Don and Kim Rose have worked together in one form or another for a quarter of a century.
They joined forces at the altar nearly 26 years ago and formed their realty business 20 years ago in
1999.
He said he met his bride while they were both in auction school together and “off we went.”
Don Rose Realty and Auction operates at 241 S. Main St. in Bowling Green. They have seen the business
transition now more prominently in the online auction business, where once it was mostly gathering on a
Saturday at a home, barn or other onsite to auction off the goods and/or property,
Now countless more individuals participate in the sale via their home computers or smart phones.
Their children, daughter Taylor and son Connor are also now active in the business along with auctioneer
and longtime employee Denver Geitgey.
“In previous years, we would stand outside and listen for bids and pray for good weather,” Don Rose said.
“Now, one call does it all to arrange it. Two or three people go to the site, take pictures and catalog
all the items in the sale. We post it online and the auction is open for five days.”
He said they still hold numerous estate sales and sell all the contents. While the real estate can be
sold at auction, they still have a lucrative realty operation which sells homes by listings as well.
Agricultural land is often still sold through an onsite auction, as well as some other real estate
properties.
“The nice part of the online auctions is the data base which extends across most of the states and makes
it possible to reach a lot more buyers. Where we might have had 30 to 50 people outside at an auction,
now we have thousands more people and variety of interests,” Don Rose said.
The company has also recently acquired a federal firearms license, which allows them to transport
firearms and do background checks on potential buyers of the numerous guns which are sold.
A typical estate sale would include the larger and more valuable items sold individually, with other
items grouped into lots.
“We often will have up to five auctions running in any one week,” Taylor Rose said.
The online auction system also works well for the sellers. Because of the large data base, most of the
lots all sell. Any one auction might have anywhere between 50 and 400 lots.
Each member of the staff has a strength and sector, but they all work together. Don Rose and Geitgey do
most of the realty sales, with Geitgey having a strong focus on the agricultural sales; Taylor Rose does
most of the online work; Kim Rose is the broker for the company. Coonor’s role with the company is
property management and acquisitions.
“We all wear a lot of hats,” Don Rose said.