Whether you’re packing up to travel the world, or retiring into something more manageable, at some point in your life you will likely be faced with the need to downsize or declutter.
The end result is nirvana – a clean and organised home housing only those belongings that you truly love. But the steps along the way can be both time consuming and frustrating, especially when you’re not sure what to do with all the “stuff”.
So where do you start?
Survey the scene and ask yourself:
- How much space do I have to work with?
- What do I absolutely need to keep?
- What can I throw out?
- What might family or friends want?
- What can be sold?
The last question can be the most difficult to answer.
Almost anything can be sold, but how much is it worth? If you list it for a price no one will pay, you could spend weeks staring at it wondering whether you need to drop the price.
Even worse if it sells, and you find out it was worth 10x more.
Listings on Gumtree and Facebook eliminate the valuable opportunity to pit buyers against each other – which ultimately helps you get a better price. And garage sales can be painstaking.
There is one way to solve both problems: put it to auction. And if you can, get a professional valuer to give you an indication of its worth before you set the reserve.
We asked online auction site Allbids (based in Fyswhick) about how the auction process works, and how they help Canberrans who are downsizing or decluttering.
1. Free valuation
To start, Allbids provide a free valuation service, performed by expert valuers so you can get a true indication of the value of your art, antiques, furniture, collectables, jewellery, and so on.
2. Photos and listing
Following valuation, Allbids take professional photos of everything you want to sell, and create individual listings for each item. You can opt to have it all taken away (so buyers can pick up from Allbids), or sell items straight out of your home (which works well for estate sales).
3. Marketing
The reserve is set, the items are listed, so it’s time to sell!
150,000 people are registered to bid on Allbids, so you immediately gain access to a huge database of locals ready to buy.
But the magic happens when their far-reaching platform helps someone in New York or Hong Kong who really wants what you’re selling, find it, bid on it, and have it delivered to their door.
If you want to watch the process, you can see your listing any time, and even direct friends and family to check it out.
4. Sale and pickup
Allbids deal with the buyers, collect the funds and handle the pick-ups. They work on commission only, which ensures they only get paid once things get sold (and they obviously work hard to get you a good price!).
And that’s it! Your extra “stuff” is gone, your house is nirvana, and you’re that little bit richer. (Or a lot richer, depending on what’s in your house!)
So if you’re trying to downsize, or declutter, it may be worth considering an online auction.
If you would like Allbids’ help deciding what can be sold, and what it’s worth, call 02 6239 2262 or visit ALLBIDS.
This is a sponsored article, though all opinions are the author’s own. For more information on paid content, see our sponsored content policy.
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