1 Getting Started

2 Login / Create a New Account

3 My Account

4 Settings

5 Facility Mgmt

6 Facility Homepage

7 Auction Photos

8 Post an Online Auction

9 Relist an Unsold Auction

10 Cancel an Auction

11 Complete the Sale

12 Paid Invoice13 Reports14 Bidder Issues

15 Common Questions

Contact Contact Us

1Getting Started

StorageTreasures.com (managed by OpenTech Alliance) is a storage lien auction website . This Training Manual was created to provide instructions and best practice recommendations for posting online storage lien auctions on StorageTreasures.com. StorageTreasures.com makes no assurances or guarantees as to the success of auctions self-posted by the storage facilities. Storage facilities should follow their State lien laws regarding delinquent tenants and lien notice requirements.

Facility management should also perform due diligence and contact their local DMV for the proper procedures for disposing of vehicles. Seek the advice of an attorney, if needed.

We recommend either Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox web browsers be used to access StorageTreasures.com. Mobile devices can also be used. Internet Explorer may exhibit issues with certain features.

Auction Lien Notice Revision

It is recommended that the Auction Lien Notice and/or newspaper publication be revised to notify the tenant and prospective bidders that the auction will be held online on StorageTreasures.com. This will inform the bidders and tenants that the auction will not be a live on-site auction typically conducted by an auctioneer.

Revise the Auction Lien Notice and/or newspaper publication by replacing the ‘location of the storage facility’ with the following text:

“the auction will be held online on www.StorageTreasures.com.”

Online Publications

LegalNoticeLocator.com is an online publication website managed by StorageTreasures.com. If your State lien laws allow for publications to be posted online, you can advertise your auctions for free on this website. Seek the advice of an attorney, if needed.

2Login / Create a New Account

Current UserCheck with upper management to obtain login credentials for your store. You can also contact Customer Support or your BDM to obtain your login information. Once you have your login credentials:1. Go to www.StorageTreasures.com; 2. Login to the account. 3. Click “My Account”

New UserIf you are a first time user, you will need to create a new account:1. Go to www.StorageTreasures.com;2. Create a New Account;3. Click the “Facility Manager” button;4. Enter your facility manager Contact Information;5. Enter Account Password and answer security questions;6. Select how you heard about StorageTreasures.com;7. Review and agree to the Terms of Use Agreement;8. Click “Continue to Step 2 (New Facility Details)”;8. Enter Store ID (Optional);9. Enter Facility Name, Address and website URL;10. Opt-in to Charity Storage (Optional);11. Select the Property Management System that you use; 12. Click “Submit” button;13. Login to the account.

Multiple Facility & User AccountsIf you have multiple facilities that you need to manage, we can link them to your user account. We can set a Facility Manager to only have access to their respective store. District or Area Managers can be linked to the group of facilities they manage. There is no limit to the number of users that can be linked to a facility.

Linking user accounts to multiple facilities can only be set up by your BDM or Customer Support. A Facility Account spreadsheet may be needed, if there are several user accounts, which can be provided to you by your BDM or Account Manager.

TrainingWe can provide one-on-one training on how to set up your account and post an online auction, or you can join one of our training webinars, held on the 2nd and 4th Tuesday of each month at 1pm MST (Arizona Time) hosted by one of our Business Development Managers.

Video PresentationsWe have several video presentations covering our Best Practices, Benefits of Online Auctions, Legal Webinars with two of the top self storage industry attorneys, Carlos Kaslow & Scott Zucker, and a Training Webinar recording. Click HERE to access our video page.

3My Account

There are eight (8) tabs under “My Account”, with various features and tools. Below is a brief explanation of each tab. Detailed instructions are provided in the pages to follow.

1. Dashboard: Once auctions are posted, data will appear under Online Auctions Snapshot (depending on auction status) for a 30-day period: the number of Active Auctions and total Bid Value, a button to View Active Auctions, the number of Sold, Unsold and Cancelled Auctions, Top Performing Auctions, Most Recent Bids and Top Winning Bidders.

