As our South Florida auctioneers can attest, buying used restaurant equipment at auction can be an enjoyable experience. However, would-be buyers that have never attended an auction in South Florida before may also find themselves feeling a bit nervous. So to help ease their anxiety, our South Florida auctioneers wanted to share their auction dos and don’ts for first time, restaurant equipment buyers:
- Don’t forget to make sure that you take note of which type of South Florida auction you will be participating in and what the rules are ahead of time. In doing so, you’ll be able to bid in confidence and lessen your chances of losing out on a fabulous deal. Some of the types of South Florida auctions to become familiar with are those designated as live public, telephone bid, live online and absentee bid.
- Do remember to bring your valid, Florida State Sales Tax Exemption Certificate with you and present it at settlement time. Otherwise, you won’t be able to walk away with your used restaurant equipment sales tax free. Just in case you are not familiar with the form needed to apply for exemption, it’s called the DR-5. And you can find out more about it by contacting the Florida Department of Revenue.
- Don’t forget to bring enough funds with you to the auction. In most instances, our South Florida auctioneers accept cashier’s checks, wire transfers, cash, in-house financing and direct deposits as valid forms of payment. However, if you are still unsure about which payment method to use, please feel free to call our South Florida auctioneers in advance for further assistance.
- Do remember to print out any additional paperwork that you may need during the South Florida auction as well. Examples include bank letters of guarantee, absentee bid forms, wiring instructions, international shipping contracts and bonded warehouse documentation.
- Do remember to carefully inspect each piece of used restaurant equipment that you are interested in bidding on. For some items, like ovens and refrigeration units, you may want to enlist the aid of an expert technician. As far as other restaurant supplies go, a cursory, visual exam by a layman may do (e.g. dinnerware).
To speak with our South Florida auctioneers and learn more dos and don’ts that will help get you through your first auction, please contact us at Lauro Auctioneers today.
