Ten years ago, when clearing out my parents' home of 50 years, I had no idea what I was getting into, let alone what I was doing. I had never been to an estate sale; now I was going to have one. I took a week off from my job in Florida, flew to California and dove headfirst into the quicksand, a paralyzing quagmire of family history, memories, sentiment, legend and surprise-filled boxes, and all laced with my own guilt for being so ill-prepared to handle it all.
But I couldn't wallow. Though I had no earthly notion what anything should sell for, I made wild stabs at pricing so I could meet the goal of clearing out the house to get it on the market. The proceeds would help pay for my elderly parents' long-term care.
I get PTSD just thinking about it. The memories of this life-altering ordeal came flooding back this past week as I talked with Melissa Sullivan, owner of The Posh Peacock, an estate sales company serving greater Orlando, Fla. Sullivan fell into the world of estate sales four years ago after working in IT for 25 years.
Ready for a career change, she started helping a woman who had a small, private estate sale company but no technical skills. "She didn't accept credit cards, and didn't have a website," said Sullivan, who fixed that. Shortly after, the woman died of cancer.
Sullivan kept the business going and growing. Today, Posh Peacock handles about 25 sales a year. Knowing services like hers exist to clear out family homes and turn material objects into cash and .
