House of Bid
Guides
Original articles — how the clock works, how to sort a house with Post-its and QR stickers, how families post an estate and build awareness, and how our catalogs differ from a walk-through directory.
estate auction basics
How a timed online estate auction works
A timed online estate auction is a photographed catalog with a closing clock on each lot. You register a paddle, bid from your phone or a browser, and collect wins at the sale address after the sale settles. There is no shipping cart. Preview days are usually before bidding ends.
Readbidding mechanics
What Bid now, Raise, and max bid mean
Bid now places the opening amount when nobody has bid yet. Once a bid stands, Raise places the next increment. A max bid is a private ceiling: the house bids the minimum needed to keep you winning, up to that amount. Other paddles never see your ceiling.
Readsale types
Estate sale, yard sale, and auction house — what is different
An estate sale on House of Bid is a family Event: one address, a photographed catalog, about 250 lots, $199 once. A yard sale is a smaller driveway catalog, $79 proposed. An auction house is a repeating business that applies for invitation and receives the Managed House rate card only after we approve.
Readfulfillment
How pickup works after you win
Winning is not shipping. Warehouse lots use a scheduled dock window. Estate and yard lots stay where they were photographed — you collect at the sale address. A pickup pass is issued after the sale settles. Staging does not charge a live card.
Readsellers families
How to list an estate sale
Post your estate first, then build awareness until enough people are watching. Launch the sale, add inventory in the rooms while you prepare for the date, and only then set the auction clock and preview. Photograph in place. Event is $199. Repeating houses apply at Join — not this family path.
Readmarket directory
House of Bid catalogs and EstateSales.NET listings
EstateSales.NET is a listing board. Families can post a few sales a year for a listing fee, but that site does not run the bidding software. House of Bid houses the estate on a clock: you commit to the auction, bidders bid, and what sells, sells. We do not scrape their catalogs. Bid here only when the lot is housed.
Readsellers families
Clear the house, protect a few lots, or leftover buy-now
A listing board lets you post a few sales a year. House of Bid houses the sale on a clock: bidders commit, and what sells, sells. Answer a short questionnaire so we know if you need to clear everything or protect a few lots. Floors and leftover buy-now stay below typical sold low. Comps are helpers, not an appraisal.
Readmarket directory
How to find an estate sale company
Families who do not want to run the sale themselves hire an estate sale company on House of Bid. Those companies photograph in the rooms and list a timed catalog here. Auction houses on Houses are catalogs you bid on. We do not scrape EstateSales.NET or copy their company directory. List your company at Join. Or run the sale yourself on Sell.
Readbidders
How to register a paddle
Open Register, enter name and email, and create a bidder. That paddle lets you explore catalogs, watch lots, and bid on the clock. You do not wait for an invitation. Guest paddles are off. Staging can load a test buyer without SMTP.
Readpricing literacy
How to read start bids, standing bids, and estimates
The start bid is the opening ask on a housed lot. Once someone bids, the standing bid is the live market. Typical sold ranges shown when we name a lot are comparable-sale helpers, not appraisals. Event $199 and Yard $79 are seller SKUs — not what a lot will hammer for.
Readestate sort
How to sort an estate sale room by room
Walk one room at a time. Mark every object with a Post-it: keep, donate, trash, or sell. Sell pieces get a QR sticker from our pack, an Amazon pack, or a sheet you print. Photograph each sell piece in place, then bind the sticker when the lot is named. Do not move the object after the photo.
Readestate sort
Post-its and QR stickers on an estate sale
Estate crews already sort with colored notes. House of Bid keeps that: yellow means sell, pink keep, green donate, blue trash. A sell note is not a catalog lot. Put a QR sticker on each sell piece so a scan opens the tag URL and binds the photographed object. Buy our pack, buy that pack on Amazon when the listing is live, or print the QR sheet.
Readestate sort
Print QR sheets or buy the sticker pack
Print House of Bid QR codes on a US Letter two-by-two sticker sheet. Each code is an unbound tag until someone binds it to a lot. The pack we sell is those same codes on vinyl with a Post-it legend card. You can order that pack from us, buy it on Amazon when the listing is live, or print the sheet at home. Checkout for the physical pack stays gated.
Readestate sort
Warehouse consignment vs sorting the house yourself
Warehouse consignment companies pick up the house contents, sort them off-site, photograph them on a studio table, and run a national timed auction. House of Bid keeps the walk in the rooms. Families mark keep, donate, trash, and sell with Post-its, QR-sticker only the sell pieces, and photograph in place. Choose Event or Yard on Sell, or apply as a repeating house on Join.
Readfulfillment
How staff run estate pickup after the clock
After the sale closes, only staff walk the house. Leave every paid piece in the room where it was photographed. Set a staging table at the front. Buyers wait there with a pass. Staff fetch by tag, scan, and match the invoice. A wrong handoff is a refund. If it is not marked, it does not leave.
Readsellers families
Seller lot-complete — we are good, then sign here
House of Bid will try to help if a piece is missed, but the seller must confirm each lot is complete before pickup starts. Walk the paid lots with staff. When both sides say we are good, the seller signs the lot-complete card, then leaves. Staff run the front. This card is an operations checklist, not legal advice.
Readlocal marketplace
How a local pickup-only marketplace works
Local works like Facebook Marketplace for pickup — list a photo, meet in person, pay at the handoff, no shipping. The difference is timed bidding: neighbors bid on a clock and the high bid wins, instead of messaging “Is this available?” or haggling with named offers like OfferUp. San Diego is first; other cities waitlist until enough neighbors join. Listings are not open yet.
Readsellers families
Where to post your estate sale link
A timed online estate catalog needs local eyes before the clock. House of Bid gives you paste text for Facebook Marketplace, Nextdoor, Craigslist yard, and printed flyers — you post; we do not auto-post where bots are banned. Our SEO helps search find our catalogs. Event is $199 once, not a percent of hammer.
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