How Estate Auctions Work

Welcome to the world of virtual estate sales

If you’re new here, you’re in good company. Estate auctions are an easy and exciting way to shop for everything from antiques and collectibles to everyday household items, tools and jewelry. Every sale is unique because every home is unique, which means there’s always something interesting waiting to be discovered.

Every week, we help families in Southern New Hampshire and North Eastern Massachusetts pass along the contents of homes filled with memories, collections, and treasured belongings. Our estate auctions connect those items with new owners who will appreciate them for years to come.

Picture this

You’re touring, room by room, the contents of an entire house – furniture, a kitchen filled with useful gadgets, colorful rugs, signed art, Corningware for days, a woodworking shop and what’s this? Umm, only the cutest little garden shed ever to exist, full of garden pots, rusty trellises (it’s patina) and gnome sculptures.

Except you’re in your PJs, on your comfortable sofa, with a blanket over your head, because it has been a long day and sensory deprivation feels right.

Tell me more!

Our all-woman team is busy creating amazing estate sales just like this all week long, so you can be browsing events pretty much any night of the week you need a little retail therapy.

What is this amazing thing I have somehow not discovered in all of my years on this planet?

Okay, so online auctions have been around for awhile, but really took off during Covid when pretty much everything had to go online. No matter what’s going on in the world, the real estate world keeps on moving, and if you’re going from a 3200 square foot home to a 1200 square foot condo, you need to pare down (to put it mildly). What to do with decades of possessions? Not to mention the things acquired from other family members over the years. We could be talking hundreds of years worth of stuff! That’s where we come in, your friendly local estate liquidator. Our woman-powered team gets to work photographing every single thing our clients need to sell. We use those photos to create an online catalog of everything in the house, and post it for your perusal to our auction site – think eBay meets Vinted.

What kind of things will I find?

In a word, everything. For the vast majority of our events, you’re shopping the contents of one estate. It could be original MCM furniture purchased when our clients got married in the 1960s, or vintage cameras from a hobbyist photographer. There are closets full of clothing, workshops and garages full of tools and equipment, kitchens full of vintage etched glassware, Pyrex mixing bowl sets and canning jars and living rooms filled with electronics, area rugs, cute little side tables, books and almost certainly some Hummels. One of the best parts about our job is getting to know our clients and where their life took them over the years. We’ve had couples who loved to cook and filled their kitchen with All-Clad and Le Creuset cookware, or the crafty clients who made miniature dioramas with teeny tiny bears, with a woodshop in the basement full of Craftsman equipment with all of the original boxes and manuals. Many of our clients have antiques from multiple generations back – basically museum pieces you can purchase yourself. It is the absolute best to find new homes for these loved items. 

I’m sold! How do I bid?

Our site works like most online retail websites where you’ll need to register for an account. This creates a dashboard personalized to you – it’s where you’ll find your bid history and receipts for past purchases. Once you’ve registered, you’ll need to enter a credit card number in order to start placing bids. Nothing is charged to the card until after the auction ends. If you’re the lucky winner on one (or 15) things, those items will be automatically charged to the card on file. You can choose to have your winning bids shipped, or you can pick up locally. 

I’m nervous! What if I get out bid?

Not to worry, we’ve got a short, simple, easy guide to bidding that you can grab right here. Plus even more answers to all of your burning questions below.

Frequently asked questions

Getting Started

What exactly is an estate auction? Is this like eBay? Can I inspect items before bidding?

An estate auction is a sale where the contents of a home are offered to the public through an online bidding process. Rather than shopping in a traditional store, you’ll browse hundreds of items from a single home and place bids on the things you’d like to own. 

This is very similar to in-person estate sales where you go to someone’s home on a weekend and buy the items, minus the crowds and neighborhood parking snarls (usually). 

Sort of! Like eBay, you’ll place bids online and the highest bidder wins. You can browse items, watch lots you’re interested in, and even set a maximum bid so the system can automatically bid on your behalf.

The biggest difference is that estate auctions are collections of items from a single home, not listings from individual sellers all over the country. Instead of shopping for one specific item, you’re exploring an entire estate filled with furniture, artwork, collectibles, jewelry, tools, household goods, etc.

Estate auctions also have a set closing time, and use “soft close” bidding. If someone places a bid during the final moments of an auction, the timer extends to give other bidders a fair chance to respond. This helps prevent last-second sniping and keeps the process fair for everyone.

While we don’t offer in-person previews, our team works hard to provide clear photos, detailed descriptions, measurements and condition notes whenever possible.