2. Settings: Edit user Account Settings, provide Billing Contact (Optional/for mgmt companies), or Change Password

3. Facility Mgmt: Manage Facility Settings, Auctions, view Lien Laws, Facility Homepage, and Post an online auction

a. Online Auctions: View your active online auctions

b. Live Auctions: View your live (onsite) auction listings

c. View Invoices: View Invoices of sold online auctions

d. Lien Laws: View your State’s lien laws

e. Facility Homepage: View your facility homepage

f. Edit Facility: Edit Facility details, upload facility logo and advertisement, default auction settings, office hours of operation, features at this facility, and Charity Storage opt-in

4. Online Auctions: View and manage Active, Sold, Unsold, Cancelled, Cancelled after Sold , Draft and Imported Auctions

5. Live Auctions: View and manage Live (onsite) Auction listings

6. Invoices: View Invoices of sold auctions

7. Reports: Export Excel reports of your Online and Live Auctions, and Storage Facilities

8. Training: Recommended auction default settings and Training materials

TIP: To return to your Account, click “My Account” at the top right of the page, next to the “Log Out” button.

4Settings

Under the Settings tab, you can update your User Account details, add Billing Contact, reset your User Account password and update your Secret Question.

From “My Account” click the “Settings” tab

Edit Settings

1. Account Information: Update your Name, Email, Phone, Address and Time Zone

2. Billing Contact (Optional): Billing contact details are optional (commonly used by management companies) for cancellation invoices

Account Password & Security

1. Reset your password: The Password Requirements must be followed. The red “x” will turn green when each requirement is met

2. Secret Question: If you need to reset your secret question, choose one of the six questions and input your Secret Answer in the field on the right

3. Update Account Settings: Always save any changes

5Facility Mgmt

On the “Facility Mgmt” tab, you can update Facility Settings, Manage Active Online Auctions or

Live Auction listings, view your Lien Laws, view your Facility Homepage, Edit Facility details and

Post an Online Auction

Edit Facility

Click on “Edit Facility” (pencil icon), to the right of your Storage Facility

Here we will update facility details, set auction default settings, and set up your dedicated facility homepage, to showcase your auctions

5Facility Mgmt (continued)

Edit Facility Details

1. Update your facility details, confirm the address and phone number are correct

2. Upload your facility’s logo

3. Upload an advertisement, to announce discounts to bidders or tenants (optional)

4. Add your facility’s website URL to increase your online presence (recommended)

5Facility Mgmt (continued)

Default Auction Settings

Here we can add default settings which will auto-populate to your online auction postings

1. Sales Tax: Input sales tax rate for your facility’s location (if you will be reporting tax)(example: 8.2 not .082)

2. Cleaning Deposit: $100 is recommended. The cleaning deposit is an additional amount that you would collect from the bidder, typically in cash. Once you have verified that the bidder has emptied and broom swept the unit, refund the deposit. The deposit keeps the bidders accountable and less inclined to leave unwanted items in the unit

3. Cleanout Time: Choose 24, 48 or 72 hours clean-out time. This is the amount of time the bidder has to pay for and clean out unit. We recommend 72 hours to reach bidders that are a farther distance from your facility

4. Accepted Payment Options at Facility: Cash is recommended. Credit/Debit card or Check/Money Order are additional payment types. If no payment type is selected, there is no payment type listed on the auctions and the bidders do not know what form of payment to take to the facility to pay for the unit.

5. Additional Information: This is optional. Add your facility’s auction rules such as ‘no dumpster use, make appointment with manager to pickup unit, etc.’ (obtain sample rules from your BDM)

5Facility Mgmt (continued)

Hours of Operation

Set your Office Hours of Operation to appear on your facility’s homepage. Set Monday’s Open and Close times, then select the button “Copy times from Monday to the rest of the week.” You can then update Saturday to shortened hours and set Sunday as “Closed All Day”, for example

Features at this Facility

Check the boxes of available features at your facility, to appear on your facility’s homepage

5Facility Mgmt (continued)

Opt-in to Charity Storage

Check this box to have your facility designated as a donation drop-off point for tenants or your community, and to list Charity Storage on your facility homepage. Designate an empty unit for donations then post the unit for auction as a ‘charity auction’. A portion of the sale proceeds will go to a charity of your choice.

