Ah, stuff. Everyone has some, even those who have no permanent place to keep it, while others accumulate so much stuff that they must rent spaces they don’t inhabit to store it.
Periodically, people get tired of stuff, which is good news for hunter-gatherers on the lookout for garage and yard sales, but what happens when a big event like death, downsizing, relocation, foreclosure or even a spiritual awakening occurs?
That’s when people like Ron and Wally of More Than Memories Estate Sale Services could become your best friends. Generally, an estate sale takes place after someone has passed away and the family needs to clear the house to sell it. However, living estate sales are becoming more popular when a homeowner is just moving or downsizing and doesn’t want to or can’t do the work of sorting through boxes, cleaning, arranging and pricing items, then placing advertising for the sale and conducting it.
It makes sense to let an expert do it. It can take weeks or a month or two to comb through a large household. For instance, since September Ron and Wally have been setting up an estate sale for Ramon and Lemia Laval, whose house is currently for sale. The Lavals operated The Lost Penguin, a store and bistro on Center St., which closed due to COVID, and the remaining merchandise is in the sale along with everything else in the house.
“This sale is hard to categorize because everything is so eclectic,” Ron said. “There’s stuff from all over the world as well as what was in the store. Sales like this are a goldmine for people looking for treasure or, right now, a Christmas gift that will blow someone’s mind. We unpack boxes, clean each item, sort, empty closets and drawers, and try to create an appropriate atmosphere to showcase everything.”
“Each box is like a page in the story of a person’s life,” Wally said. “We handle each item several times through the process, and we get to know people through what their belongings say, especially when the clients have an emotional connection to their things.”
“That thoroughness can take you on an emotional roller coaster,” Lemia Laval confessed. “It’s almost like going to the doctor. They see everything, stuff you’ve even forgotten was there. You just have to get over being embarrassed.”
With a combined 67 years in the industry, Ron and Wally have seen it all and gotten some surprises to boot. Wally recounted finding a suitcase full of money under a bed. He and Ron called the client, who thought it was a joke. It took several calls to convince her to let them bring her the suitcase, which had belonged to a sister. When she opened it, she exclaimed, “You know, you just could have walked out of the house with all this money, and I never would have known it had been there at all.”
“But why do that?” Wally mused. “Why destroy your whole career by taking something that wasn’t yours? It gives us joy when we find things for folks.”
Another client insisted there was money hidden in her father’s house. The family had even cut into the ceiling looking for the cash. At the end of the estate sale, Ron and Wally told the client there was no money hidden in the house… they had opened and touched everything, including a six-foot-tall bookshelf in the office containing hundreds of Playboy magazines. Only a few had been sold, so they asked what to do with the rest and the client ordered, “Throw them all in the dumpster.” After the dumpster had been picked up, there was a handful of magazines left behind. During cleanup Wally flipped through one to find a twenty-dollar bill stuck between each page. It was the same in each of the few left. “There must have been thousands of dollars in those magazines,” Wally said, “and the dumpster was long gone.”
Since then, Ron and Wally flip through every book and magazine before pricing.
“We have found lost family heirlooms, important documents, wedding rings and other jewelry,” Ron said. “It’s amazing what people lose track of.”
Finding a new home for things at a decent price for the seller is always Ron and Wally’s goal. In contrast to a garage or yard sale, an estate sale company usually has a handle on the current trends and can price appropriately. People are always surprised when things they thought would bring a good price don’t, and things they didn’t even consider selling do.
You can catch Ron and Wally in action at the Laval residence at 541 County Road 211 in Eureka Springs this weekend, Nov. 15 – 17 between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. each day, rain or shine. For more information about setting up an estate sale, call (218) 343-9216 and leave a message.