Pro tip: Stop showing up right at opening time for estate sales in Spokane.

I used to get to every sale at 9 AM sharp, thinking I was beating the crowd. Last Saturday, I saw a guy I know leave a sale at 8:45 with a mint condition mid-century dresser for $75. He told me he got there at 7:30 and made a deal with the cashier before they even opened. That was my wake-up call. I've been playing by the rules while others are making the best finds an hour early. Now I aim to be there at least 45 minutes before the listed start. Has anyone else had luck with this pre-opening approach, or do the workers in your area shut it down?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_zara2mo ago

Seriously? A mint dresser for seventy-five bucks?

tylerw722mo ago

Learned that lesson the hard way at a garage sale last month. Showed up "early" at 8:50 for a 9 o'clock sale and watched a guy load the one good tool box into his truck. Now I'm there a solid hour before, coffee in hand, and just chat with the people setting up. Half the time they'll let you walk through and make an offer if you're not getting in the way. You really think those posted times are for anything but the casual crowd?

wendy6748d ago

Eh, I dunno, sometimes the sellers actually mean what they post. I showed up an hour early to a sale last Saturday and the lady running it was super annoyed, wouldn't let me look at anything until 9 on the dot. It was kind of awkward standing there for 45 minutes watching her set up. And honestly, @the_zara's mint dresser find probably came from being patient and not pushing, not from showing up at dawn. Lots of sellers save their best stuff for the posted start time or get overwhelmed by early birds and hide things.