GthestrangerSo what about these “Storage Wars” programs?Wed Jul 11, 2012 5:02pm209.255.130.161In the past few years there have been several reality programs on cable about folks who make a living by speculating at storage unit auctions. I find the programs somewhat interesting but something about them doesn’t quite sit right with me. I don’t know all the rules for storage units because I have never rented one but it seems to me that in some respects they are taking advantage of the folks who are down and can’t, or don’t realize ( in the case of an heir to an estate) they need to pay rent on the valuables stored. As I understand it, once an owner of property stored becomes in arrears on their unit, they no longer can access it, which seems self defeating for the owner of the property stored, and on the other hand, self promoting for the storage auction biz.
Since they don’t go into too much detail about the rules, my questions would be:
1.How hard do they try to get a hold of owners/heirs to the units? I should think the least they need to do is a legal notice in an area paper where the property owner lives but I think they ought to make a much bigger effort than that to locate and make some arrangement with the owner (or heirs) of the property.
2.Why don’t the owners of the storage business just keep the stuff inside those units? Those shows make it seem like it would be well worth it. It might even be a decent proposition to become a storage unit liquidator with some amicable split with the storage company of things of value inside. That’s effectively what the bidders are but why not eliminate the auction part and give the liquidation contract to the liquidator with the best split?
3.Why don’t the owners of the stored property that are in arrears, ever show up to bid on the units, since they know there are valuables inside? Granted they are likely in no position financially but it would behoove them to figure something out in the case of storing high value items and heirlooms. Why not go in with someone who has money and they bring the inside info to the partnership? Are they also barred from being involved in the auctions? This makes me think many don't know their unit is in jeopardy.
4.Since they don’t allow folks that are in arrears to access the units, isn’t it the storage businesses lock that is on the unit so isn’t using a grinder or a big wire cutter really just for effect when they could just as easily use a key to open the lock?
Now I’ll grant that there are some folks out there who just don’t believe in paying their bills and try to take advantage any way they can and those folks need to learn the hard way. But for every one of them, I’m sure there are at least one (if not more) who are just down on their luck and going through a rough financial patch. I realize also that there is a lot that happens and is edited just for TV and the reality of storage auctions isn’t probably quite as dramatic and interesting as those shows would have us believe, and I’m sure the answers to some of these questions are spelled out in a storage unit contract, but not knowing the answers, as a casual viewer, makes me suspect there is something unethical going on since they don’t make things clear by not stating the details of everything that is involved. It’s a lot like a pawnbroker who low balls folks because he knows they are desperate, it’s perfectly legal, but not quite ethical.
G
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