In-person auctions in North Carolina

These are auction houses that hold sales at a physical location: a sale yard, a gallery or an estate. You can usually walk through at a preview before bidding starts. Plenty of these firms also bid online through HiBid or their own site, so a listing can carry more than one label.

Worth a free Saturday morning.

12 sources listed across 10 counties. Updated Oct 2026.

The founder’s take on in-person auctions

From Lotvara’s founder, a North Carolina reseller

These are some of the most entertaining sources there are, and they’re often where the best items turn up, more so than on HiBid. Local auctioneers are characters, and half the fun is watching them work a room.

The crowd skews older. A lot of people are buying something fun or a gift and aren’t very price-sensitive, but they tend to pass on electronics. That leaves an opening for resellers. Electronics are still high risk, high reward, since they either work or they don’t. Memorabilia and vintage hand tools have been reliable niches.

After eight years, one thing I’ve noticed: vintage sells slower than newer stuff. A Coca-Cola polar bear or tray won’t move fast unless it’s priced low. An unbranded Vevor tool priced aggressively can sell in a day or two.

The catch is the drive. Mine is almost an hour. The same drive gets me out of the house, and watching a bidding war is fun, but it’s easy to get caught up. Auctioneers hype bidders to push prices up, a bit like used car salesmen.

Prices and percentages are rough estimates from experience, not published data, and they vary by area.

Browse by county

Harnett County 3 Alamance County 1 Buncombe County 1 Burke County 1 Forsyth County 1 Haywood County 1 New Hanover County 1 Polk County 1 Stanly County 1 Wake County 1

All in-person auctions in North Carolina

Alamance County 1 source

Mebane Antique Auction Gallery

Mebane, Alamance County

In-person auctionAuction house site

Antiques gallery on Highway 70 with live and timed auctions on its own bid site. Its calendar showed sales on Sep 26, Oct 3, Oct 16 and Oct 17, 2026 when checked.

Buyer’s premium: It depends how you bid: 13% for phone and absentee bidders paying by card (10% if you pay by check or cash), 20% for online bidding through its own site, 25% on Bidsquare, and 23% on AuctionZip or Invaluable. On its own site, a $100 winning bid is really $120. Source: their terms of sale

Visit site Company site DetailsLink checked Sep 2026

Buncombe County 1 source

Brunk Auctions

Asheville, Buncombe County

In-person auctionAuction house site

Fine and decorative art house. Its upcoming-auctions page listed sales on Sept 23 and 24, 2026 when checked. Bidding is in person, by phone or absentee, or online. Higher-end, so it suits antiques and art specialists more than everyday resale.

Buyer’s premium: 25%, plus 3% more if you pay by card. A $100 hammer price is $125 before any card fee. Their terms may differ for some online platforms, so check before you bid online. Source: their How to Bid page

Visit site Company site DetailsLink checked Sep 2026

Burke County 1 source

Auctions Unlimited

Morganton, Burke County

In-person auction

Morganton auction house running in-person liquidation and estate auctions, with its own site listing upcoming sale dates.

Buyer’s premium not confirmed. Check the auction’s terms before bidding.

Visit site DetailsLink checked Sep 2026

Forsyth County 1 source

Leinbach Auction & Realty

Clemmons, Forsyth County

In-person auctionOnline auction

Clemmons estate-settlement firm (over 30 years, per its site) that sells through HiBid. Its HiBid page lists current auctions.

Buyer’s premium not confirmed. Check the auction’s terms before bidding.

View on HiBid Company site DetailsLink checked Sep 2026

Harnett County 3 sources

Johnson Properties Realtors & Auctioneers

Angier, Harnett County

In-person auctionAuction house site

Angier firm with a sale yard on US 210 running tool and equipment sales, container-load auctions and simulcast events. Its auctions page lists current sales; read each sale's terms for fees and tax before bidding.

Buyer’s premium not confirmed. Check the auction’s terms before bidding.