A Charity Storage Representative will contact you for your charity of choice, explain the program, and answer any questions that you may have. Visit CharityStorage.org for more information.

Update Facility Information: Always save any changes

You will receive a Facility Homepage on StorageTreasures.com, to showcase your storage facility and auctions. The link to this webpage can be provided to tenants and bidders.

To view your facility homepage, click “Facility Mgmt” then the “Facility Homepage” button

Below is an example of a Facility Homepage

TIPS: Share your Facility Homepage on your social media pages (see above).

Add your Facility Homepage URL (below) on your store’s auction webpage.

We can send you a flyer and bidder cards to place on your counter. Ask your BDM or Customer Support!

6Facility Homepage

7Auction Photos

Photos are the Most Important Selling Point of Online Auctions1. We recommend that you use a digital camera. A smartphone can also be used.

2. Camera Flash should be set to ‘On’

3. Camera resolution settings should be set to 1600x1200 (or higher, up to 2500)

4. Take 5 to 15 clear, quality photos. Stand outside of the unit. We recommend that you do notenter the unit, move or remove items, for liability reasonsa. First, take a photo of the unit number. This photo is to help you when renaming or

creating folders for each unit, so you know which unit the photos belong to. We do not recommend that you post the photo showing the unit number to your auction

b. Then, take a photo of the entire unitc. Then, photo each quadrant (top left, top right, bottom left, bottom right)

d. Zoom in, photo marketable items, photo at different anglese. Close and lock the unit

f. Add a Lock ID Tag around the lock, then take a photo of the lock and tag (Optional)

5. Upload all photos to a PC or laptop. We suggest that you:a. Create a folder on the PC, to identify the auction dateb. Create a sub-folder within the auction date folder, for each unit numberc. Copy photos from camera to the respective unit folderd. Edit or crop the photos (including unit #s) prior to uploading to your auction posting

Storage Treasures’ Lock ID (or tamper) tags each have a unique

number. Adding a Lock ID tag is not required, but is highly

recommended, to assure the bidder that the unit has not been

opened since the photos were taken. Ask your BDM or Customer

Support to mail you complimentary tags for your auctions

8Post an Online Auction

Before posting your lien auctions, we recommend that you double-check that all of the lien requirements have been completed correctly. Also, confirm the auction date that is stated in the lien notice, as you must end the auction on or after that date/time.

1. New Auction: From the “Facility Mgmt” tab, click the “New Auction” button

You can also “Post Auction” by clicking the button near the top of the webpagebeneath the search box

2. Storage Facility Name: Confirm your facility is shown in the pull-down list.

(if no facility is chosen, auction posting will not be saved)

3. Auction Type: Select Auction Type:

a. Lien Unit: Unit of a delinquent tenant that is in default

b. Non-Lien Unit/Manager Special: Not a lien unit. Could contain abandoned items of tenants that moved out, surplus items, donated items, etc.

c. Charity Unit: Contains donated or abandoned items to be sold and the proceeds donated through Charity Storage. You can set a minimum bid on charity unit auctions. We do not charge a seller’s premium on charity units. 100% of proceeds are collected upfront by StorageTreasures from the winning bidder and sent to Charity Storage.

Visit charitystorage.org for information.

8Post an Online Auction (continued)

4. Auction Unit Information:

a. Unit Number: Input unit number (not publicized in auction posting, only shown on invoice)

b. Lock Tag ID: Input Lock (tamper) Tag ID number (not publicized in auction posting)

c. Unit Width/Unit Length: Select size of unit

d. Amount Owed on Unit: Input total amount owed as of the auction date (not publicized inauction posting)

e. Sales Tax: This is auto-populated from Default Auction Settings

f. Cleaning Deposit: This is auto-populated from Default Auction Settings

g. Cleanout Time: This is auto-populated from Default Auction SettingsYou can edit the auto-populated fields at time of posting, if needed. Example: A unit contains only a few items. Reduce the cleaning deposit amount to $50. If unit is full of large items, you may want to increase deposit to $150-$200

5. Unit Contents: a Describe items that are visible, without making assumptions (Example: do not

assume a TV box has a TV inside) b. Generalize descriptions (household furniture, clothing, boxes, totes, tools, and more)c. Avoid stating quantities of items unless all items are visibled. Excluded items must be clearly stated in description, such as vehicles, boats, firearms, or other

lien property. (Example: Car is NOT included in sale) e. For vehicles or boats, add the year, make and model. Include VIN/HIN number if you wishf. If boxes, totes or bins are visible, include in your descriptiong. If facility has multiple units rented by the same tenant, include a statement in each posting, for

example: Same tenant rented Auction ID #1 and Auction ID #2.

