Our Sale Rules

Some basic rules of our bi-weekly sales. Normally we will have a sale each Tuesday and every Thursday from 9am-4pm.
Please go look at our website daily to see if sales have changed as occasionally our emails will not get to you due to the server problems. Thanks for understanding we update our site on a daily basics.
The following are important facts to know about our sales in advance.
1. Half price begins at noon.  Do not start making a pile on the hold table before noon expecting to get half price when noon arrives.  Your stuff will be taken back inside and scattered around for all the choose from after noon.  Also, don’t make piles inside the house and attempt to conceal them for purchase after noon.  We empty the house and garage before noon for two reasons:  One, we can ensure everyone has an equal chance at stuff available and two, we look for items being hidden by dishonest shoppers hoping to get the stuff for half-price at noon.  If you are caught doing this you’ll be banned from future sales.  The same rules apply to $5 box lots which begin at 3:00.  Do not arrive early and fill your box or boxes before 3:00 hoping to buy them for $5 when 3:00 arrives.  Your stuff will be found and scattered around the house and garage so everything has a chance at this stuff.  We’re wise to those who do this and will make every effort to prevent it from happening.
2.  Please plan ahead when coming to one of our estate sales.  Bring plenty of cash and your debit/credit card.  We don’t take checks and only accept cards for purchases of $20 or more.  It’s rude to come shop and make a pile and then tell us you didn’t bring enough cash or you forgot your debit or credit card.  All this does is slow down the checkout process and keep others from buying the stuff you’ve put on hold.  You wouldn’t go shopping at Macy’s, Walmart, or Target without cash or a debit/credit card so don’t come to our sales unprepared.
3.  You can’t put your “sold” or “hold” tags or tape on items before 9:00 am when the sale starts.  It’s not fair to all the other shoppers who play by the rules and wait.  And if you arrive just before opening and have come for a particular item, don’t act put out when you find someone else’s name on the item you want.  We have shoppers arriving as early as 3:00 am and before for particular items.  Obviously if you want something they want it’s unlikely you’ll get it if you are behind these people.  Estate sales are not like retail stores that stock multiples of an item.  There’s a reason why some shoppers arrive hours ahead of the 9:00 am start time.  If you find that someone ahead of you buys what you came for, don’t stand around moaning and complaining that you didn’t get what you came from.  This happens and is very irritating to all the other shoppers.
4.  ESH does not provide a furniture delivery service.  If you plan on buying big, bulky items please arrive in a truck or van or make plans ahead of time to get a truck before the sale closes at 4:00 pm.  And always have some blankets, bungee cords, and rope in your vehicle should you buy big items that require tying down or securing a partially closed truck lid.  It’s always better to be prepared than to scrounge around at the sale looking for these items and tying up ESH help with so many other shoppers needing attention at the same time.  If you’re a frequent estate sale shopper, always BE PREPARED to buy something bulky that you didn’t expect to find at the sale.

We Seldom have presales any longer but when we do…the follow information would apply
What to Expect on Presale Day

Please read this entire document, especially if you’ve never been to one of our presale days.  By reading this document you’ll have a much better understanding what to expect and what is expected of you.  This is necessary due to the large number of shoppers who attend these presales.  There have been presales where over 200 shoppers begin shopping when the door opens.

With rare exception, we let everyone in at once when the door opens.  This can result in wall-to-wall people for the first 15-20 minutes.  If you don’t like crowds you should avoid entering when the door opens.  We never know how many shoppers will show up for a presale so we can’t limit the number entering when the door opens as this would be unfair to everyone not getting in at the official start time.  If we are holding a sale in a small place and plan on limiting the number of shoppers inside we will publish this information in the email notice so you can arrive earlier than usual if you have a particular item you are seeking.

At most sales very few, if any, items will be priced.  Given the massive number of items at most sales, we simply don’t have time to stick a price tag on every single item.  We do two sales a week and can’t spend time on pricing each item.  While shopping, please do not ask us for the price of a particular item as we WILL NOT give you a price.  You’ll get one price for the entire lot of items you choose to buy at the time you reach the person doing the pricing.  If you aren’t comfortable with this approach, you should not attend our sales.

