One of my Biggest Secrets...

If you ever get the chance to know me I hope you say, "That Ron is a straight shooter, and a hard worker." Or maybe, "He's a funny guy." But I know when I'm out of ear-shot, you'll probably say, "Boy, that guy's a cheap skate!"

And I'm proud of it... =) There's not too many things that make me happier than getting a screaming deal on something that I need to buy.

One of my biggest secrets here in the Puget Sound is Turner Auctions.


They're an auction house down in Fife, WA. They do your standard car auctions once a week, and sometimes you'll find furniture there. But the real score for me has been their building supply auctions. At least once a month, they sell building supplies. And at a huge discount.


Last year, I bought and renovated a house down in Tacoma. I "flipped" it right as the market took a dive (that's another blog for another day...) But I did manage to save quite a bit of money on some nice building supplies at the auction. I scored these solid granite counter tops at Turner Auctions for $150 a piece. That's two 8 foot sections and a 3'x6' kitchen island top with finished edges and a 4" backsplash for $450. Try and beat that price!

Turned out pretty nice if I do say so myself. I also got that terra cotta tile at the auction.







I absolutely STOLE this high end Spanish tile at the auction. It retails for about $12-$15 per square foot, and I got and entire pallet for around $100... SCORE! This shower turned out amazing.






I also got that solid Mahagony floor for an amazing price. About $275 for the entire living room. It's not laminated either, it's solid wood. It would easily be $10/sq. foot at a retail store.








More in line with this farm blog, I found a half pallet of pressure treated 2x4's there that I picked up for $50. If you've bought any pressure treated wood lately, you know what a deal that is. I had enough wood to do the stairs in the front and the back of the house, and had enough left over for all the stretchers on a cedar fence I put up in the back yard. Saved hundreds of dollars on that buy alone.

I've also got some horse fencing at the auction. Five foot and six foot heights.

So if you're a cheap skate like me. Or as my mom would say: frugal, you owe it to yourself to check out your local auction.... just don't bid it up against me!!!

~ron

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