8Post an Online Auction (continued)

6. Additional Information (your Auction Rules): This area is to provide your facility’s custom auction rules and/or instructions for bidders. This information will be auto-populated to your auction postings from Default Auction Settings

Note: The Auction Rules (below) are listed on every auction posting.

8Post an Online Auction (continued)

7. Auction Categories: Choose applicable categories for the unit contents. Bidders can search by categories for items they are interested in.

8. Delinquent Tenant Information (Optional): Input tenant’s name and address. This is optional and not required to post a unit. (This information is not publicized)

8Post an Online Auction (continued)

9. Auction Date and Time:

a. Start Date and Time: Input date auction is to start, to be open for bidding. We recommend that the Start Date be 7 to 10 days before the Auction End Date. You can post the auction to Start at a later date, however, the auction will not be open for bidding until the Start Date and time have been met.

b. End Date and Time: The End (or auction) Date is extremely critical. Input date and time auction is to close. This date should match what is stated on the lien notice. The auction can not end BEFORE the date on the lien notice. The End Time should be during your office hours.

Based on historical auction data, ending an auction on a Wednesday or Thursday at or around 10:00am has shown great results. With a 72 hour clean-out, a Wednesday auction would provide the winning bidder a weekend day (Saturday), which is helpful for bidders that work during the week.

c. Staggering End Times: If posting more than one unit, stagger the end time of the second and additional units by 5 minutes. This allows the bidders to have the opportunity to bid on more than one unit. (Example: first unit ends at 10:00am, second unit at 10:05am, and so on)

TIP: Set the end time of the best marketable units to end first. For example, set the best unit to end at 10:00am, and the lesser-valued units staggered to end later, in order of marketability.

8Post an Online Auction (continued)

10. Images: Click “Continue to Step 2 - Images” button

a. Click “Upload Auction Images” button

b. A folder will pop up. Locate photos of the unitc. Select the photos for the unit, and click “Open”

d. ‘Drag’ the photo showing the entire unit and ‘Drop’ into the first position. You can also click the ‘star’ to set the main photo. Drag/Drop the order of the other photos, or rotate photos, if needed. Delete blurry photos, photos of closed doors and unit number

TIP:To select a group of photosClick first photo, hold “Shift” key, then click last photo

To select single photosHold “Ctrl” key, select each photo

8Post an Online Auction (continued)

e. Drag photo of the lock and Lock ID TamperTag to the last positionf. Do not upload a photo of the unit number to the auction posting.

11. Auction Preview:

a. Click ‘Continue to Step 3’ buttonb. Verify auction details are correctc. If changes need to be made, click “Back to Images”

Unit Appears to Contain

8Post an Online Auction (continued)

12. Save as Draft: An auction can be saved as a Draft to be posted at a later time. Draft Auctions are not automatically started. Using this feature would be useful if upper management needs to review an auction before going active (open for bidding) or If you need to revisit the auction to make edits.

To review your Draft Auctions, go to ‘Online Auctions’ then click ‘Draft Auctions.’

To Edit/Post or Delete Draft Auctions, click on the respective icon

8Post an Online Auction (continued)

13. Post Auction: When you are ready to set the auction active and open for bidding, click ‘Post This Auction Now’ button.

Marketing Your Auctions

We have a dedicated and experienced marketing team that advertises your auctions to our extensive bidder base in the surrounding area of your facility. In addition, we advertise on various online auction portals as well as social media and paid ads. We also have National TV and radio commercials that air periodically, to encourage new and current bidders.

TIP: If you previously conducted live (onsite) auctions, let those bidders know you are posting your auctions online on StorageTreasures.com. Then, forward the bidder list to us and we will contact them, to provide training on how to set up their account, how to bid, bookmark your facility and add to their Auction Watchlist. Email your bidder list to: marketing@storagetreasures.com.

