Senior Downsizing Services | Auction House | Move Management | Junk Removal

Transition Squad^® Turnkey Downsizing Services

Transition Squad offers a one stop shop to help clients downsize. We offer a menu of services which can be packaged together based on the unique needs of each client. However, our specialty is to help our clients sell their belongings through our own online auction platform and auction house.

Our Mission

To take away the burden of the downsizing process,
To find a good home for your belongings, and
To get you the most money we can for them.

Our Services Include:

If you can set up a garage sale, you can set up your own online auction. With our Do It Yourself Online Auctions, you simply send us photos and an inventory list, and manage the pickup of items that are won. We do the rest. We provide you with one hour of upfront phone training, after which you'll be an expert, and ongoing support throughout the process. As well, we:

Build a custom web page for your auction
Conduct the online auction using our auction platform
Advertise and market your auction
Collect credit card payment from winners
Provide you with winner receipts to manage the pickup, and
Charge you a much lower commission as you are doing some of the work.

If you need help with photography, we can even send over a professional photographer to ensure your pictures look their best. Great pictures generate higher bids. Once we have your photos and inventory, the entire auction can be done in as little as 7-10 days.

If you are a dealer that sells items on a regular basis, ask about our trade rates.

Need help setting up lots, managing photography, creating an inventory list, pricing your items, and managing the pickup? Our Territory Managers and Franchisees are ready to help, starting with a free in-home consultation.

The entire process can take as little as two weeks. We recommend you do not get rid of anything in advance as items you may throw away or donate may have more value than you think.

Unlike most companies in this business, we do not start items at $1. We research items and price them fairly but aggressively to entice bidding. It takes us a little longer to do the homework than just starting everything at $1, but ensures that you get a reasonable value for your belongings. Most of our clients tell us that they would rather donate their items to someone in need rather than sell it to someone for $1 who may then flip it on Ebay for a profit.

Estate sales are like whole house garage sales. Your local Transition Squad^® team will stage virtually everything in the home for sale that you do not want to keep. They will photograph and price the items, and market the sale. Typically, the sale will be a weekend morning event. Our team will arrive very early (like 7:30 AM) and start handing out tickets for entry on a first come, first serve basis. There are sometimes hundreds of people lined up when the doors open and it is a mad rush to grab the best items. Our highest traffic sale had over 2,000 people between 9:00 AM and 4:00 PM. People will line up very early, sometimes even sleep overnight in their cars to get the first tickets. Approximately 25 people are let in at a time due to fire regulations and security. There are several staff members working and watching various areas of the home while also wheeling and dealing. After the sale is over, typically late in the afternoon, the seller returns and the money is counted together. It is a very fast-paced, hectic day.

Most companies in this industry are liquidators. Transition Squad^® is not. We're project managers. Our job is to find ways to get the most money for our clients' belongings with the least amount of hassle for them. Every home has three levels of contents:

Garage sale type items
Mid-level value items
Higher value, more desirable items

If you just have an estate sale, then everything including the higher value, more desirable items, get liquidated at garage sales prices. Even items that are already priced to liquidate are low-balled even further by bargain hunters. Often, the more valuable items also sell for much less than they're worth or not at all.

On the other hand, if you just have an online auction, there is a bidding war for all the desirable items with some of the auction frenzy spilling over onto the mid-level items. The garage sale items are typically left for disposal. However, the total dollars that be made on tools and other garage sale type items can really add up.

Transition Squad^®'s unique two step process gives you the best of both worlds. First, we conduct an online auction so there is a bidding war for all the desirable items. Then, for anything left unsold, we hold an estate sale in conjunction with the pickup of the auction winnings. The end result is more items are sold overall and more money is generated for our clients overall. Using this approach, we've actually had many a situation where virtually everything was sold.

As part of our menu of services, we offer a full turnkey clear out service. Whether you are having an auction first or not, we can provide you with a very competitive quote to clear out the premises as well as pack and handle your move to your new residence. We can even sell what we can through our Consignment Auction House to help offset your clearout costs, drop off as much as possible to donation outlets and where possible get you a tax receipt, and dispose of the rest. If are in a crunch, we can offer a quick clear out solution that can be done in a matter of days.

Moving can be stressful. Our Move Management service coordinates and manages your entire move to your new home, from getting quotes from reputable, insured movers, packing and transportation, all at competitive rates to provide peace of mind and ease of relocation.

CONDOS ARE OUR SPECIALTY! Most companies cannot conduct business in condos to help you sell your things. But we can. Our unique approach and turnkey service make it possible for us to do things that other companies cannot.

When you set an asking price for a home, you are setting a ceiling. Barring special circumstances, you are effectively telling buyers that you are ok with that amount and that they don't need to pay any more. Consequently, offers come in lower and a mutually agreed upon price is typically negotiated somewhere in between after some back and forth. However, if you start with a minimum net amount that you need in your pocket and let buyers compete, the price could go well above the price you would have otherwise received.

Real estate agents across North America are creating multiple offer opportunities for their seller clients by setting asking prices below market value and holding off accepting offers for several days. This technique gets excited local buyers to the table and creates a competitive bidding situation that drives up the price. Sellers then review all offers and accept the one they like best or walk away if their minimum price target is not met. This technique is effectively an auction but for mainstream homes, not for foreclosures, short sales or distressed properties, and works even better in a hot market. Transition Squad^® has developed a multiple offer solution that replicates this technique online through an auction process AND AT 0% (some conditions apply) FOR THE SELLER.

Our owner is a licensed Auctioneer and got his real estate license so we could offer a turnkey solution and one stop shopping. Our platform not only works with our own listings but we're happy to work with your agent or you directly as a private seller to market and auction your property for 0% commission as we charge a Buyer's Premium instead. The Buyer's Premium covers auction fees, marketing and agent commissions. Our auction methodology is designed to maximize your sale price, provide you with a full real estate sales experience and save you money. You get full MLS^® coverage plus additional marketing and open houses.

While most of our projects entail providing our services directly on behalf of our clients, we also run into situations where our clients need a quick close or don't want to go through the time and effort of selling their property and contents. In such cases, we can simply provide you with a fair cash offer to buy out your property and contents as-is and close on your schedule*. You don't have to worry about clearing out the premises, junk removal, repairs or upgrades. Simply take any items of sentimental value or that you want to keep for your new home with you. We'll take care of the rest. Closing can happen in as little as 7-10 days.

* Subject to inspection. Some conditions apply. Call for details.

If your home is in a state of chaos or you just need some decluttering, our organizing experts can help you put everything into a state of order so you don't feel overwhelmed. We charge hourly for the service so you can use us for as little or as much as you need. This service available where we have local representatives.

Generate an independent appraisal of contents to comply with estate tax rules and fair distribution of asset value. As well, our sister company, Automall Network, is a licensed dealer and an expert on vehicle valuations for major insurance companies. This service available where we have local licensed representatives.

Even if you don't need one our paid services, we still want to help you sell your things. We've created a free self serve, online classifieds marketplace to help expose your listings to our buyer database. Feel free to load it up with just about everything you want to sell.

To post or view items in our free classfieds, click here