Blog Archives

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My first time

Well not mine …. But I was lucky enough to take a friend of mine to his very first garage sale a week ago. It was an amazing experience.

My friend would never have gone to a garage sale if he wasn’t filming me for a TV segment. Typically, camera men don’t play a role in the footage they’re shooting, but instead just record it for others to watch. And while his experience will probably never be shown, it definitely made the trip for me.

We were in the Park Hill neighborhood of Denver, and there was a community-wide garage sale going on. Multiple houses had filled up their lawns and tables with bargain items. For me, it was my happy place, but for my friend, not quite. He never understood the appeal of a garage sale and was a bit overwhelmed by the assortment of items.

Throughout the morning we went from garage sale to garage sale, combing through items in search of hidden treasures. I wasn’t having much luck finding a good bargain buy, but then we came to a sale that changed my friend’s image of garage sales.

He was setting up  his camera for a shot when he happened to look down. Out of nowhere, he screamed out like a little girl “I found one! I can’t believe I found one!” It was the moment of all moments; when a person catches the garage sale bug. My friend was referring to a mandolin slicer. It was brand new, still in the box, and was sitting amongst an array of kitchen gadgets. He scooped it up and charged right over to the woman in charge.

Without asking for any advice, he asked the woman how much it was and proceed to hand over the $7 she requested before I could say a word. He then proudly smiled at me, his newly purchased item in hand. I looked straight at him and calmly said “You know you’re with the garage sale millionaire, right? Did you even think to ask me for advice? You probably could have saved a few dollars, if not at least some advice on negotiating.”

He didn’t even seemed phased by my question. He was simply so excited to have found a brand new mandolin for a mere fraction of the retail price. “Now I know what my wife and I will be doing every weekend from now on,” he said.

At that point I wasn’t sure if I should call up his wife to apologize or to congratulate her on a newest. Either way, when you finally find that one item you’ve been searching for, it just doesn’t get any better.

Good luck, and happy hunting!

-Aaron

 

To learn more about Aaron LaPedis, visit www.thegaragesalemillionaire.com or contact him at thegaragesalemillionaire@gmail.com.

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Tag, you’re it

I went garage sale shopping last week, and as I was looking around at my fellow buyers, scrambling and rushing about, I realized that I had the best tool possible at my disposal; I was using the Tag Sell It app. I always mention using your smart phone to research items on the spot, but I don’t typically mention one of the most valuable things it can do for you: it can tell you where the good deals are. The Tag Sell It app can assist you with a great number of things, but one of my favorite features is the sale search tool. You can actually map out the sales in your area and plan your garage sale route the day before, saving you valuable time. While everyone else is driving around with a newspaper and a map, or worse yet, driving around randomly, hoping to spot an garage sale sign, you’ll be zipping along, snatching up the best deals before everyone else even know about the sale.

I like to plan out my route the night before so that I’m all ready to go in the morning. I have everything ready to leave my house at about 7am, so that I can be at the first sale right when it opens. Most of the great items will be gone by 11am, so you need to plan out where you want to go first.

How do I decide which sale to visit first? Again, I turn to the app. You can check the sale listings to see what types of items will be at the sale and decide which ones sound the most promising. Hit those locations first, saving the more ambiguous sales for later in the morning.

Do keep in mind, however, that you can always swing by a sale around 3pm or so to pick up any items you’ve had second thoughts about. Odds are, if they’re still available, you’ll be able to get them at a much lower price. You might even get lucky enough to snag the items for free.

So my best advice to all you garage sale junkies is to save yourself some time and effort. Use the Tag Sell It app to plan your day, and have fun the next time you head out!

Good luck, and happy hunting!

-Aaron

To learn more about Aaron LaPedis, visit www.thegaragesalemillionaire.com or contact him at thegaragesalemillionaire@gmail.com.

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Goodwill is good money

This weekend I had an out of state film crew in wanting to film me doing what I do. This meant that they wanted to follow me to garage sales, estate sales, auctions and anywhere else I’m able to make money buying and selling. For all of you buyers and sellers out there, I’m sure you can guess that having a film crew watching everything you do and say adds a lot of pressure to the situation. You can’t always guarantee that you’ll find a great item on demand. Needless to say, I was extra observant everywhere I went.

On Friday, I decided to try out my local Goodwill store, living garage sales for later in the weekend. I don’t visit Goodwill as often as I should, so I’m not in the loop on new shipments and items like I am at other locations; essentially, I was walking in without any idea of what I might (or might not) find.

