Have you ever had to clear a house full of abandoned belongings?

[Robbie Case]

We purchased another property in June. This one was from a family member who wanted to be done with the property. When I say done, I mean they walked out of the house one day and never came back. There are still clothes in the closets, books on the shelves, and dishes in the sink among other things. The fun part is looking through everything, its like a treasure hunt! Unfortunately we don't live close by and it would take several days and trips back and forth to sort through the stuff. We wouldn't be making the best use of our time by handling it ourselves. We were considering hiring someone to do an estate sale, but the property is off the beaten path and I worry it will end up costing more than it yields. I'm curious how others have dealt with this situation. I bet there are some great stories to be told!

[Wayne Brooks]

Auction companies don’t usually do low/middle end sales on site. Some will pick it up, take it to their auction house, charge 40% or so.  I just gave everything to a local charity that would pick up what they wanted, dumpstered the rest.