Frequently Asked Questions

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Estate Liquidation refers to an industry of professionals who are hired by their clients to empty a home or building of all personal property. We do this by selling items directly from the property as well as performing donations and discarding of items. Most of the items will be sold at an Estate Sale over a weekend that is open to the public to come in and shop. In addition we also sell to our network of dealers, collectors and shop keepers who we have built wonderful relationships with over the years. At the end of our work, our client has a property that is empty of all personal property, enabling them to move forward with the property's next phase including leasing the property, listing it for sale or even going into renovations.

You don't pay us. We pay you! Like most estate liquidators, Mercanti works on Commission. You don't even have to pay us anything up front. By giving us access to your property for a period of time and permission to perform an estate sale, we are able to sell off hundreds if not thousands of items, generating income. We then split this income with you after the estate sale has culminated. 

We typically offer a standard 50/50 commission split with most of our clients. A high-end home with valuable collectibles, jewelry or artwork can sometimes procure a lower commission rate from us. A messy, packed home with worthwhile vintage collectibles will incur a higher rate. It does not make sense to offer the same commission rate across the board as all homes are different, just like people. Some homes are a huge amount of work with lower-value items, while other homes are less work with high-value items.

A 50/50 commission split is extremely fair and common for most estate sales. There is a tremendous amount of time, energy, preparation, labor and expertise that goes into producing a successful estate sale. Some companies will offer a lower commission split like 30% in order to get the job. We don't do that. Our advice; choose the best company you can find. Look at their website, past sales and check out their reviews. Go with the company that seems the most professional, the most honest, and the most capable of procuring sales. Let's do some math together. 70% of $5,000 is $3,500 while 50% of $10,000 is $7,000. Are you following? Choose the best company, not the company offering to take the lowest commission.

Unfortunately there are predatory companies that take advantage of people even after the passing of a family member. Mercanti will never bill a client for our services. If we think an estate will not gross enough income in order to cover all of our expenses, we will not take the job. We will never blindside our clients with hidden fees nor have them come out of pocket for any expenses during or after the estate liquidation process.

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