All of my life, I have been told that people older than I are wiser than I. Now that I am over 55, I have decided it’s time to claim a slice of wisdom for myself. I tell my kids, my grand kids, my twenty-something neighbor just how wise I have become; everyone except The Old Man, of course, who is nearly a decade older than I. But- and it pains me to write this- when it comes to possessions, it seems like none of us ever grows wiser! We are really good at amassing things over our lifetimes, but not quite as good at letting them go.
In my mind, the things that I love - my purses and shoes- are worth a lot of money. I figure if I love them, so should everybody else! So, when I finally made up my mind to sell a few things to pare down my collection- with a secret plan to take the cash and buy something else- I discovered that the purses I wanted to list were not as valuable as I thought. Disappointed at the foolishness of the buyers who didn’t appreciate the value of my stuff, I got frustrated, and just decided to keep them.
Many of the people we encounter in our business are like that. They proudly show us what they want to sell, and say something like, “I have this beautiful piece, and I looked it up online, and it’s worth $350!” Like me, the person wants to believe their items are valuable, so they go on eBay, and search for the highest asking price. But the truth is, an item is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it. After we take a deep breath, we show the person the real value of the item. Not the top listed price on eBay that they found, but what the item actually has sold for in the last 90 days. Oftentimes, when they see that reality, they are devastated.
REALITY BITES
I get it. I’m no different than anyone else. I want to believe that my hundred plus purses are a solid investment that I can sell any time I want for $10,000. I make that case to The Old Man every time I see a new one. The reality, of course, is quite different. But at the end of the day- and, oh how it pains me to admit this!- The Old Man is right. How many purses can I really carry, anyway? And sometimes- let’s just be honest here- you just need the money.
YOU DON’T ALWAYS NEED THE WHOLE HAM
I’ve spent a lifetime amassing stuff. Like most people, I overvalue my possessions. When I think about selling something and discover its not worth as much as I thought, I tell myself I’ll keep it until “it’s worth more”. But time has taught me that the price resurgence I hope for often never comes. The other thing I’ve learned since we’ve been in the estate sale business is that getting something is much better than having nothing. When you’re hungry enough, if you can get your hands on a slice of ham, a slice of Swiss, a slice or two of bread, and a skiff of mustard, and you’ve got a sandwich. It may not be the steak dinner you hoped for, but at least you’re not starving. If you can smell what I’m cooking- sorry Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson- why not give us a call. We can help you fill the fridge.
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