I took my time, looking through each of the isles, scanning over everything. When I reached the art and frame section, I saw my big break. Low and behold, they had a beautiful piece of original artwork. I wasn’t familiar with the piece, but it looked like it could be worth something, so I busted out my smart phone. I did a quick search of the signature in the corner and realized that it was definitely worth a more than the $40 sticker price. I wasn’t sure yet how much it would be worth, but I knew it was definitely going to be a gem.

I took my find home with me and immediately did a more thorough internet search of the artist “K.S. Ringi.” I soon learned that the artist in question was a Swedish artist named Kjell Sorensen-Ringi, who passed away in 2010. His unique painting style appears to be more difficult to come by, but based on the pieces I did find, I would have to say that given the size and condition of the piece I purchased, the value could fall anywhere between $500 and $900. Even with the cameras rolling, I was able to find a $40 purchase worth over $500. Not bad for a high pressure situation!

 

This just goes to show that even though the economy has improved slightly, this doesn’t mean there aren’t deals to be found. I will say, however, that if you want to find great deals, you need to make your visits a regular habit. If you like garage sales, you need to go garage-saling on a regular basis. If you like pawn stores, you need to visit your favorites regularly; the same goes for flea markets and auctions. I may have gotten lucky on this trip, but you really can’t visit these spots just once a month and expect to stumble upon something every time you go.

So get out in the beautiful sunshine and hit those sales!

Good luck, and happy hunting!

-Aaron

To learn more about Aaron LaPedis, visit www.thegaragesalemillionaire.com or contact him at thegaragesalemillionaire@gmail.com.

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Don’t be “that guy”

As many of you may know, I own a well known art gallery, Fascination St. Fine Art, in Denver, Colorado. The story I’d like to share is from an experience I had dealing with a buyer at the gallery. I want to share this story because I think it demonstrates a really important situation that all buyers should be aware of; especially when you’re out there trying to be the Donald Trump of wheelers and dealers.

About two weeks ago, this person, we’ll call him Steve, called one of my staff members inquiring about a few artworks by one of our artists, Charles Fazzino. We spent a great deal of time explaining options and combinations and after over a week of negotiating, we finally reached an agreement. Steve paid for the artwork and all appeared to be fine.

The next day, however, Steve called us claiming that he had received a better offer from another gallery. Essentially he wanted us to compete for the sale even though he had already paid. Negotiating between galleries does happen in the art world, but it needs to be done during the beginning stages of an art deal, not after it’s completed. In addition to this mistake, it turned out that Steve was actually lying about the other offer he had received. He was trying to play our gallery off of the other - hoping that one of us would actually beat his “made up” price offer. I quickly realized his game, and after all of his dirty dealing, I decided that it wasn’t worth the hassle of his dishonesty. I told him I would cancel his deal so he could take the supposedly lower offer he had received.

This is one of the artworks that Steve was trying to wheel and deal.

After I told him I would cancel his deal, Steve called back to say he wanted to give me another chance to offer him a lower price. It turns out that the other gallery wasn’t willing to match my offer, but as I said, at this point I wasn’t interested in working with him anymore. Now Steve has two galleries that dislike him as a client, and instead of getting a good deal on artwork, he’s paying for his greed with a more expensive deal through the other gallery.

 

In the end, there are a number of things you can learn from Steve’s mistakes:

1. It’s never a good deal unless you make the deal happen. What I mean by that is, when you walk away from a deal over a few dollars, you wind up the loser. There are too many occasions when people feel that they have to get the absolute best deal ever or else they won’t do it. Even though they could still make a great deal of money off an item, they weren’t willing to buy unless they felt as though they had practically stolen the item from the seller.

2. When you’re conducting a deal with someone, keep in mind that you’re starting a relationship with that person. If you’re doing the buying, there’s no reason to not make the seller feel good about the deal. You want to respect them as a seller because he could have other items that you’re looking for. He could also be a future resource for information on things you collect. If you’re able to complete a deal in which both parties are happy, it will benefit both of you in the moment and in the future.

3. Steve did not actually read the invoice or credit card receipt that was sent to him from the gallery. If he had, he would know that the gallery does not offer cash refunds after 48 hours. We do this to protect ourselves in instances just like this one. We had to order the artwork Steve wanted, and if we aren’t able to cancel the order in time, we are still on the hook for buying the artwork whether Steve wants it or not. So now Steve is legally on the hook. Typically we would offer him a gallery credit for the return; however, I don’t actually want to deal with Steve again, so I’m going to give him a refund, minus the costs of running his credit card. While he could be on the hook for a lot more, he’s still going to be losing money in the end.

