Very difficult to deal with. Their shipping costs are outrageous. Buyer Beware. I wouldn't use them again read more

Pretentious company that wants to vet people who join by their auction history. I would think being able to afford the items at auction would be enough. They think they are Sothebys or Christies, lol. Good luck with that!! read more

Great UI to purchase, extremely nice and helpful staff, wonderful showroom, accommodating like nowhere else these days. We are big fans of Leland Little. read more

I never though about the shipping price added to the final bid. They are helping me to find a cheaper shipper. They are helpful. read more

I want to start out by saying I had 2 original purchases from LL on some rare vintage bourbon where I flew in from Nashville, TN to pick up my bottles. I will say those experiences were pleasant. The 3rd auction was where it gets ugly. There was a Wild Turkey bottle that I had acquired about but NEVER bid on. But somehow I had won this bottle that I know I had not bid on. They charged my credit card on file and I called and tried to tell them that I had not bid on this bottle but they said I was wrong and the bottle was mine. I called my credit card to report fraud since I had asked them to credit the amount back as I had not bid. This was the last I heard from LL on this matter. Moving forward to today, I went to bid on their auction today and it would not let me enter my credit card info. I called the auction house and they said they need to review my account. A lady called me back and said since I did a charge back that my account was no longer good. I mentioned my 2 previous purchases which were big purchases and I had flown in from TN to pick up. They said that those didn't matter and their decision was based on the chargeback! I purchase bourbon from overseas auction house where I spend well over 20K and have never had issues like this one with LL!! read more

I made my first purchase from Leland Little Auctions today, an antique painting in their February 2023 Fine Arts auction (total price around $1000). My experience was exceptionally positive. I was the winning bidder at 11:30am this morning. I promptly sent an email asking for a Packing & Shipping price quote on the invoice. I received the invoice the same afternoon, and paid immediately in full (including a very reasonable price for shipping). This evening, I received a Paid in Full invoice receipt, followed by an acknowledgement of shipping commitment and a tracking number. Wow! Leland Little is now among my top antique auction houses, and I am confident we will do business together in the future. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED SELLER read more

Just purchased two small items from the recent Bob Timberlake auction. The on line experience was good. Paid over the phone for the items. We picked up the items at Leland Little in a very Covid-19 safe manner. We called the office on arrival and the items were brought to us in our car. A really good experience. read more

This is a conflicted review for me. We have patroned Leland Little for quite some time. We have spent likely close to $10k in various lots in the past 6 or 7 years. Almost all of our art has been purchased from Leland. Always the buyer, we finally had the opportunity to sell some art. We have been buying much nicer art than we did when we started, and now wished to co-sign some pieces back to Leland to make room for nicer art. I honestly thought this would not be an issue. We had two pieces. One was a piece purchased directly from Leland a few years ago, and another was a Steven White oil that they sell on their site on a routine basis. After sending an inquiry to Leland, Jessi Y responded back to me essentially saying they would not cosign, but to consider them if we had more. The items we wanted to co-sign were not expensive. They would have likely sold between $250-$500 a piece. That amount is extremely common for their estate auctions. In fact, I would say this transaction amount is more common than not with Leland. They are no Sotheby (despite the pretentious airs where 'everyone is a director') The problem with rejecting your own buyers is that is breaks the cycle. I suspect many people like us started collecting lesser art, and then move into nicer art. By refusing to allow regular customers to co-sign work, especially work obtained from Leland, it makes it difficult to make room for more. In short, this company is more about the transaction and not about the relationship. By refusing to co-sign pieces, they have lost a routine customer. We might buy there in the future, but it will be with our nose held. My strong suggestion is to use Leland to find an artist you like, then use invaluable.com to find that artist at other auction houses. Pieces at Leland have been selling at a premium. Good for sellers, but bad for buyers. There are plenty of other auction houses that will sell you similar art at very reasonable in-house shipping fees. If Leland is going to treat you like a number, then you might as well shop around. Obviously, this works well for small items, but not for furniture. They do have a great website, and the buying experience is great. Wish it worked both ways. If the auction company happens to reply here, know it is hollow. They have my email, my telephone, and certainly my credit card. read more