If you have a question about an item, please ask before bidding. We are happy to provide additional information, measurements or photos when available. If we don’t already have the answer, we’ll do our best to reach out to the homeowner and get it for you.

Bidding

How does bidding actually work? What is a max bid? What happens if someone outbids me? Why does the auction timer keep extending? Why was I immediately outbid?

When you find an item you’d like to buy, simply enter the amount you’re willing to pay or click the button to place the next highest bid (you’ll need to click the button again to confirm your selection).

If you’re the highest bidder when the auction closes, you win the item.

You can place bids one at a time, or you can enter a maximum bid and let the system bid automatically on your behalf. For example, if you’re willing to pay up to $100 for an item, you can enter $100 as your maximum bid. The system will only increase your bid as needed to keep you in the lead, up to your maximum amount.

As bids come in, you’ll be able to see whether you’re currently winning or have been outbid. If another bidder places a higher bid, you’ll have the opportunity to bid again if you’d like. You can sign up to receive outbit alerts via email or text.

Our auctions use a “soft close,” which means the timer extends an additional three minutes when bids are placed during the final moments of an auction. This gives everyone a fair chance to respond and prevents auction sniping (where someone, or more likely a computer program, places a final bid at the last possible second).

You can place bids one at a time, or you can enter a maximum bid and let the system bid automatically on your behalf. For example, if you’re willing to pay up to $100 for an item, you can enter $100 as your maximum bid. The system will only increase your bid as needed to keep you in the lead, up to your maximum amount.

If another bidder places a higher bid, you’ll have the opportunity to bid again if you’d like. You can sign up to receive outbit alerts via email or text – these settings are available in your profile. 

Our auctions use a “soft close,” which means the timer extends an additional three minutes when bids are placed during the final moments of an auction. This gives everyone a fair chance to respond and prevents auction sniping (where someone, or more likely a computer program, places a final bid at the last possible second).

In most cases, you’ve been outbid by another bidder’s maximum bid.

Many bidders choose to enter the highest amount they’re willing to pay and let the system bid automatically on their behalf. When that happens, the software will immediately place the lowest bid necessary to keep them in the lead.

For example, if an item is currently at $20 and another bidder has already entered a maximum bid of $100. If you place a bid of $25, the system will automatically increase their bid to the next increment above yours. It can feel like you’ve been instantly outbid, but what you’re actually seeing is the software responding to a maximum bid that was placed earlier.

This is a normal part of online auction bidding and helps ensure that bidders don’t have to sit in front of their computers placing bids every few minutes. The system simply follows the bidding instructions that have already been entered.

Winning & Payment

When do I pay? What if I change my mind?

Payment is processed at the close of the auction (usually within the hour). You will receive an invoice confirming payment via email. You can also view your invoices here.

When you place a bid, you’re agreeing to buy the item if you are the winning bidder. For that reason, we generally do not cancel bids or purchases simply because a bidder changes their mind, finds a similar item elsewhere or decides they no longer want the item.

We understand that mistakes happen. If you’ve accidentally entered the wrong bid amount or believe there’s been an error, please contact us as soon as possible.

Pickup & Logistics

When do I pick up my items? What if I win something huge?

Pickup details are listed in each auction, so be sure to review the dates, times, and town before placing a bid. An exact address will be provided after the auction closes, in the invoice email. We also offer shipping on most small and medium sized items. 

For local pick up, please make sure you’re able to pick up your items during the designated pickup window. Because many of our auctions take place in private homes that must be emptied on a tight schedule, we are often unable to accommodate alternate pickup times.

If you can’t make it to pickup, don’t panic. Depending on the item, we may be able to offer shipping or transfer the item to our Derry office for a more convenient pickup. Additional fees apply, and not all items are eligible, so please contact us as soon as possible if you need assistance.

Furniture, picker lots and large and bulky items must be picked up during the designated pick up window, and we recommend having a back up plan should you decide to bid on these types of items. 

If you win a large item such as furniture, equipment, appliances, or oversized artwork, you’ll be responsible for bringing the people, vehicle, and equipment needed to remove it safely. Our team is happy to direct you to the item, but we generally cannot provide moving services or assist with heavy lifting. We also do not provide tools (sorry, they kept walking off!). 

Before bidding, be sure to review the item’s measurements and consider how you’ll transport it. That gorgeous armoire may be a perfect fit for your dining room, but it still needs to fit through the front door and into your vehicle!

If you’re unsure whether an item will fit in your car or have questions about access, stairs, or loading conditions, please ask before bidding. We’re happy to provide additional information whenever possible.