An estimated $3 million development signals growth at the Musser Bros. auction complex near the Tri-Cities Airport in Pasco.

But vehicles destined for the auction block won’t be found here.

One of the two new buildings at 3074 Rickenbacker Drive will be home to Musser Bros.’ youngest company, Estate Details, which peeled off from the main company at the beginning of this year to form its own LLC.

The business runs online auctions for furniture, houseware, tools, collectibles, sporting goods and odds and ends. It helps families downsize, liquidate estates after a death or move into a retirement home, or sell collections like coins, clocks or die-cast toys.

Between Musser Bros., Trucks and Auto Auctions, and Estate Details, the Musser operation can manage the sale of all estate assets: land, home, vehicles and house contents.

“When we present that to a lot of our clients, it’s a real relief to them,” said Scott Musser, president and chief executive officer for Musser Bros. Inc. & Trucks & Auto Auctions LLC.

Estate Details is a family affair.

Led by Scott’s daughter, Jacqueline Musser Gering, and her husband, Bryson Gering, and Scott’s wife (also Jacqueline’s mom), Teresa Musser, the operation is a tech-powered hybrid of the classic estate tag sale and an in-person auction.

“It’s a lot easier to move a check than a moving company,” Jacqueline quipped.

Estate Details’ format is similar to eBay, but there are limits on the size of items that can be shipped.

The business has quickly gained traction since turning on the bid buttons for its first lots three years ago.

Currently all on-site auctions operate out of Scott’s airplane hangar at the office of Trucks and Auto.

“Scott wants his hangar back,” Jacqueline said.

Soon the business will move out of mom and dad’s proverbial garage and into its own 6,500-square-foot headquarters across the street from Trucks and Auto Auctions in Pasco.

LCR Construction of Richland broke ground in January.

Devin Geisler of DKEI Architectural Services of Richland is the architect.

Jacqueline said the project should wrap up on schedule in July. The bulk of the exterior is up and next comes filling out the inside space.

The building project

Estate Details will occupy the first story of the building, on the corner of Rickenbacker and Morasch Lane, north of Columbia Basin College.

The second floor will be dedicated to offices for the Musser Brothers realty team.

Scott and Bryson are both Realtors, but they’ve brought on more staff, including Linda Craig, wife of Rick Craig, who previously ran Craig Estate Sales.

The Craigs recently retired from their estate liquidation tag sale business based in Kennewick. Rick is now a referral agent for Estate Details.

The neighboring building will house a vehicle detailing tenant to serve Trucks and Auto as well as other customers.

It will offer three other spaces for lease, two of which tentatively might become restaurants.

The development will feature about 15,000 square feet between the two buildings.

Scott said it’s a great time to be expanding since the city of Pasco is planning to widen Argent Road, and the Port of Pasco is preparing to start receiving bids for an expansion of Rickenbacker to connect with Varney Lane near the Circle K gas station and convenience store.

He said if the tenant spaces fill up quickly, he might look at building another down the road.

“I like the buildings themselves, they’re really iconic. I like landmark architecture – something like the flashcube building or twin towers on Gage Boulevard. I think we accomplished that when we built Trucks and Auto. All have their own personality and are distinctive, but also look like the parent building,” Scott said.

Room to grow

Jacqueline said the new building will give Estate Details more space to accommodate more auctions.

“Once we’re over there, we’ll be doing a consignment auction per week,” she said, referring to when people bring in individual items to sell. The concept has become so popular that they’ve started waitlists.

They also will host one or two estate auctions per week.

Estate Details is hiring part-time workers to help with processing estates and facilitating pickups in anticipation of their increased capacity.

In their makeshift space in the hangar, Jacqueline brought in shelving to replace the folding tables they were previously using to store items. This increased the amount of available space and the same concept will be replicated in their new space.

Estate Details also plans to invest in a larger safe to store more firearms, precious metals and other high-value items.

More space also will be devoted to a shipping station.

“Every auction, we ship at least one item, sometimes many,” Jacqueline said.

“Twenty percent to 30% of firearms get shipped out,” Bryson added.

In general, smaller items are what tend to be shipped, such as collectible stamps, vintage toys and coins.

Estate Details attracts international bidders, but shipping rates can often be a barrier in those situations.

Though many locals and others across the Pacific Northwest enjoy browsing the sales, the team uses targeted online advertising strategies to bring far-flung buyers to the virtual auction block.

“One thing that’s nice is people can go online and browse our catalog and there’s still a hunt in that,” Teresa said. Unlike a tag sale, people don’t have to show up in person at a specific time to have a chance at getting items.

“It gives everyone a fair opportunity to buy the item, which creates competitive bidding,” she said.

It’s all in the details

“We sell 90% to 95% – everything from the garbage cans by the sink, to the art on the wall, to the couches and furniture. We sell everything, not just the good stuff,” Jacqueline said.

Clients receive an itemized list with photos of everything sold and what price each item brought.

It also gives estate clients the opportunity to review what will be going into the auction ahead of time so that they can reclaim sentimental items.

Scott said that this comes up more often with those seeking their services who live out of state and who haven’t had the chance to go through the estate contents themselves first. Sometimes people just don’t realize what their loved ones have tucked away.

The price for services varies when it comes to estate auctioning, with size and complexity being major factors in the equation. Consultations are free of charge.

On the consignment side, there is a $1 insertion fee per lot, plus Estate Details takes a 35% commission.

After the auction closes, buyers sign up for a pickup slot and collect their items at Trucks and Auto for off-site auctions or at the estate for on-site auctions.

“We take care of every detail for you,” Teresa said, quoting the Estate Details slogan.

Estate Details: 3125 Rickenbacker Drive, Pasco; estatedetails.com, Facebook. Call 509-581-5390 or email info@estatedetails.com to set up consignment drop-off appointments.