Here are some common questions we receive:
What is an Estate Sale?
The definition has certainly changed over the years. In the past, an Estate Sale was conducted to sell the complete contents of a home after someone passed away. In recent years, an Estate or Moving Sale might also be the result of downsizing or a transfer to another city or country where a family needs to sell all or the majority of the items in their home.
What do we need to do before we hire an Estate Sale company?
Nothing! It’s best to call us to do a ‘walk through’ of the home to determine the best strategy for the family. There is no fee to this service – just a quick evaluation to understand what the family’s needs are, to determine if an Estate Sale is right for the home. We’ve found that many families spend countless hours doing work in the home that the Estate Sale company can do for them.
What does Blue Tape charge for coordinating a Sale?
While every family and home differs because of size and contents, so does our price structuring. A home that will take 7 days to set up will have a different fee than a 3 day set up. Generally speaking, Blue Tape charges a percentage of the total sales, or a minimum. Within 48 hours of the sale’s completion, Blue Tape will issue a check to the homeowner/estate for the proceeds, minus our fees.
What if we don’t have enough for an Estate Sale?
This situation is quite common. In the almost 15 years we’ve helped families with their transitions, there have been a handful of times I’ve said, “Sorry, we can’t help you.” There are many alternatives to liquidating a home’s contents that include (but not limited to) a Clean Out, Online Estate Sale, full donation, buyout (from a recommended provider) or an auction. Many times, when there are good items but not enough to hire a company to coordinate, Blue Tape has set up for the sale and the family runs it. Blue Tape can help guide you in the right direction to a solution that is timely and many times profitable.
How does Blue Tape advertise?
Blue Tape has a direct email list of over 5,500 people that receives each sale alert, sales are posted on Estatesales.net (Gold Members) and our website as well as several Facebook pages for maximum exposure.
What happens with the stuff leftover from the sale and do you clean up afterwards?
We are happy to coordinate whatever the homeowner/Estate would like, but options offered include working with a charity and liquidator to remove unsold items (which usually isn’t much!) or, on a rare occasion, families request for the unsold items to stay in the home. After the home is cleared out, Blue Tape will sweep, vacuum and wipe countertops, leaving the home, what we call, “Realtor Ready”. Please note that we do not scrub toilets or bathtubs or clean windows … we don’t like doing that at our homes, we’re not gonna do it at yours 🙂
How did you come up with the name “Blue Tape” for an Estate Sale company?
The Blue Tape name came to me after a lonnnng period of coordinating and sequencing a lot of life at one time and thinking it was best if I handled it on my own without asking for help. I have enjoyed painting rooms for many years and when painting, I “cut in” with the accuracy of a surgeon. At one job, I had attempted to ‘cut in’ an uneven wall/ceiling about five times when someone suggested I use blue painter’s tape to get it straight. Reluctantly, I rolled it out and the result was near perfect. Oddly enough, that moment triggered a realization for me that it’s a good thing to ask for help … from God, friends and family, and yes, blue tape.
If you could have ANY other job in the world other than this, what would it be?
Not applicable. I’ve got it 🙂 Every member of the Blue Tape “A” Team is a family member or dear friend, we get to help families all over the city, we have a different office every week, the table hauling and set up eliminates Fitness Center fees, we get to see and get to know happy buyers at every sale and it is especially cool that we get to wear snazzy Blue Tape Aprons!
Nancy Sinovic
Owner, Blue Tape Sales & Services
913.709.9016
