Locker Auctions and Final Sale: What You Should Know Before Bidding

Storage auctions are a great opportunity to get your hands on valuable stuff at really good prices. Online storage auctions are even better because you can bid right from the comfort of your own home. You don't have to drive around town to multiple storage sites in order to place bids. But there is something you should know about final sale before you place any bids.

There is a difference between winning an online storage auction and actually completing the sale. Many states give storage locker tenants as much leeway as possible to retain ownership of their possessions even in the midst of a potential locker sale. This has a definite impact on auction buyers. Allow us to explain.

Online storage auctions are dominated by lockers deemed abandoned because tenants have not paid their rent. The law gives locker owners the right to take possession of lockers and sell their contents when rental payments aren't made. That is the good part.

Here is the caveat: winning an online auction does not represent final sale under the law. In most states, final sale doesn't occur until you show up, pay whatever price you bid at auction, and take possession of the locker contents.

State laws tend to favor tenants in this regard. Many states give tenants the opportunity to pay all back rent and maintain ownership of their possessions until final sale. So in an extreme scenario, a tenant could show up and pay his bill five minutes before you arrive to complete the sale of an online auction. You would get there and be turned away by the property owner because the tenant has paid his bill.

Although such extreme scenarios are not the norm, they do happen from time to time. Before you bid, just know that the sale is not final until you actually pay the storage property owner and are granted access to the locker.

Locker tenants may fail to pay their rent for a number of reasons. It turns out that their motivations also contribute to the likelihood that back rent will be paid before you have time to complete an auction sale. Here are some of the more common reasons for rent not being paid:

1. Money Troubles – Tenants sometimes don't pay their locker rent because they are having legitimate money troubles. But once they receive notice that their lockers are going to be repossessed and auctioned off, some find a way to come up with back rent.

2. Lack of Resources – Similarly, some tenants legitimately don't have the money to pay their rent. They have tried and have been unable to come up with the money. So they give up and walk away at some point.

3. Abandonment – Some lockers are abandoned simply because the tenants don't want whatever is stored in them anymore. This is good for you in the sense that you should be able to complete the sale. But it's bad in the sense that there may be nothing of value inside.

4. Family Death – Lockers are sometimes abandoned because of a death in the family. The person paying the rent has died, and the rest of the family did not know about the locker. This happens more often than people think.

Storage lockers are auctioned off for lots of reasons. Regardless of any particular motivation, an abandoned locker represents an opportunity for you to get your hands on some good stuff. Whether you are new to storage auctions or a seasoned veteran, there are abandoned lockers awaiting your bid.