7 Tips for Avoiding Estate Sale Scams

By On · 4 Comments · In Cautionary Tales, Hiring Liquidators
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7 Tips for Avoiding Estate Sale Scams

Unfortunately, estate sale scams do occur and they usually occur during an already emotional time. Since the estate sale process can be very time consuming and overwhelming, taking the necessary precautions to avoid estate sale scams are sometimes overlooked. We were so impressed with this recent post from Lori Swanson, we wanted to share it with our community of readers.

 

7 Tips for Avoiding Estate Sale Scams

We have summarized the following tips below, but strongly encourage you to read the full post below. These tips are so important to follow through on. The time spent upfront will save you additional stress, trouble, and aggravation down the road.

  1. Shop Around
  2. Research the Company
  3. Verify Bonding and Insurance
  4. Review the Contract
  5. Compare Rates and Fees
  6. Understand Pricing the Items and Operating the Sale
  7. Demand Immediate Payment

 

Avoid Estate Sale Scams

Estate sale companies appraise, price, and sell the personal property of people who have passed away or wish to downsize their households. Although estate sale companies routinely handle estates valued at thousands or tens of thousands of dollars, they are not required to be licensed or bonded in Minnesota. In this “buyer beware” atmosphere, it can be difficult to sort out reputable estate sale companies from untrustworthy ones, and consumers are encouraged to take precautions when selecting and contracting with estate sale companies.

“Jane” is seeking assistance selling items and property that her recently deceased father left behind when he died unexpectedly. She locates an estate sale company on the internet that claims it has been in business for decades with thousands of satisfied customers. She contacts the company, and its representatives promise that its “experts” run professional and transparent estate sales so that their clients have nothing to worry about and are quickly paid within weeks. The company promises to provide detailed itemizations of all sales so that the value and sales of all of the property is transparent and easily documented. Jane is grieving and there is so much to do in the aftermath of her father’s sudden death, that she immediately agrees to let the company operate the estate sale without closely reviewing the contract or shopping around. Three months after the estate sale, Jane still has not received the proceeds of the estate sale, which she was hoping to use to defray some of the costs of the funeral. She has received only minimal paperwork regarding what items were sold and for how much, and the company, which initially made vague excuses about the “delayed” payment and accounting documents, has now stopped returning her calls altogether. Now Jane is struggling to find recourse to resolve the matter, and is considering having to hire a lawyer which she fears will only add more expense and worry to her situation.

The Attorney General’s Office provides the following tips for people seeking the services of an estate sale company:

Continue reading more…

 

 

EstateLane helps you hire a trustworthy, estate sale liquidator to professionally manage your sale. Our #1 priority is trust and transparency.

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  • http://twitter.com/FourSales Four Sales Ltd

    All of the 7 points above are great advice and shouldn’t pose any problem for a professionally run, legitimate estate and personal property sales operation. The caption of Tip #7, Demanding Immediate Payment, doesn’t quite match the Minnesota AG’s guidance. Having established pay-out periods is absolutely correct, but “immediate” brings to mind sitting on the front stoop (no kitchen table left to sit at…) and dividing up the cash. A professional company would require sufficient time for the checks to clear and credit card charges to be processed. Check clearance periods vary slightly by region and the bank, but all checks will typically clear no longer than about 10 days after deposit. A 2-3 week payout period, which includes all the appropriate documentation of transactions, would be appropriate since it allows the company sufficient time to either ensure that all payments have cleared or begin collection action on those that haven’t. That being said, the company should also be updating the executor or owner throughout the course of the sale event.

    • http://blog.estatelane.com/ Jessica Haynes

      Thank you for the detailed contribution, you’re comment has a lot of merit. To your point, “immediate” may not be the most appropriate term to use, since it often takes a couple weeks. The specifics should be detailed in the contract and direct communication should be maintained with the executor to help manage expectations.         

      • http://www.facebook.com/perris.calderon Perris Calderon

        Our family has been the victim of one of these scams, the “guidelines” were followed and they were no inoculation;

        We researched the company we chose and there were no negative reviews, in addition some highly respected auction houses gave them high marks.

        However, what I found out far too late, the proprietor is adept at scrubbing negative reviews and has managed to convince these auction houses that his victims are simply sour grape customers

        To make it clear to everyone, we have now gotten access to court records and in fact the company we chose was sued numerous times, lost every case, (over two million dollars), and then defied the court order to compensate for the losses he caused simply by declaring “insolvency”

        We are in a court battle right now, we have prevailed in every stage but my lawyer makes it clear, this individual has a corporate shield and is almost immune from judgement

        Another point, the firm we used actually gave us forged documents concerning their bonding and insurance and we found out too late, none existed.

        So as not to make this post too long, I’ll add far more valuable guidelines in a subsequent post that will go far further towards inoculation against these predators

        • perris calderon

          follws are methods that might help avoiding this type of con;

          1) You must get a copy of the insurance policy, (not the certificate of insurance which has no value in these situations) and you must contact the insurance company directly,  you must find out if a rider has been added to make you “additionally insured”, if not you must contact the vendor and insist that he add you as a valid claimant on the policy, you must also make it clear to the insurance company that if the vendor damages, loses or steals your items you will be allowed to file a claim, even though the principle holder of the policy might be the person responsible.

          You then must get in writing that the insurance agency will contact you if the insurance policy becomes delinquent.

          2) you must make certain the vendor is bonded for an amount that will satisfy a claim, you must get a copy of that bond and contact the bond agency and get in writing what is and what is not covered in  a claim against the bond

          3) You MUST have the vendor itemize and sign off on each and every item taken, you should take a picture if the item as well

          4) you should check the civil court history of the vendor and have him put into writing if he has been sued, if he had, the outcome.

          There are other safeguards that might help insulate from theft and I will add to this list in the future