How the numbers work

Every 1–4 hours we scan our sources — HiBid (which itself aggregates hundreds of auction houses), GovDeals and GSA Auctions government surplus, and regional liquidators — and normalize each lot into one consistent format: title, current bid, location, photos, and when the auction ends.

For each item we find recent comparable sold listings — the same or closest-match product that actually changed hands recently — and take the median. That median is the estimated resale value.

We also show the sample size (how many comps that median is based on) so you can weigh how confident to be. Ten sales tells you more than one.

Resale value isn't profit, and neither is resale minus your bid. There are costs on both ends — what it takes to win the lot and what it takes to resell it:

When you win:

• Buyer's premium— the auction's cut on top of your bid, roughly 10–15% depending on the source (Triangle 15%, GovDeals ~10%, HiBid ~15%) — and $0 on GSA Auctions, which sells federal surplus at the hammer.
• Sales tax — charged on your bid plus the premium (e.g. 7.25% in NC).
• Getting it to you — local pickup is free; some lots add freight (e.g. Triangle trucks South Carolina stock to the Raleigh pickup point for a flat $5).

When you resell:

• Marketplace fees — about 13% of the sale price (eBay-style final value fee plus payment processing).
• Shipping to your buyer— a rough estimate based on the item's category and size. A phone ships cheap; a sofa doesn't. An estimate in V1, not a precise quote.

A big margin that takes months to sell is not the same as one that flips in a week — so the score weighs both the profit and how quickly similar items actually sell (sell-through rate and average days to sell).

That's why you'll sometimes see a listing with a huge profit number tagged only “Worth a look” — the money is there, but the item tends to sit. The score is honest about that.