of items sold and their price. This is good for accounting and probate purposes.

8- Clean Up –During an estate sale there is a lot of activity and people are “shopping” which can create quite a bit of chaos. Not quite as bad as a retail store during the holidays, but close. Our staff is continually keeping up displays, but even so when the sale is done there will be unsold items all over the house. We offer different options for clean outs from basic clean up to leaving the house broom swept and empty of all remaining contents. Every situation is different. We can also assist with having your home professionally cleaned or painted if you’re selling it. Tell us what you need and we can help you.