The estate sale house was packed. There was a full kitchen, vintage toys and, according to the pictures online, an entire bookshelf of vintage Nancy Drew books. Travis and Stacy of Florida Pickers stood in line before the doors opened with one big hope: that the shelf held the full 54-book set.
“They might price them individually, or it’s going to be one price for the whole set,” one of them said, “but I definitely want to check it out.”
The Sign Said 69 Books For $80 And Everything Changed
Inside, the books sat in neat rows. The sign read 69 books for $80. The couple had gone in hoping for a 54-book set, so they checked the condition and looked for duplicates.
“Pretty good overall,” they agreed. The pages looked clean on the outside, and a few extras had been slid on top of the rows, which they hoped meant a couple of doubles.
They paid the $80. The last complete set they flipped cost about $70 to $75, and they put the value of this one around $200 to $250.
A Seller’s Price Of $40 And Other Things They Walked Away From
Resellers earn their profit on what they leave behind. At the toy shelves, a doll in a box caught their eye, but the price was too high. “I want $40 for it. That’s about what it goes for. So it’s cool, but we got to leave it.”
A fashion doll in a vintage box was tagged at $50, and they passed. A blue Bambi at $4 was a first-time sight, but it only sells for about $9, so it stayed.
A framed lemonade picture was $75, and a swinging lamp was $50. “Put a pass on that. I do like it,” one of them said.
“I Think I Might Have Blacked Out” In The Christmas Room
One of them wandered into a bedroom and found the Christmas decorations. “I was so pumped. I think I might have blacked out for a second. I was like, what am I doing? I just need to grab this whole box, because I’m going to buy all of this.”
Then came the garage. On the top shelf sat two round plastic ornament containers with clear bottoms. Stencil designs showed through, so the finder knew they were old.
The shelf was too high to reach. A worker from the sale tried and could not get them down either. Travis, who is tall, finally lifted both bins down.
A Bin Of Vintage Ornaments Cost Just $30
Inside was what Stacy called “probably one of the best vintage Christmas ornament hauls I’ve ever gotten. Ever.” There were stencils, indents, teardrops, and ornaments from Germany and Poland, plus shiny brights.
The sign said 50 cents each, or $6 to fill a bag. They had more than a bag’s worth, a full bin plus a container of boxes with two layers of ornaments. The whole thing came to $30.
“Estate sales are tough,” one of them said. “Estate sale people know things too. You have to try to find the diamonds in the rough.”
Six-Dollar Jerseys And A $1 John Boy Walton Doll
Football jerseys were $6 each. One carried a Super Bowl patch for the Green Bay Packers, another was a Cubs jersey with Rizzo’s number 44, and a third was Rays number 14. The couple hope each will sell for $25 to $50. “It’ll be a good learning experience.”
A 1974 John Boy Walton doll, missing its hat, cost a dollar. Recent sold listings put it around $20 to $25, and a full family set with original boxes can go for $60 to $100.
Other fun pickups included a stained glass angel for $2, a lighted Mickey on a pumpkin from 1999 that goes for $15 to $20, and an Enesco-style cat planter for $8. Tiny tins of notepads came to a quarter each.
How To Spot A Higher Quality Jersey
Since jerseys were new territory, the pair shared what they look for. These are the signs of a better one.
- Heavy-duty, multi-layered stitched twill that feels raised under your fingers. Pass on screen-printed or heat-pressed lettering.
- Ventilation side panels. Cheaper jerseys tend to be solid polyester with no cutouts.
- Tight, uniform stitching with no crooked letters.
- Signatures, patches or raised logos from a special game like the Super Bowl or an All-Star game.
- A label at the front bottom near the hem listing the brand, size and serial code on most official licensed jerseys.
The Lesson Behind Their Haul
The couple’s advice is to have a plan before you walk in, and to be ready when something better shows up. One of them went in hunting for books and came out with ornaments. The other went hunting for a cat planter, and the plan changed again.
They kept their prices in mind the whole time. Tags were weighed against what each piece sells for, and anything that did not leave room for profit stayed behind.
Tips for your own estate sale trips:
- Check sold prices before you buy, not just listing prices.
- Look for bulk deals like “fill a bag” for $6.
- Bring a friend tall enough to reach top shelves, and a screwdriver for battery compartments.
- Look in garages. Some of the best finds were on low, random shelves.
- Walk away when a tag leaves no room for profit.
As the rain rolled in, the pair wrapped up their day happily. “It was a fantastic sale,” they said.
More Stories You May Like
- Designer Says A $70 Pair Of Properly Altered Trousers Can Look More Elegant Than A $400 Pair And Names Nine Wardrobe Items Women Should Remove After 60
- Garage Sale Run From A Driveway Had About 25 Cars Waiting Before The Nine AM Opening And Was Still Packed Late In The Afternoon
- Paid $50 At One Estate Sale For Brass Dolphins, A Mahogany Curio Shelf, A Side Table And Brand New Coca Cola Hot Wheels In A Tiki Beach House
