What we handle
Selling the contents
Working out what is worth selling, and getting it sold — before the rest is cleared.
Island Estate Clearing identifies what in a property has resale value and routes each item to the right buyer, whether by consignment, auction or a private sale. Nobody in the family has to decide what anything is worth first. Consignment, auction, specialist buyers and on-site sales are all used across Vancouver Island, and Nanaimo holds the widest local buyer pool of the four areas — 1 reason more can be sold there than donated.
The single most useful thing to know before making a call is that nobody has to work out what anything is worth first. That is the job.
What determines the return is what is actually there, not the size of the house: furniture of a saleable era, tools, jewellery, collections assembled deliberately, and equipment in a working shop.
What sells and what does not
Furniture from a saleable era, quality tools and machinery, jewellery, deliberately assembled collections, and equipment in a working shop are the categories that reliably carry value. A great deal of ordinary household goods does not, and pretending otherwise wastes the estate's time. Being straightforward about which is which is more useful than optimism.
Where things go
Depending on the item, the route is consignment, auction, a private sale to a specialist buyer, or an on-site sale. Household goods that will not sell but remain usable are offered to local donation channels rather than sent to disposal.
Estate sale commissions, and what is actually published
Estate sale companies work on commission. The range is 25 to 45 percent of gross sales, and 45 percent is the most common.
A record for the estate
What sold, through which channel, and for how much is recorded in writing. For an executor accounting to beneficiaries, that record is the point.
How contents are sold
- Identification and appraisal
- Walking the property to separate what carries resale value from what does not.
- Consignment and auction placement
- Routing items to the channel that suits them rather than selling in bulk.
- Specialist and private sales
- Tools, machinery, jewellery and deliberately assembled collections.
- Written settlement record
- What sold, where, and for how much — for the estate file.
How the contents get sold
- Identificationthe property is walked and anything with likely resale value is flagged and photographed.
- Appraisal where it is warranteditems that may carry real value are appraised and accounted for before anything else is cleared.
- Routing to a buyerconsignment, auction, specialist buyer or on-site sale, chosen per item rather than in bulk.
- Written settlementa record of what sold and through which channel, for the estate file.
What the housing here means
Selling contents only works where there are buyers. Nanaimo carries the widest range of second-hand, consignment and auction buyers of the four areas, which materially widens what can be sold rather than donated across the surrounding communities.
People also ask
- Does anyone need to know what things are worth first?
- No. Identifying what carries value is part of the work. Nothing needs to be researched, sorted or priced before making contact.
- What commission do estate sale companies charge?
- The range is 25 to 45 percent of gross sales, and 45 percent is the most common.
- What happens to things that will not sell?
- Usable household goods are offered to local donation channels, and what remains is recycled or disposed of.
- Is there a record of what was sold?
- Yes. What sold, through which channel and for how much is recorded in writing for the estate file.
Related: clearing the house and downsizing moves · what household contents are worth · Nanaimo, Parksville
Clearing and preparing the contents of a family home, across Vancouver Island.
Nothing has to be sorted, identified or valued first. Send whatever is known and a walk-through can be arranged.