And, there is no book hoarding for purposes of scanning allowed on presale day.  If you insist on making a pile of books and scanning them you have to return on Friday.

At every sale we have “HOLD” tables outside.  As you shop, take your items outside, place them in an open space on one of these tables and mark your pile or box with a piece of paper bearing your name.  Ask a worker for assistance if you can’t find a piece of paper or sharpie pen.  You can continue adding to your pile until you are ready to checkout and pay.

Here’s where it is very important that you understand the pricing and checkout process and stay and shop only if you understand that you may spend a long in line waiting for checkout.  We have only one person pricing and she or he can price only one shopper at a time.  Unfortunately, within about 30 minutes of opening the door, the line for pricing and checkout grows quite long as you can imagine.  During the presale we’ll have someone outside at the hold tables handing out numbers.  Once you’ve stopped shopping, get a number as quickly as possible so you know your place in line.  IMPORTANT NOTE:  If you are in a hurry, you’d better shop quickly and get outside for pricing so you can pay and leave.  Otherwise, you’ll have to wait in line.  There have been sales where this wait can be an hour or longer.  So be advised of this wait.  We can have only one person pricing – no exceptions.

While standing in line, keep track of how close you are to being the next person priced.  When you are close, please remove all of the items from your box and spread them out so the pricing person can quickly scan them and give you the price for your lot.  This helps speed the line.

If you have jewelry items at the payment table, please tell the pricing person so he or she can grab the items before giving you a final price amount.  You cannot retrieve your jewelry items while standing in line waiting for pricing.

The pricing person will write the total amount owed on a piece of paper and hand it to you.  Give this paper to the money collector who will take your payment.

IMPORTANT NOTE: After getting your price, if you aren’t willing to pay the amount stated, you can select the items you must have and the pricing person will give you a new price.  But, we can’t afford to spend time negotiating over the price of every item.  It’s not fair to all the other shoppers standing behind you waiting for their turn at pricing.  If you can’t make a quick decision, you’ll have to drop back further in line to do your decision making.

As for payment methods, we prefer cash.  We do take credit and debit cards but we usually offer a cash discount of around 10%.  If you plan on attending our presales, please come prepared to pay with cash.

And, once you reach the payment table, please don’t ask the person collecting the money for a lower price.  He or she is not authorized to give you a better price.

Finally, if you plan on attending these presales on a regular basis, please remember to bring your own boxes.  While we try and provide boxes, we can’t predict how many we’ll need and we already spend too much time driving around getting boxes to make your shopping easier. And if you are a glass or pottery buyer or someone who buys lots of small, breakable items, please bring your own wrapping paper.  We rarely have a sufficient supply of wrapping paper.  We can bring only so many items to these sales.

Doing two sales a week is extremely time-consuming due to all the preparation and staging that’s required.  Therefore, we ask that you do your part in helping make the shopping experience as enjoyable as possible.  Remember, you are attending an estate sale, not shopping at Macy’s or Walmart.

Estate sales can be a lot of fun and a great place to find bargains, but you have to remember that some effort on your part is required to make it all happen as smoothly as possible.

Please ask if you have any questions about what happens on presale days.

PLEASE PAY ATTENTION TO WHERE YOU PARK.  YOU DON’T WANT TO GET A COSTLY TICKET WHICH HAPPENS IF YOU PARK ON A CURVE, BLOCK A DRIVEWAY, OR PARK NEAR A BUS STOP OR FIRE HYDRANT.  DON’T PARK WITH WHEELS ON THE SIDEWALK OR YOU’LL GET TICKETED.  DON’T PARK ON THE BUMPER OF THE CAR IN FRONT OF YOU.  LEAVE SPACE FOR OTHERS TO MOVE THEIR CARS OR TRUCKS.

Thanks for your cooperation,

The EstateSalesHelp team