Blog Archives

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Time-Saving Tactics

"These Beatles LPs are a perfect bunch to group. It's much easier to list them once than to research and price them individually."

I recently purchased a large collection of Beatles memorabilia. As I was going through it, I realized I had quite a large inventory on my hands. When you buy a collection this size, you have to take the good with the bad. This collection definitely had a lot of good items, but it also had a lot of things that are worth less than $20. I’m typically of the opinion that it is not worth taking the time to list each item individually on eBay, I prefer to group like items together and sell them for one lump sum. You might make a bit less money, but it’s definitely worth the time you’ll save. You will have to take the time to group out your items in a way that makes sense for buyers, but it should take you only a fraction of the time you would have spent listing each item on its own. As you’re grouping your items, be sure and take good pictures. People will still want to know what they’re buying, so you also want to list out each item in your description. Then all you have to do is sit back and let the bidding begin!

Good luck and happy hunting!

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

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Worth its Weight in Gold

Last week, a friend of mine approached me looking to have some of her gold and silver melted down. She brought me a combination of watches and jewelry that she thought contained some level of gold or silver. She wasn’t sure of the content since most of the pieces weren’t stamped. If an item isn’t labeled, it can be difficult to tell if it truly is made of gold or silver. There is, however, an easy trick that can usually tell you if your piece is gold or silver. Hold a magnet next to the piece; if the piece is attracted to the magnet, it’s not gold or silver. The majority of precious metals are not magnetic. There is a chance that the piece is gold plated, which would still attract the magnet, but it does not have a high content of gold or silver.

Even if your jewelry is stamped, you should know that 14K gold is only 58% gold. The other 42% is a mixture of different alloys. Pure gold is 24K, but it’s very seldom used in jewelry because it’s so malleable. In order to make the piece stronger they stick with a mixture of gold and alloys like silver and copper. So even when the piece is stamped 14K, it’s not pure gold. This is a good tidbit to keep in mind when not only selling, but when buying jewelry as well.

Good luck and happy hunting!

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

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Closing a Two-Day Deal

This past weekend I re-learned a very valuable lesson. Even with all of my years of experience, I still manage to not follow my own rules, and it usually gets me into trouble. In this particular instance, I was buying a woman’s Disney collection. It was such a large collection that after going through most of the items I ran out of time and had to go home with the intention of returning another day. In my tired and lazy state, I didn’t bother to put any of our negotiations in writing before I left. I thought I had made it quite clear what i was going to buy and for what price, so I left things with just a verbal agreement.

When I returned two days later, the woman seemed to remember the deal going down very differently. Right then and there I realized that this deal was going to get complicated. We went over the things little by little until she remembered what we actually agreed upon. After going through all of the negotiations a second time, I had learned my lesson. If you can’t have the deal complete in one visit, you need to write down exactly what you’re buying, what price you’re going to pay and when you’ll be picking it up. Make two copies of your notes and have all parties involved sign it.

I understand that a lot of people like to work on a handshake alone. It’s possible you might even insult someone if you ask them to document and sign your agreement, but you have to see this not as a contract, but as a way to make sure you see eye to eye. If you want to avoid the frustration I went through, this is a simple solution. When your terms are documented, there’s no way for anyone to forget the details.

If you were curious how my situation ended, the woman agreed to complete the deal as I remembered it. I came home with boxes and boxes of Disney collectibles, and I now have the fun task of going through everything item by item and listing it in my gallery on eBay. For any of you that would like to check out everything I walked away with, feel free to follow my shop on eBay. I’m listed under celmasters (sorry for the shameless plug!).

Latex Dwarf Set: This is a set of Seiberling Latex figurines depicting each of the seven dwarfs from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. These were made in the 1930s and are extremely rare.

Olszewski Red Riding Hood: This is an Olszewski piece. It came in it’s original box.

Hinged Box Set: This is a Disney PHB hinged box set. Each box has a small trinket inside.

