Buying and selling at the Delmar surplus auction

This story originally appeared in the April 23, 2015 edition of the Laurel Star.

Willie Benton of Eastern shore Auctions spent the better part 

of Saturday calling out prices and bidders at the Delmar Police 

surplus auction. 

The Delmar police surplus and seizure auction wasn’t scheduled until 10 a.m. Saturday, but people had been inspecting items and equipment all week and by 7 a.m. were milling about near the auction ground at the former police department building in Delmar. By the time the auction went off, more than 200 people had registered, The crowd, which included people who were curious or tagging along with bidders, had swelled to close to 400 attendees. People gather in clusters around pieces of equipment, empty boxes or just one another and chatted in the sun when the item at auction didn’t hold their interest. Similarly, before the auctioneer, the crowd was fluid, with people moving closer to bid and retreating to the few patches of shade as they won or lost on particular items.

Beyond the bidding there was a festive attitude among attendees as they greeted one another and asked after purchases or potential purchases. Those at the auction fell loosely into three groups: professionals who were looking for significant pieces of equipment to either resell or use for their business, opportunists who hoped to pick something they were shopping for anyway on the cheap, and bargain hunters who came not for a specific purpose but rather in hopes that they would know what they were there for once they saw the item and its price.

Among this former group was Ken Bendix, who purchased some military surplus trench shovels for $12.50 apiece.

“When you go down to Assateague with your pickup truck, you need a shovel,” he said. “And these are small, they’re easy to have around.”

On the other side, local businessman Craig Littleton was particularly interested in the forklift and some of the generators that were being auctioned.

Military surplus plays a significant part in local economies. Many if not most of the items are new or lightly used and, having already been paid for by the people, present a unique opportunity. Towns get items they need at little or no cost. Many of the fixtures in the Delmar Public Safety building, from weight sets and some office equipment to the police Humvee were military surplus that saved the town tens of thousands of dollars at the least.

Other military surplus has been used by the public works department and other administrative departments to cross items off their wish lists, or prevent them having to purchase a needed piece of equipment.

Ken Bendix with the shovels he won at the auction.

On the other side of the exchange, residents have access to equipment at fantastically discounted prices, allowing them to purchase items for cash they might have not been otherwise able to afford. The sale pumps a few more dollars into the town coffers and keeps local money in circulation among local people. 

Finally, especially in the cases of vehicles and other major pieces of equipment, buying items at the police auction frees up funds that otherwise would have to be spent at retail to be repurposed by local businessmen.

Several farmers were positioned to come out well in the auction, for example, because there were a number of generators for sale that could be used to power chicken houses during the heat of the summer.

Jake Spencer, a Laurel High School Senior was looking at trucks with his father, Lacey. The younger fixes engines small and large as something of a hobby and was interested both in the big diesel pickups and the smaller Mag trucks, the latter being perfect for a small farm pickup truck.

Inside the former police department building Susan Benton, wife of auctioneer Willie Benton ran a very tight ship, registering bidders, taking payment and asking questions. The auction runs like a secret ballot with everyone moving together and to a singular purpose, but without attracting any notice. 

Together with other members of their family, the Bentons run Eastern Shore Auctions. The company has been at it for awhile and so has a good working knowledge of the best ways to keep things moving along. 

Susan Benton hands Craig Littleton his numbered slip during 

the Delmar Police surplus auction Saturday, April 18.

Although the place was packed with people and equipment, Susan said she didn’t expect the bidding to go on much past 1 p.m. or so and that everyone could be cleaned up and off the property by 5 p.m.

When a person registers for these auctions, they are given a number and the terms of payment explained to them-- Eastern Shore Auctions takes cash and checks and asked for a 10 percent premium on credit card purchases. After that, they are directed out to the yard to bid on the items they desire.

The auctioneer, in this case it was Willie, calls the items out, working to read the crowd in a way that maximizes profit for the item and minimizes the time spent bidding upon it. One efficiency on the smaller items, such as the shovels Bendix purchased, was that if there were 10 items, the winning bidder could take all 10, just one, or any number in the middle. This practice kept things moving efficiently. 

Once an item is successfully bid upon, a ticket is written up and sent back to the registration table where the ladies file it under the person’s number. Winners were able to pay for and take their items one at a time or to wait until the end of the day and pay all their tickets at once. Common understanding, except in the cases of the truly large, heavy equipment, was that all the items won would be removed by the end of the day. 

By Monday morning there hardly was any remaining evidence of a sale beyond a few trucks parked along the train tracks waiting to be transported to their new homes.