4. When you’re doing a deal, whether at a garage sale, estate sale, gallery or antique store – know it is a small world, and people talk. Trying to dishonestly pit other establishments against each other is never a good idea. You never know who knows whom, like in this story. We know almost all of the galleries carrying Fazzino artwork, and we know how to get in touch with them to find out the truth of the situation. As I said earlier, when you’re negotiating on an item that you really want, it is always possible for everyone to feel like they’ve won. Don’t be a Steve and ruin the deal, but instead, be you, and complete an honest and beneficial deal.

 

Good luck, and happy hunting!

-Aaron

To learn more about Aaron LaPedis, visit www.thegaragesalemillionaire.com or contact him at thegaragesalemillionaire@gmail.com.

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There’s nothing wrong with making a deal fun

About a week ago I stopped in at a local gun show – before I go any further, I want to throw out a quick disclaimer due to the current sensitivity surrounding guns and gun regulation. I went to the show looking for antique guns – the kinds that are meant to be displayed, not used. I mainly collect pieces from the 1800s or earlier, almost all of which black powder muzzle loaders. While gun shows aren’t exactly known for carrying these types of guns, I almost always find one or two booths that sell strictly antique weaponry, ie swords, guns and rifles dating back 100 to 200 years. In my opinion, these weapons played a huge role in our history, and I find them to be a fascinating historic collectible.

Continuing on to the real reason I wanted to share this story: how I was able to score a fantastic deal.

I found a booth with two beautiful vintage hand guns. I would have liked to own both, but really had my eyes set on the British VR Tower Pistol. The piece was from the early 1800s and I knew I had to have it; however, I knew I wasn’t willing to pay the asking price. So, as always, I started to negotiate with the seller. I asked for the best deal he could do and immediately said it was too high. He came back, asking what I was looking to pay and quickly stated that my price was too low. I could tell he wanted to sell the gun, but wasn’t going to let it go easily; and I certainly wanted the gun, but wasn’t willing to rise to his price.

So the guy gives me a look and says, “Son, are you a betting man?” I have been known to lay a wager from time to time, so I asked what he had in mind.

“You want this pistol for $375, but I don’t want to sell it for less than $475. How about we flip for it? I’ve got a silver dollar in my pocket, and I’d even let you call it. If you call right, you get it for your price. You call it wrong, you pay mine. Or we skip the coin toss all together, and I’ll give you the pistol right now for $425. If you decide to flip for it, there’s no backing out once it’s in the air.”

I thought about it for a minute or two and decide that I really wanted the pistol and thought it was worth the risk. So the man flipped the coin, and I called “heads.” We gathered around as the coin fell to the ground.

At this point we had attracted a bit of a crowd, and a little kid scrambled to the coin and yelled “It’s heads!” The crowd got excited and congratulated me on my win. I had won the gun for the price I had wanted.

I certainly don’t recommend this approach for every purchase – or even for any purchase – but I will tell you that this sale will definitely stay in my mind and I can bet it will stay with the seller as well. What’s even better, after our friendly interaction, the man and I developed a mutual respect for each other, and I can guarantee he will let me know when he gets a piece of interest in the future. We both enjoyed the transaction, and developing a relationship with both buyers and sellers is one of the most important components of being successful in this business. You never know when a seller might get in a hot ticket item you’ve been dying to get your hands on, and you definitely want to be the first person they call. On the flip side, you want have a list of buyers you can call when their favorite items wind up in your collection. No matter what side you’re working on, it’s always good to know that the last deal you completed was finished with a smile and handshake.

Good luck, and happy hunting!

-Aaron

To learn more about Aaron LaPedis, visit www.thegaragesalemillionaire.com or contact him at thegaragesalemillionaire@gmail.com.

 

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Flea Market Finds

We’ve got a great group of fans on our Facebook Page who regularly submit photos of their favorite Flea Market finds from that week. Here’s a gallery of photos we wanted to share:

Want to know what these items are and what kind of bargains our fans scored on these treasures? “Like” us on Facebook and come join the fun!

Which finds do you like best?

 

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Sometimes the best deal is right in front of you

A lot of people believe that in order to find a great deal they need to wake up at 6am to beat the crowds at their local garage sale. While this is true in terms of finding great second hand items, you might consider your local brick and mortar stores for a great deal as well. A lot of buyers don’t understand that their local antique, art or second hand stores can also be a treasure trove of amazing finds.

You might walk into a local art gallery and believe that even though you love a piece – or you would love to resell it – it’s priced far too high for your budget. Just because you’re in an actual store, this does not mean you can’t negotiate. Take it from a pro: you can negotiate just about anywhere.

I own a fine art gallery and I always tell my clients that if they see a piece elsewhere, no matter the price, come to my store and give me the opportunity to match it. I might not always be able to do so, but I will certainly try my best. If the client can’t afford a piece in my gallery, I ask them to make me an offer. It can never hurt to ask so long as you’re respectful.

