SELLING WITH THE PICKERS ALLEY
The Benefits:
EASE
We start with a complimentary on-site evaluation, scheduled at your convenience. Within 48 hours of the completed evaluation you will receive a customized liquidation proposal. Our rates are competitive and tailored to meet your estate needs. We handle everything from sorting, cataloging, research, staging, photography, marketing, advertising and staff through sale completion & pick-up. If you’re happy with the proposal and wish to proceed with the sale, just sign & return the contract … we do the rest!
ACCESSIBILITY & EXPOSURE
Our method reaches a broader audience. With traditional estate sales you are limited to whoever happens to be in the area and willing to invest their time to take the trip and shop the sale. The online format allows bidders to take their time and view all of your items from the comfort of their home, or on-the-go with mobile devices. Everyone can shop from anywhere at anytime while your sale is live, and can easily be viewed by bidders from a wide geographical range.
Levels the playing field for buyers. The online auction format allows everyone a fair chance to see and bid on every item in the sale. This increases the overall revenue of the sale.
SELL MORE
We know … sometimes it’s hard to see Grandma’s favorite mug walk away for $1. Unlike a traditional estate sale, with online auctions, 98-100% of items will sell online. This leaves you with more money in your pocket. It also diminishes the possibility of having 14 tables of miscellaneous “stuff” left over or you having to hire a clean-out contractor after your sale.
MORE ACCURATE PRICING & INCREASED REVENUE
A traditional estate sale relies solely on the knowledge and expertise of the estate sale company to determine the final pricing, which despite anyone’s best effort is not an exact science.
The online auction format opens your items up to a competitive bidding environment in which prices are determined by the consumer, and often exceed expectations due to unforeseeable factors, such as bidders willing to pay more for reasons such as convenience or nostalgia.
Plus, the competitive and timed bidding environment tends to excite bidders and drive prices.
PRIVACY & SECURITY
Not interested in having strangers poking through your property? The online format reduces the likelihood of damage and theft because bidders do not enter the premises during pick-up.
If bidders wish to see your items before they bid, they do so in a well-staffed, relaxed and controlled preview environment without all the commotion of buyer’s haggling, money exchanging hands and people moving about and picking-up property.
All payments are made by debit or credit card, pre-approved when bidders register, within four (4) hours of the close of the sale, eliminating the risk of bad checks and counterfeit cash. Your items are paid for before the buyer’s even arrive to pick-up!
TRANSPARENCY & QUICK SETTLEMENT
Since all items are sold online you can follow the bidding live. Once the sale is complete you will receive an itemized inventory list and settlement check typically within two (2) weeks of the close of the sale.
CONTACT US TO SCHEDULE A COMPLIMENTARY ON-SITE EVALUATION!
This User Agreement ("Agreement") is made and entered into by and between:
Clearing House Estate Sales, LLC, a Connecticut limited liability company, d.b.a. The Pickers Alley, with a principal place of business at 1720 Fairfield Avenue, Bridgeport, CT 06605 ("CHES", "The Pickers Alley", "Company", "We", "Us", or "Our")
AND
You, the User of this site ("You", "User", or "Your").
BY BROWSING OR PLACING BIDS WITH THE COMPANY, YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU HAVE READ, UNDERSTOOD, AND AGREE TO BE BOUND BY THE TERMS OF THIS AGREEMENT.
This Agreement governs Your access to participation in online auctions conducted by the Company.
Your continued use of the Site constitutes your ongoing agreement to this Agreement. We reserve the right to amend this Agreement at any time without prior notice. Your continued use after publishing of any such amendments will be considered Your acceptance of those amendments. We recommend that You periodically review this Agreement to ensure You are aware of the most up-to-date terms and conditions.
Please note that throughout this Agreement, the terms "You" and "Your" refer to you, the individual user of the Site.
1. USE OF SITE
You may use the Site only in accordance with and subject to these Terms of Use. Once You complete and submit your registration You have opted-in to receive email communication from us and in order to remain a member of this Site, You must agree to receive email from us.
The Pickers Alley is a Clearing House Estate Sales company. As such, You authorize Clearing House Estate Sales, LLC (CHES) to charge the credit or debit card You have entered on this site for the hammer price of an item which You were the high bidder plus the buyer's premium and all applicable sales tax plus shipping/handling fees (if applicable). Your card will be charged within 24 hours of auction end. Shipping/handling fees may be processed as a separate charge at time of shipping and will include any applicable insurance. Failure to keep valid credit card information on file will result in your use of the site being terminated.
To initiate your ability to bid with the Company, an itinital $1.00 pre-authorization transaction will appear on your statement. This pending transaction will not settle and will drop off after 5 -7 business days (American Express & Discover may take longer).
You certify that You are an authorized user of this credit card and that You will not dispute the purchase payments with Your credit card company provided the transactions correspond to the terms indicated in this authorization outline.
2. MEMBERSHIP ELIGIBILITY
Our auctions are available to members who are 18 years and older and who have not been suspended or removed by Us for any reason. By becoming a member You represent that You are of legal age.
As a member, You agree to provide true accurate, current and complete information about yourself as prompted by the Site's registration forms.
In addition, as a member, You agree and acknowledge that You will maintain valid credit card info within Your membership profile so long as You maintain an account with Us.
3. BUYER’S CONTRACT
Bids placed with the Company are a binding contract and You are responsible for paying all amounts due to the Company (processed through Clearing House Estate Sales, LLC) including sale price, buyer's premium and all applicable taxes. You agree to carefully read and understand the terms for each sale including buyers premiums, pick-up dates and times, etc.