9Relist an Unsold Auction

An Unsold Auction is a unit that receives no bids at the time the auction expires. You can choose to dispose or donate the unit contents, or you can relist the auction.

1. Relist an Unsold Auction:

a. Pull-down ‘Online Auctions’ tab, then click “Unsold Auctions”

b. Find the unit to relist and click ‘Relist Auction’ button

c. The auction posting page appears. All of the unit details are available from the previous posting

d. Set the Auction Start and End Dates/Times

e. Click on Step 2. The images should be available and do not need to be re-uploaded

f. Choose “Save as Draft” or “Post this Auction Now”

g. Submit a request to your BDM or Customer Support, to provide additional marketing

10Cancel an Auction

Storage auctions may be cancelled for any reason, at any time. Here are some of the reasons for cancellations:

1. Tenant pays their past due balance2. Discrepancy with auction date3. Non-compliance of notices or procedures of State Lien law requirements4. Photos or descriptions are incorrect5. Photos not uploaded or blurry

We do not recommend that you cancel a unit due to low bids, especially if there are more than 200 auction views.

1. Cancel Before Sold: If tenant cures account before auction ends, you must cancel the auction unit. Pull-down the ‘Online Auctions’ tab, then select “Active Auctions,” find and verify the unit to be cancelled, then click the ‘Cancel’ icon.

On the cancellation page, choose the applicable reason for the cancellation:• Account settled with tenant • Error in lien process or timeline• Auction post was incorrect• Other (input reason)

Click the button “Yes, please cancel Auction ID #.” All bidders that placed bids on the unit will be emailed a notification of the cancellation.

2. Cancel After Sold: If tenant pays the full balance owed after the auction ends: a. Pull-down ‘Online Auctions’ tab, then “Sold Auctions”, find and verify the unit to be

cancelled, click the ‘Cancel’ icon, choose a cancellation reason, and click the “Yes” button; b. You will need to call the winning bidder immediately and inform them that the auction is

cancelled. (Contact the bidder as soon as possible in case they are en route to your facility).

PLEASE NOTE: 1. We charge a $20 cancellation fee. No cancellation fee is due if you cancel a unit before or on

the same day the auction starts (open for bidding). We will invoice you by email if fees are due.

2. Once an auction ends, you must allow bidder to pay/pick up unit without delay. Bidders can not be inconvenienced and asked to wait for a period of time, due to anticipation that the tenant ‘may’ make a payment. In this situation, the auction must be cancelled.

11Complete the Sale

Once an auction has ended, the sale must be completed. Here are the steps to finalize the sale:

RECEIVE PAYMENT FROM BIDDER:

1. Paid Invoice: Facility MUST have a Paid Invoice to complete the sale with the winning bidder. Paid Invoices are emailed to you and to the bidder after the auction ends. You can also find the Paid Invoices in your account, under the “Invoices” tab. You should print the Paid Invoices. (See Example of Paid Invoice Here)

2. Unpaid Invoice: If an Invoice is titled “Unpaid Invoice,” that means the bidder’s credit card declined. You cannot complete the sale with an Unpaid Invoice. If you are in contact with the bidder, ask them to log into their account and click the “Pay Now” button. If their credit card still declines, the bidder will need to update the credit card information, or add a different credit card. Once updated, they would click the "Pay Now" button again, to generate a Paid Invoice. Our Customer Support team will reach out to the bidder to assist with payment. Once collected, the Paid Invoice will then be emailed to you and the bidder. To see the Paid Invoice in the “Invoices” tabs, you will need to refresh your browser.

If the bidder does not have access to their account to update their credit card for payment (if they are away from their computer), have them contact Customer Support at 480-397-6503 for assistance.

3. 24-Hour Credit Card Declined (CCD) Policy: If a bidder’s credit card declines (Unpaid Invoice), Customer Support immediately contacts the bidder to collect the fees owed to StorageTreasures. If the card is still declined 24 hours after the auction ends, we can reach out to the backup bidder (instead of waiting for the expiration of the clean-out time, which could be up to 72 hours).

