Went to my first auction today!

[HilltopDaisy]

Yep, I'm (mumble mumble) years old and I've never been to an auction until today. I took $3 with me, just in case I wanted coffee. I didn't trust myself. Good thing, too, because I would have come home with baby cows (6 month old dairy heifers went for less than $200. I don't know if it's good or bad, but they were cute. There were 3 registered Texas Longhorn cows, all bred, went for $400 each).

All in all, it was a wonderful day. This is a yearly farm auction, less than 10 minutes from here. I was in heaven. I'm so glad that I was able to attend.

[PNWest]

Going to auctions can be very addictive. There is even a name for the affliction; 'auction fever'.

[HilltopDaisy]

Hey PNWest, welcome to HT! I noticed it's your first post, so let me have the honor of saying "Welcome!".

I can see how someone could develop auction fever!

[springvalley]

Boy do I wish I had a dollar for every auction I`ve ever been to, It was a hobby for me as a young man. I would go to one or two a week some weeks, I always said it was my smokin and drinkin money I was spending. Man that was a fun time.>Thanks Marc

[FarmboyBill]

Wish i could find calves here at that price. Milk cow calves, that is

[willow_girl]

Well you are smarter than me ... seems I always ended up coming home with a skinny old horse!

[Bandit]

Yes , Auction Fever can get very addictive , You just have to learn to control it . When You mentioned Texas Long Horn Cows and I glanced up and saw Your location as New York , all I could picture was a mini van with 3 baby cows in the back heading East on I-40 .

[Old Vet]

Try a estate auction. They are fun and youcan get some good things their. I go to one most every saturday. Learn what things are worth and never bid more than 1/2 of the value. Take 20 0r 30 dollars and you will come back with a car load. The first time don't bid just listen to the auctioneer and learn what he is saying. When he says choice of and has 2 or 3 you are bidding on one and get choice.

[HermitJohn]

I kinda lost interest in auctions when number of small farm auctions dwindled to very few and those that did come up were over run with antiquers and ebay resellers. Until it closed, used to go to weekly Sunday consignment junk auction run by some Iranian guy. But those are dangerous as stuff tends to go very cheap and I started bringing home lot stuff I'll never use. At most auctions anymore I am so cheap, dont have to worry about bringing home much.

[Alice In TX/MO]

My favorite auctions here in southern Missouri are the ones with my favorite concession lady. She makes a raisin pie that is heavenly!

[fishhead]

Now that I only have 1 job it's tempting to go to some auctions but if I'm going to move I need LESS stuff not more.

[geo in mi]

I bouthe an old worthless scythe once just for fifty cents by scratching my nose.
geo

[palani]

Funniest one I ever saw was a young guy holding a two year old toddler at an auction. The young guy was talking to someone else and never noticed the toddler had his hand in the air while the auctioneer was calling an item. When the father noticed he grabbed the toddlers hand and pulled it down. It sure distracted the auctioneer. These guys go into "auto" mode when they see a hand raised.

[FarmboyBill]

Geo, Bet u could getcher money back on E bay sellin it there.

REMEMBER, like at the sale I go to, If u see a cage of say 10 chickens, and you buy it with a bid of say $5. That DONT mean u paid $5 for the cage and alla those chickens in it. It means just the opposite, You got the cage free, and paid $5 EACH for each chicken in that free cage. Almost always, at every sale, there will be people who dont realize that, and later after the auctioneer has moved on down the line come up to him and tell them they dont want the cage s. He gets kinda mad, and tells them, They bought it, He had stated at the start of the sale, those conditions, and if they wernt there, or didnt hear, or didnt pay attention, that was there fault. NOW, as the new owner of a free cage witn 10 chickens in it, They could have them registered to the sale, Take the cage to the end of the last cage to be sold in the sale, and he would sell it AGAIN. Course, They would have to pay a commission fee for buying those chickens, and they would have to pay another commission fee for his reselling them, and finally, by the time the auctioneer gets towards the end of the sale, People have usually bought what they wanted, have petered out, have gone out onto the main grounds to watch the other stuff sell, and the only few left are the bargain hunters, who have come there intending to find a bargin and will not pay a fair price for what they want. ON The other hand, There will be a very few who, didnt bid quite high enough to get what they wanted, and so have stuck around to the end to try to get what they wanted, and maybe a bargain at that. Anyways, The new owners aint likely to get near what they paid for the chickens.

I have heard of people just walking off and not paying for the free cage, and its expensive contents. Well, if the contents are expensive enough, and since they have you show your license number to get a bidding card, They might turn it over to the County Attorney, to get his openion of the matter.

My dad usta like to embaress my mom by telling how she had bid on a rocking chair, then later raised her own bid. I may have done that myself once or twice, but at least once and maybe more, the auctioneer realized what I had done and didnt take my bid, but looked out for others knowing I would bid gain if he got another bid. Dad said the chair wasnt worth her first bid, not to mention her second lol.

I think, when u come home with alota thing you dont have or need, OR THINK you need, Its a subconcious thing in one that realizes that you may, or will need these things later in life. I went craizy the first time I went. Course, I was working, and had money. I have never bought as much as I did then, gradually tapering down. EVERY auction I ever wint to, till I started comeing to this one, I would buy something, so as to justify my time wasted in comeing to it. I dont here, cause it is so huge, that there are huge lines sometimes 2/3 lines long a 1/2block long waiting to pay out, and I cant stand in a line that long. I havnt gone to the auction yet this year, Doubt if I go this time, next week, Boy says he isnt going, And my DD hardly ever goes. I was going to get a rooster as mine died, but a neighbor gave me a nice one,

[big rockpile]

I went to on the other day to bid on a Pickup and a Riding Lawnmower for a guy.The Pickup was a '86 Ford it sent for $5400 and the Mower was two years old went for $2200 I could buy the same mower new for $1700 so I didn't buy a thing there.