Do not bid if You are unable to pay for and take possession of the items in the specified time periods for each auction, sale or event. Any items You win and do not settle (pay) within 24 hours of auction close are eligible for sale to underbidder(s).
All sales are final. No returns, credits or exchanges.
4. ITEM DESCRIPTIONS
All items are sold as-is, where-is.
While We do our best to list any damage, repairs or restorations, the absence of these descriptions or conditions does not imply that the lot is in perfect condition. Most of the items We sell are antique, vintage or used. You should expect signs of wear consistent with age.
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The Company may offer preview inspections for the sole purpose of allowing the opportunity for personal inspection before placing your bids. Lack of preview inspections in no way changes Your responsibility to perform due-diligence before placing any bid(s).
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Condition reports may be available (contact the individual Auction Manager for inquiries). Lack of condition report(s) in no way changes Your responsibility to perform due-diligence before placing any bid(s).
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You agree to review all photos carefully prior to placing any bid(s). You also agree to accept photos as part of the overall description.
All sales are final. No returns, credits or exchanges.
5. BUYER’S PREMIUM
The Company charges a buyer’s premium (typically 18%) to the hammer price in all auctions. You agree to review the buyer's premium for each sale prior to placing any bid(s). The Company lists buyer's premiums on the auction details/summary page. The buyer's premium will be charged along with the hammer prices and applicable sales tax to the credit or debit card You have on file with Us within 24 hours of the auction end.
6. SALES TAX
All sales are subject to appropriate sales tax laws.
Tax Examptions. Tax exempt buyers must provide the appropriate current/valid state sales tax exemption certificate prior to the end of the sale. If You provide a sales tax certificate, upon receipt and approval of such information by the Company, Your future purchases will not be taxed. Tax resale forms can be submitted in your membership profile. Your profile name and address must be the same as your resale certificate. Certificates that do not match the User's profile will not be approved.
7. RETENTION OF CREDIT CARD INFORMATION
By providing Your credit card information to the Company, You authorize Clearing House Estate Sales, LLC to charge Your credit card for the purchase amount of any successful bid plus the buyer's premium, any applicable taxes, and any applicable shipping/handling fees.
Your card will be charged within 24 hours of auction end. Failure to keep valid credit card information on file will result in Your use of the site being terminated.
To initiate your ability to bid with the Company, an itinital $1.00 pre-authorization transaction will appear on Your statement. This pending transaction will not settle and will drop off after 5 -7 business days.
You certify that You are an authorized user of this credit card and that You will not dispute the purchase payments with your credit card company provided the transactions correspond to the terms indicated in this authorization outline.
The Company does not store your credit card information for security purposes.
8. PICK-UP
If You are a successful bidder, You must pick up Your items at the designated sale location within the assigned time frame as stated in the sale details page. You waive Your right to refund and/or chargeback dispute due to Your failure to pick-up Your auction winnings during the scheduled pick-up date(s) and time(s).
The Company and its Auction managers will not leave lots outside for pick-up before or after the assigned time frame. Please do not ask Auction Managers to do so.
If after winning an item You determine You are unable to pick up your items during the scheduled removal times and dates, You are responsible to arrange for a third-party ("Agent", "Assignee") to pick-up in your place and notify the Auction Manager in writing with the name of the Assignee/Agent authorized to sign for and take possession of your winnings. In the event You are unable to secure an Assignee/Agent, You must contact the Auction Manager at least 24 hours prior to the pick-up date. The Auction Manager will determine if alternate arrangements can be made. Any alternate arrangements are at the sole discretion of the Auction Manager and will be subject to transport, labor and/or storage fees. Inability to provide alternate pick-up arrangements does not, in any way, preclude You from Your obligation to fulfil Your pick-up agreement. Failure to pick-up Your lots as agreed will lead to forfeiture of same lot(s).
9. FORFEITURE OF ITEMS
You agree to forfeit any items not paid and/or not picked up during the specified pick up time in accordance with the Site’s Terms & Conditions. The Company at its sole discretion will reoffer the items or donate them to a charity of the Company's choosing. You agree to not dispute payments/charges made to Your card due to Your forfeiture of items won as the result of Your failure to pick-up same lot(s). The Company reserves the right to report Your account to collections for the combined total of the original invoice amount plus any moving or disposal charges. Your membership with the Company will be revoked unless past due invoices and any additional charges are paid in full.
10. PROHIBITED USE
You agree not to sell, license, rent, modify, distribute, copy, reproduce, transmit, publicly display, publicly perform, publish, adept, edit or create derivative works from content or materials on the SIte. Use of the content and materials for any purpose not expressly permitted in these Terms of Use is prohibited. You may not decompile, reverse engineer, dissassemble, or otherwise reduce the Site to a human-perceivable form, except and only to the extent that such activity is expressly permitted by applicable law, and in that case, only if You notify us in writing in advance . You may not copy, frameset, enclose or otherwise distribute any part of the Site.
A NOTE ABOUT EXTENDED BIDDING ("SOFT CLOSE")
The Company uses AuctionNinja software which includes extended bidding (a.k.a. "soft close"). The online, automated system will automatically extend the closing time of a lot (auction item) whenever a bid is placed within the last five minutes of its scheduled closing to allow other interested bidders an opportunity to increase their bid (if the wish to do so). This may occur multiple times on any given lot depending on bidder interest. Once all interest and bidding in a lot ceases, the clock will run out and the lot will close.
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