FAQ / Why Choose US?

 Why Should I choose A Forgotten Treasure?

A Forgotten Treasure Estate Sales is a family-owned business built on care, integrity, and attention. We understand that estate sales often come during emotional and transitional times, which is why our owners are consistently on site to personally oversee every detail. From thoughtfully staging items to pricing them fairly and accurately, we treat each home and its contents with the respect they deserve. We offer a low, all-inclusive commission with no setup fees, so our clients can feel confident and comfortable from the very beginning. With over 240 five-star reviews on Google, families continue to trust us for our honesty, compassion, and results.

Does an Estate Sale Company Need a License?

Yes. A new Illinois law effective January 1, 2026, requires that any estate sale which is advertised and scheduled for a specific date and time, is open to the public, and involves bidding or negotiated pricing of personal property, must be conducted by a licensed auctioneer. A Forgotten Treasure Estate Sales holds the required Illinois Auctioneer License to continue serving you legally and professionally in 2026 and beyond.

The reason for this new law is to protect you, the client! It ensures you get paid out in a timely manner. If you don’t get paid out, then you have recourse through the state to try and get your money. 

NOTE: There are many companies that deny this law. They are using a loophole so they do not have to adhere to it. The loophole has to do with "fixed priced" sales. In their eyes, as long as there is no negotiating happening, then they do not need to adhere to the new law. They will not be able to legally negotiate price at any time during the estate sale. This  ultimately will hurt the estate sale in the long run. With no negotiating, there is a much higher chance of items not selling. 

How Long Does Prepping For An Estate Sale Take?

The prepping process traditionally takes 3 to 5 days. This includes sorting, organizing staging and pricing of items. However, there are instances where we need one to two weeks to prep a home, especially when the home is very large and/or filled with a lot of items. We do specialize and have great success in large collection estate sales - for example, coins, toys, die-cast cars, video games, records, tools. etc. There are instances where it takes us 5+ days from morning until night researching and pricing items to make sure we get the most money for our clients. It’s something that we love doing.

Are the owners of A Forgotten Treasure always on site?
 
Yes! This  is the most important aspect to a successful estate sale. With many other estate sale companies, the owner will come for the interview, but then the owner will never be on-site again. They employ different crews of people to prep the house and price the house. They even have employees conduct the estate sale! This leads to very inconsistent service all around and many potential risks to the client / executor. It takes years and years to learn how to price and value items. This is not something you can learn overnight. The owners of A Forgotten Treasure are always on-site every single day to make sure things are managed and priced correctly. Most of all, you deserve to be the priority of the estate sale company. If a company is doing 3 or 4 different estate sales every week, they cannot make you a priority and that’s how mistakes happen.

What items will you not sell?

We will not sell any items that are illegal to sell in the state of Illinois. This includes ivory, tobacco, medication, alcohol, etc. We also do not sell food for safety reasons. Finally, we do not sell used undergarments. Everything else we try to sell within reason.