We are in tough economic times and your local store owners want your business. It’s great to have stores in your area that sell things you want and need, so before you pass them up, give them a chance. With the internet there’s a chance you could get taken and at a garage sale you’re buying products that might not be in the best of shape; but when you buy from a physical store you’ll always know what you’re getting. Take time to walk through the stores in your area and give the owner an opportunity to earn your business. You might be pleasantly surprised by the outcome.

Good luck and happy hunting!

- Aaron

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Being more tech savvy than your three-year-old

Have you ever felt that you’re behind the times in technology? I certainly do every time I see my three-year-old play with my wife’s iPad. He understands how to download new apps and play games…he uses it like he was born with it – which is more than I can say for myself!

There is a lot of technology available that can help a garage sale junky in their quest for the next best find. The trick is knowing how to use it.

Have you ever seen someone pull out their smart phone and wave it across a book or some other boxed item? They’re most likely using a smart phone app that reads the barcodes. A number of these apps can tell you what that particlar item is selling for on either eBay, Amazon or a range of other competitive websites.

This is a fantastic way to decide if it’s cheaper to buy the item online. It can also help a shopper decide if they can turn around and re-sell the item for a significant profit. Smartphone Apps prevent you from having to be an expert on every single item you come across. All you need is to be an expert on the up and coming technology.

So the next time you go to a garage sale, take a minute to download one of the many free barcode scanner apps and you too can be a high tech garage sale millionaire that’s grasped the technology of the 21st century.

Good luck and happy hunting!

- Aaron

 

To learn more about Aaron LaPedis, visit www.thegaragesalemillionaire.com or contact him at thegaragesalemillionaire@gmail.com.

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Dress Down for Success

Do you strategically plan your outfit before heading to a garage sale? If not, you could be hurting your bottom line.

Negotiating can be tricky for beginners. It may look easy, but it’s much more than throwing out a number and adjusting based on the response. There are strategies and tricks that involve all sorts of factors; one of which is what you’re wearing.

It may seem unfair, but I’ll be the first one to tell you that what you’re wearing matters. If you want to come from a position of strength, you need to dress as though you don’t have money. This means you need to leave your Rolex, your diamonds and your fancy handbag at home. When you show up at a garage sale, estate sale, or even an antique store, you need to look as though you don’t have much money to spend.

As a seller, I’ll admit that I look my buyer up and down before giving a counteroffer. If I think he or she can afford to pay more than they’re offering, I won’t accept. On the flip side, if he or she looks to be of modest means, I’m more likely to negotiate a lower price (it also helps to be nice and personable).

I would also recommend being aware of what car you choose to take to on your garage sale adventure. If you have a nice car, park it a safe distance from your destination. A good sales person will always sneak a peak at your vehicle if they have the chance. A fancy car could hurt your negotiations just as much a Gucci bag.

This may not seem particularly fair, but it’s the way negotiations work. So do yourself a favor, leave the bling at home and you’ll be positioned to negotiate like a pro.

Good luck on your garage sale millionaire quest!

Happy hunting!

-Aaron

 

To learn more about Aaron LaPedis, visit www.thegaragesalemillionaire.com or contact him at thegaragesalemillionaire@gmail.com.

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The early bird doesn’t always get the worm

When discussing garage sales, everyone seems to say things like “Go early.” “Show up before they’re set up.” “Be there before the sun rises.” “If you hear roosters crowing, you’re too late,” …get the idea? We tend to assume that earlier is better. In terms of getting first crack at the best items, this is definitely the truth, but there is definitely an advantage in arriving late.

When it comes down to the eleventh hour of a garage sale, most people just want things gone. If it’s left behind, they have to either pack it up and donate it, or put it back in their house. Either way, it’s a lot of work that most people would prefer to avoid. That’s why sellers tend to start grouping items and lowering prices at the end of their sale. At this point, you can comfortably offer the seller one tenth of what you would have offered at the start. If you show up in the last hour of a sale, I guarantee that you’ll get a better deal than you could have imagined.

So when you head out on your next garage sale adventure, be sure to swing back by your favorite spots at about 3 or 4pm when things are winding down. There may not be a lot of awesome items you’d want to take home and keep, but if you want to be a garage sale millionaire, you have to keep in mind that it isn’t about keeping things. It’s about reselling them. You need to find something you can easly flip for twice what you paid. If you keep this in mind and your smart phone – or other price checking guide - in hand, you should have some serious success. Good luck, and let me know how it goes!

Happy hunting!

Aaron