In order to initiate the 24-hour CCD policy, the store manager must contact Customer Support and provide authorization to proceed. The manager should state: ‘I’d like to request a backup bidder for a 24-hour CCD for Invoice #___’. Once the CCD policy is initiated with Customer Support, the original bidder will be suspended from ST, and no longer allowed to pick up the unit. If the original bidder arrives at your facility once a backup bidder case has been requested, you cannot sell the unit to them. Our system cannot reverse the backup bidder process, and you do not want to frustrate the backup bidder when they arrive. Remember, we will not initiate this process until we have been contacted and provided authorization to proceed, from the store manager/staff.

11Complete the Sale (continued)

4. Contact the Bidder: Instructions on the Paid Invoice remind bidder to call the facility to set a time to pay for and pick up unit immediately when auction ends. If bidder has not contacted you within a few hours after the auction ends, we recommend that you call the bidder to schedule a time for them to pick up the unit.

5. Confirm Bidder’s Identity: When the bidder arrives, confirm that his/her ID matches the name on the invoice. If the ID does not match, do not sell the unit to that individual. Contact Customer Support immediately for assistance.

6. Balance Due Facility: Collect the “Balance Due Facility” that is shown at the bottom of the invoice. The calculations have been done for you.

6. Resale License: If bidder has a resale license, verify the license number is valid. You can verify by going to your State’s Department of Revenue resale license verification webpage. Once the license number is verified as valid, copy the license for your file. Subtract the sales tax amount (amount shown on invoice) from the “Balance Due Facility”. Manually note the calculations and adjusted balance due on your copy of the Invoice. Collect the adjusted balance due from the bidder.

8. Refundable Cleaning Deposit: Collect an additional $100 (or other cleaning deposit amount stated on the Invoice) in cash, from the bidder. Retain the cleaning deposit in a secure place, separate from the sale funds. The cleaning deposit is not ‘operating income’. You should maintain a separate receipt book/process for cleaning deposits, to document the held funds.

9. Bidder’s Signature: Once the total on the invoice and the cleaning deposit have been received, have the bidder sign your copy of the Invoice, for your file.

RELEASE UNIT TO BIDDER:

Take the bidder to the unit, cut the lock and remove Lock (tamper) Tag in the bidder’s presence. Remind the bidder they must clean out the unit entirely (“broom swept”) prior to expiration of the clean-out time deadline in order to be eligible for a refund of the cleaning deposit. Further remind them that they can not use your dumpster or leave items outside of the unit. The bidder will need to notify you when they have emptied the unit.

REFUND CLEANING DEPOSIT:

You should inspect the unit, confirm that it is empty and broom swept, and then refund bidder’s cleaning deposit, in cash, immediately. We recommend that you have the bidder sign a receipt that they received their deposit back.

12Paid Invoice

13Reports

You can export reports from your account, to an Excel spreadsheet. From the “Reports” tab, choose any of the following:

1. Online Storage Auctions:

a. Active Auctions

b. Sold Auctions

c. Unsold Auctions

d. Cancelled Auctions

2. Upcoming Live Storage Auctions

3. Storage Facilities List

Filter by Date Range: You can review auction results for a 30-day period. Click “Online Auctions” tab and choose which type of report (see #1 above). You will see the filter feature just above your auction results. Click “Filter Results by Date Range”, and choose date range. The results will appear for that date range.

TIP: Reports can also be generated from the ‘Facility Mgmt’ and ‘Online Auctions’ tabs. Simply click on the ‘Report’ icon

14Bidder Issues

A majority of our bidders are resellers, that buy and resell the contents of storage units, as a source of income. There are also first time or one-time bidders that are hoping to find a treasure, looking for something specific, furnish their home, etc. We close an average of 15,000 auctions per month.

A winning bidder must pay for and pick up the entire contents of the auction unit prior to the required clean-out deadline. Failing to do so is a violation of our Terms of Use. Below are common issues with bidders that you may experience, and the steps you can take when they occur:

1. NO SHOW: If the required clean-out period has expired and bidder has not picked up a unit, the bidder is considered a ‘No Show.’ You will need to:

a. Contact Customer Support and provide the Facility Name, Auction ID number, Unit number and bidder’s name. Explain your attempts to contact the bidder, or other details, so our team can note the bidder’s account. The winning bidder will be suspended.

b. Ask Customer Support to solicit backup bidders, to attempt to sell the unit to the backup bidder’s highest bid placed. Advise Customer Support of the lowest amount you will accept for the unit.