Grumpy: This is a Giuseppe Armani figurine of Sneezy. I aquired the entire Snow White set by Armani.

As a friendly reminder, my brand new, hardbound book, The Garage Sale Millionaire, is now available! If you purchase through my website, I’ll sign the book for free (use the coupon code MAGNIFY)!

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

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Time for Lunch!

I was recently doing some treasure hunting when I came across a real gem; A vintage Beatles Yellow Submarine lunchbox from 1968. It’s not in perfect condition, but it had something that made up for all of its imperfections: the original metal thrermos! Typically, after 40+ years, the thermos tends to be missing, and this can as much as halve the value of the lunchbox. As soon as I openned the Beatles lunchbox and saw the thermos inside, I knew I had found something special. Now all I had to do was negotiate the price I wanted.

After some discussion and a few different offers, I managed to walk away with the lunchbox set for about $30. I felt completely confident that I could resell this piece for a significant profit, but I wasn’t completely sure of its value. After doing a bit of research on the internet, I found the exact same lunchbox and thermos selling for between $600 and $1,200 on eBay. The condition of my lunchbox will put it somewhere right in the middle of those numbers. Not too bad for a morning of treasure hunting!

Here are a few tips to keep in mind when hunting for your own lunchbox treasure:

  •  If you’re ever considering purchasing a vintage lunchbox, make sure it has the matching thermos or it will most likely not be worth your time. To give you an idea of how valuable the thermos is, my Beatles lunchbox on its own is only selling for between $125 and $395, compared to between $600 and $1,200.
  • Not only does the thermos have to be present, it needs to have all of the necessary parts. If it’s missing the lid or the thermos cup, the value will decrease. You should also make sure that the armature that holds the thermos inside the lunchbox is still present.
  • Rust is a huge problem with vintage lunchboxes. Once rust has started forming, whether it’s on the thermos or the lunchbox itself, the value will start to decrease greatly. Small scratches are okay, but rust is not.
  • Pay attention to both the handle and the closure on the lunchbox. If they are missing or not working, don’t bother. Handles and clasps are huge factors when determining the value of a vintage lunchbox. Both need to be in good condition for the piece to retain its value.

Have you found a great treasure lately? I’d love to hear about it!

Good luck, and happy hunting!

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

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The Fastest Indian to Ever Get Away From Me

For the last three days I’ve been trying to buy an Indian. No, not a person; not a carving, but one of the best motorcycles ever made. I’m always talking about the fun and the excitement of auctions, whether it’s online or live, and how I tend to get caught up in them. Well, just the this week I got caught up again.

This particular online auction had something I’ve always wanted: A 1911 Indian Motorcycle.

"The motorcycle I was bidding on was actually red, but this a very similar model."

Indians aren’t just any motorcycle. They’re known for their speed and the number of races they’ve won. For any motorcycle collector to say he owns an Indian, it’s like saying you won a gold medal at the Olympics. Unfortunately for me, my day at the Olympics passed me by, and so did the Indian I wanted so badly.

As I was bidding on this beautiful motorcycle, it seemed that a lot of others thought it was a great deal as well. The competition was stiff. This didn’t suprise me, however, since Indian Motorcycles can go for anywhere from $7,500 in poor condition to $175,000 in great condition. This particular one was a single cam and in better than average condition, but it had a few other problems I wasn’t quite able to identify just from the photos. As the auction went on, the bidding got too fast and I forced myself to drop out at about $42,000. In the end, the Indian went for a little over $43,000 – not much higher than I had already offered. But as I say in all my teachings, if you don’t know everything about what you’re bidding on and aren’t sure you can make a profit, you need to walk away. In this case, I wasn’t completely familiar with or comfortable with all of the problems the bike had. So with this auction, while I wish I could have ridden away, I instead had to take my index finger off the bidding button and walk away. It just wasn’t my day for a date with the world’s fastest Indian.

Happy hunting!

Aaron

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

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