I had my Grandsons with me they was wanting Pocket Knives.I asked which ones they wanted?Thought I wouldn't bid over $5 apiece on them.Come time to bid one of my Grandsons had already bidded $40,I grabbed his hand,lucky he was out bidded.

big rock pile

[upnorthlady]

Originally Posted by HermitJohn

I kinda lost interest in auctions when number of small farm auctions dwindled to very few and those that did come up were over run with antiquers and ebay resellers. Until it closed, used to go to weekly Sunday consignment junk auction run by some Iranian guy. But those are dangerous as stuff tends to go very cheap and I started bringing home lot stuff I'll never use. At most auctions anymore I am so cheap, dont have to worry about bringing home much.

Yep, Hermit, you're right there...........it does seem like there are way too many antique dealers at farm estate auctions anymore. And they will always outbid you. I'm never interested in glassware, but I DO love old linens and cookbooks, and I'm always up against dealers on those. One time I lucked out - I bid on a box of fabric and in the bottom of the box was a plastic tablecloth jammed in. Underneath that were 20 original feed sack cloths in various prints (a quilter's dream!). The dealers didn't take the time to look underneath the plastic otherwise they would never have let me get the whole box for $4!! (One vintage feed sack sells for about $20 at the antique stores)

I usually like to bid on the miscellaneous "dollar boxes" or those going for a couple bucks. Some is junk I throw away, but often there's good stuff in there. The best auctions, if you can stand it, is to go on a scorcher of a hot day or a rainy day or a cold day. That keeps a lot of the folks away, even some dealers, and you can get a better chance at getting what you want. Farm estate auctions are the best!! In-town auctions seem to have more stuff like decorations, dishes and records and not much really usable stuff for a farm. I always see a lot of the Amish and Hutterites at farm auctions - these folks will also outbid you every time.

Now garage sales............there's where the good deals are! Rural garage sales are especially good.

[FarmboyBill]

Its an Amish auction I go to, and ive found the Amish here are pretty tight with their money, And, if they pay so much for something, Then generally, thats all it is worth to them, and maybe a bit beyond, So, If I want it, and ive out bid an amishman, then I know that im bidding on it for more than its worth, so I got to decide if I need it that bad or not. Generally, If I decide I need/want something going into a bidding session, Then I quit thinking on how bad I need/want that object. I count on my origional perception before bidding on whether I really needed/wanted it or not. I try to fight with how much my money is worth to me. In other words, if I was bidding against you, U better hope I only came with so much money, cause if I started to bid, than Im going to stay in the bidding till either its mine, or me and the winner bid waaaayyyy more than its worth, And I just came to my senses sooner lol.

[empofuniv]

And watch who you are bidding against...

Many years ago just after we were married my dh was away in Navy boot camp. My inlaws asked me to spend the day w them and we went to an auction. I had wandered off looking at things and realized up for sale was a box of tools I thought would be useful to my dh.

I bid and after a bit there were only 2 bidders on the tool box. I was determined to get that toolbox and kept raising my bid - finally the box got higher than I had money for, so I had to let it go to the other bidder.

I was so down hearted.

When the auction was over I found my inlaws but my FIL had to stop and pay for his item before we left....uh oh...it was the tool box!

Yes...I admitted to them that I'd been the one bidding on it against my new FIL...I'm kinda short and in the crowd they couldn't see who was bidding against them. I learned a lesson - thankfully very cheaply, and they got to tell the story at family gatherings for years - and he gave the box of tools to my dh anyway!

Pam

[PulpFaction]

Originally Posted by big rockpile

The Pickup was a '86 Ford it sent for $5400

Holy moly, I just gave one away free on Craigslist the other day. Abandoned in our lot with a broken axle and a dilapidated camper.

Shoulda hauled it to an auction!

[Hopeful Lady]

We looooove Auctions. Just sold an Excursion at auction that we couldnt sell for months on Craigslist or any other methods. One day at auction and we got what we wanted. Getting ready to go again with some other items. Couldnt believe some of the (older model) trucks that were going for dirt cheap. If Dh and I would of been in a better position moola wise we would of snatched one up. Also, tractors and backhoes can be some of the better deals sometimes even with low hours. Plan on bringing either cash or packed lunched because the ones we have gone to do not except credit cards or debit cards for thier food and drinks. Also, if you have never been to one you may want to bring ear plugs that you can still hear through but that bring the volume down a bit. It can be very loud in there.
Just my two cents for what it is worth. Oh, and just a quick note for ladies. I now always bring a good hat if it is an outdoor auction. Also, comfortable walking shoes. It makes the day a bit more comfortable.

Oh yeah another thing I have noticed whether it is wrong or not. When DH and I would go in the past to bid I would do the bidding for the most part after we would agree before what to set the stopping point at. It seems that when a lady was bidding in an area that could be seen by the rest of the bidders the gents would back off unless it was just a faaantastic item. At least that is how it is down here in the south. Of course when we have an item that we are trying to sell we sit way up in the bleachers and DH bids against it. Just to make sure we get what we need for it. I didnt realize until after my first auction that this was common place. It makes sense though. We like auctions can you tell.

Blessings,
HL