Visit site DetailsLink checked Sep 2026

M Lane Auction Service

Spring Lake, Harnett County

In-person auctionOnline auction

Live sales: confirm dates by phone.

Runs live in-person Friday-night auctions in Spring Lake, with a 5 p.m. preview and a 6:30 p.m. start, and sells online through HiBid. On HiBid, one online-only auction was open when checked (Sep 19, 2026). Confirm live-sale dates by phone before you drive out. Phone (910) 596-1899, as listed on its HiBid page.

Buyer’s premium not confirmed. Check the auction’s terms before bidding.

View on HiBid Facebook page DetailsLink checked Sep 2026

Mouths of the South Auction Company

Dunn, Harnett County

In-person auctionAuction house site

Family auction firm in Dunn (more than 40 years, per its site) selling farm equipment, estates, real estate and land. Its auction-listings page shows upcoming sales.

Buyer’s premium: None. Their terms and conditions say there is no buyer's premium, so a $100 winning bid costs $100 before sales tax. Source: their terms and conditions

Visit site DetailsLink checked Sep 2026

Haywood County 1 source

Thad Woods Auction

Lake Junaluska, Haywood County

In-person auction

Live auction, confirm details by phone.

Runs live in-person auctions out of Lake Junaluska. Its Facebook page is where it posts sale dates, so check there before you go.

Buyer’s premium not confirmed. Check the auction’s terms before bidding.

Visit site DetailsLink checked Sep 2026

New Hanover County 1 source

Auction Orange

Wilmington, New Hanover County

In-person auctionOnline auction

Wilmington gallery running live and online sales of estates, business liquidations, consignments, coins and insurance salvage. Online bidding runs through HiBid.

Buyer’s premium not confirmed. Check the auction’s terms before bidding.

View on HiBid Company site DetailsLink checked Sep 2026

Polk County 1 source

Green Creek Auction Company

Columbus, Polk County

In-person auction

Live auction, confirm details by phone.

Runs live in-person auctions out of Columbus. Its Facebook page is where it posts sale dates, so check there before you go.

Buyer’s premium not confirmed. Check the auction’s terms before bidding.

Visit site DetailsLink checked Sep 2026

Stanly County 1 source

Hinson's Auction

Oakboro, Stanly County

In-person auctionOnline auction

Oakboro family firm (antique auctions since 1966, per its site) that sells through HiBid. Its own site also posts a schedule of antique festivals and farm days, so confirm event dates by phone before you go.

Buyer’s premium not confirmed. Check the auction’s terms before bidding.

View on HiBid Company site (event schedule)DetailsLink checked Sep 2026

Wake County 1 source

Fowler Auction & Estate Sales

Raleigh, Wake County

In-person auction

Estate sales and on-site auctions. Confirm details before you go.

Raleigh firm running estate and tag sales, on-site auctions and consignment sales. Its events page posts each upcoming sale, some with links to EstateSales.net. It isn't an online-bidding site, so use it as an estate-sale channel and check each sale's page for how that sale runs.

Buyer’s premium not confirmed. Check the auction’s terms before bidding.

Visit site DetailsLink checked Sep 2026

What to watch out for

Buyer’s premium and sales tax. Both are added on top of your winning bid. Confirm the percentage before you raise a paddle, not after.
No returns. What you inspected and bid on is what you take home, condition and all.
The time cost. A full afternoon can produce one good lot or none.
Payment terms. Many houses expect cash, check or payment right at close. Ask before you’re standing at the register.

Common questions

Are these auctions open to anyone?

Most are open to the public, but every house sets its own rules for registration, payment and pickup. Call or check the auction’s page before you go.

Is the buyer’s premium included in my bid?

No. It’s added on top of your winning bid, along with sales tax. Each house sets its own percentage, so read its terms first.

How do I check that an auctioneer is licensed?

Use the NC Auctioneer Licensing Board lookup at ncalb.org.

See them on the map

Every county, filterable by category, with a ZIP code search to sort by distance.

Open the map