After closing we noticed that in the 2-car detached garage the property has there was an "All Nighter" Wood Stove in what was otherwise a completely empty and clean space. We put it up for sale on Craigslist for $300 a couple days ago and had someone pick it up today and buy it for $250.
That made mew think that with all of the active investors we have here on BP, some of you must have some cool or not so cool "treasures" you uncovered while rehabbing homes. Let's hear about them!
Investor · Louisville, KY · Member since 2011 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
11y
Found this treasure in a short sale along with a bunch of other random stuff. Probably made about $1K on Craigslist and spent $1K on dumpsters to get rid of all the junk but I had to keep this. I keep it in my golf bag and pull it out whenever I want to lighten the mood or I'm trying to shave off a couple strokes (pun intended):
Investor · Sarasota, FL · Member since 2008 · 17k+ posts · 17k+ votes
11y
In a recent house, we found:
- Lots of ammunition (sold it in bulk for $500 to a gun collector from Facebook)
- Baseball cards (sold 4 cards for total of $200 on eBay)
- Large Buck knife collection (sold most of them for $600 on eBay, saved a few)
- Several thousand comic books (book value probably $1000-3000, though we haven't sold them yet)
- About two dozen books from the 1800s, in very good condition (likely not worth much, but very cool, and there is one book that has a good story to go with it that might help me to meet Neil deGrasse Tyson)
- An air rifle from the 1870s. I *think* it may be very valuable, but haven't been able to find an expert in this type of gun in my area. Still looking to get it appraised.
- Several guns, including two replica civil war guns and a classic (from the 1970s) Derringer pistol (total value about $300-400, it appears)
This was from one of two hoarder houses that we purchased in the same month. The other hoarder house likely had even more valuable stuff (including lots of very valuable comic books), but the owner cleaned out a lot of stuff before he left and the wholesaler I bought it from took some stuff before I got to it. We did get a new-in-box big screen TV (50", but about 15 years old), a new water heater, some tools, a couple 8mm video cameras from the 1960s and other random stuff.
Besides these two houses, we've never found much of value...
Investor · Philadelphia, PA · Member since 2015 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
11y
I've found some old coins before 1930s if I remember correctly.
Couple of tickets to a temperance event (pre prohibition).
Old newspapers used for insulation containing racist cartoons.
Investor · Louisville, KY · Member since 2011 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
11y
Found this treasure in a short sale along with a bunch of other random stuff. Probably made about $1K on Craigslist and spent $1K on dumpsters to get rid of all the junk but I had to keep this. I keep it in my golf bag and pull it out whenever I want to lighten the mood or I'm trying to shave off a couple strokes (pun intended):
Flipper/Rehabber · Seattle, WA · Member since 2014 · 415 posts · 401 votes
11y
The last hoarder house I just bought earlier this month had a BRAND NEW, never been opened, still in the packing cardboard PROFORM Elliptical. I have it on craigslist, but for some reason no one wants to buy it, probably because they have to put it together...or no one wants to work out.
Professional · Nokomis, FL · Member since 2013 · 123 posts · 99 votes
11y
No treasures... but when I managed a mobile home park in Venice Fl, we had an owner abandon his home... so after 6 months, we finally got possession and when I entered to check the place out, the first thing I found was... the previous owner in bed, where he had died 6 months earlier (long story, but due to past issues we were not able to enter his home without permission out of fear he would sue us...again)!
That was not a smell you EVER get out of your nostrils.
The "treasure" that sticks out in my mind was something that came from a protracted eviction of a problem tenant years ago. It turns out she was a working girl who brought her clients into the apartment for her services. When we got her out and cleared the apartment we found a photo album which had numerous pictures of her (she was about 350 lbs, mind you) seductively posing in lingerie, presumably for her clients to browse through. One thing that stuck out in my mind was that in some of the pictures you could see a TV on in the background, which was set to a gospel show.