Backup bidders will have the same clean-out requirements and auction rules as indicated in the original auction posting. The new clean-out time starts on the date and time the new invoice is generated. The sooner the facility manager reports a no show bidder after the expiration time, the better chances that a backup bidder will be still interested in the unit. If Customer Support is unable to secure a backup bidder, they will notify you. You can then decide to relist, donate or dispose of the unit.

2. CHERRY PICKER: If the bidder pays for the unit and, at the time of clean-out expiration, it is discovered that the bidder removed items that he/she wanted but left unwanted items behind, we call that a ‘Cherry Picker.’ We recommend that you:

a. Contact the bidder again, give them one more opportunity and an additional day to come back and finish cleaning out the unit. Let them know they will forfeit their cleaning deposit and could be banned from Storage Treasures if they do not comply

b. Contact Customer Support, to suspend the bidder from StorageTreasures.com. We can attempt to contact the bidder to advise him/her of the consequences if they do not finish cleaning out the unit.

c. If the bidder does not return, you can retain the cleaning deposit for disposal expenses.

3. CLEAN-OUT EXTENSION: We recommend that you avoid extending clean-out times for the bidders, unless extenuating circumstances arise. Contact Customer Support if you have questions or need clarification.

15Common Questions

EXTENDING AUCTION END DATES: You are able to extend Auction end dates once an auction

has started, as long as no bids have been placed. If bids have been placed, you will need to

contact Customer Support to extend the auction for you. We do not recommend extending

auctions unless absolutely necessary. Typically, extensions are made if there was a discrepancy

in lien notice requirements. We do not recommend extending auctions due to low bids.

TENANT BIDDERS: Tenants do bid on their own auctions occasionally. Unfortunately, there is

no way for us to prevent this. As the auctions on StorageTreasures.com are Public Sales,

facilities can not refuse to sell the unit to the tenant. Exception: If tenant is aggressive or

exhibits abusive behavior, destruction of property, harassment, etc. then you can contact

Customer Support to request a backup bidder.

1. When the tenant/bidder arrives to pay for the auction sale of their unit, some facilities request that the tenant pay the difference between the unpaid lien amount and the sales price. Please check with your upper management for procedures you need to follow with ‘tenant winning bidders’

2. Collect cleaning deposit from tenant. Then, apply the deposit to the tenant’s unpaid balance

3. Tell the tenant to move out of the unit immediately!

4. Seek advice from your upper management or legal counsel, to collect any unpaid balance.

BUYER’S REMORSE: Once a buyer has touched and/or removed items in the auction unit, they

are fully responsible for emptying the unit entirely. If a bidder partially empties a unit, then has

remorse and demands a refund, inform them that the sale is ‘as is, where is’ and once they

take possession by removing items, they are responsible to remove all items, with no refund.

If the bidder has not touched anything in the unit and realizes the photos do not match the unit

contents, the bidder must immediately close/lock the unit and notify your staff, to investigate

and refund if you agree with the bidder’s findings.

FIREARMS, DRUGS, HAZARDOUS MATERIALS: If firearms, drugs, drug paraphernalia or

hazardous materials are found in a unit, you must contact the proper authorities. For firearms

and drug-related items, contact the local police department. For hazardous materials, contact

the local Health Department. The bidder is responsible for cleaning out the remaining items,

unless the Health Department determines there is a health risk.

Contact Us

Customer SupportWe have an experienced and dedicated Customer Support Team available to assist

with your auctions and questions

Phone 480-397-6503

Email support@storagetreasures.com

Chat with a Live Agent (available during office hours)

Customer Support Office Hours6:00am to 5:00pm MST - Monday through Friday

7:00am to 2:00pm MST - Saturday

Storage Treasures is managed by:

OpenTech Alliance, Inc. 2501 W. Dunlap Ave, Suite 255Phoenix, AZ 85021

ST2 Training Manual version 4.0