Recently won this beauty here and we are more than pleased!!! The process was smooth, easy, fast and professional. I don't live in NC so she needed to be shipped and Mark is so awesome, he met the shipper on Christmas Day!!! Leland Little was my first auction experience and definitely won't be my last read more

Leland Little Auctions - 1968 cutlass - Auction Houses Near Me - Hillsborough, North Carolina

I just picked up painting won from LL --I was VERY disappointed with the painting--though repair was mentioned it was much worse than I was expecting. In my opinion you pay a premium for poor quality items when you purchase from Leland little. I always drive to Hillsborough to pick up because shipping costs are so high. I am right here in NC and I can have an item shipped-- from most other places (even outside of NC ) for considerably less money. I looked at other reviews and saw a number of complaints about shipping. Owners response to one reviewer complaint was they now offer in house shipping and to try bidding with them again and use their shipping. I asked about their shipping when I picked up . I said that I did not like having to take a big part of my day driving to Hillsborough in all the terrible Raleigh-Durham traffic. I was told they do NOT have in house shipping. Who does the owner think he is fooling telling the complaining customer they now have in house shipping. Staff is about as unfriendly as ever. Leland Little is toward the bottom of my list of Auction House that I have dealt with. Expect to pay a premium for lesser quality items, to pay a fortune for shipping and put up with an unfriendly staff. Southern hospitality does NOT exist here. Other auction houses that I pick up from wrap the item etc. Not LL.. I remember one time picking up-- one of my Lots was a group of Oriental stands. The LL employee brought out in box with about 2 inch high sides, she dropped the box damaging some of the stands-- she offered no apology what so ever, It was complete unconcerned to try and pile all those stands in that shallow/small box. Also, not very open for previewing. read more

I'm something of a veteran of antiques buying and selling, and of auctions. I probably attend at least a couple of sales every week, so I've got a broad array of experiences from which to contextualize. Leland Little is a great spot. This isn't Christie's or Sotheby's, but I'm not sure we'd have a market for that in this part of North Carolina. But there *is* a lot of money here, and a surprising abundance of really high quality second hand goods, and I can see why Leland Little gets his fair share of them through his auction house. The catalogues are very well produced, with top-notch photography. The auction house itself has comfortable chairs and plenty of space in which to walk around and peruse the goods. The free hors d'oeuvres and cupcakes were a nice touch. Perhaps the biggest problem I had was the poor cellular reception I got inside the building ... but that's hardly their fault. The staff were friendly and professional and set me up with a bidding number as quickly as one could hope for. When I wanted to examine something in a case, it wasn't hard to find a staffer to offer a lending hand. Absolutely no complaints there. Another reviewer bemoaned the cost of the goods being auctioned. If your basis of comparison is Etsy and eBay, then you're probably in the wrong place. The clientele at Leland Little appeared to me to be a little more discerning, and i can entirely understand why these policies exist. Absentee bids cost a company money to process, and it's entirely normal to have minimum bid amounts. If you don't like that, then you're not going to like a lot of the higher end auction houses out there. read more

Buyer Beware!!! Items that I purchased were not as described. Spoke to the rudest employee (Michelle) who did nothing to rectify the situation. I would not and will not do business with them again. read more

Truly one of the most over-hyped and disappointing auction places I've ever been to. Very unfriendly staff who do not seem to be interested in customer service nor are they knowledgeable about the items up for sale either. The term customer appreciation is clearly a concept that has passed them over. In addition to not returning most of my emails or phone calls, the one time I did speak to someone they put me on hold, then hung up on me! There are plenty of other places with better merchandise at better prices. I don't anticipate this place will be in business for very long if this is how they treat people. read more

Like many of the other one star reviews, my gripe is with their exorbitant fees charged to ship items out of North Carolina. I requested if they could just place my items in a box and mail them via USPS, Misty at the auction house stated that they don't use the post office! Seriously?!? They have lost yet another customer, I will not support their business ever again. If you're not in North Carolina, avoid them like the plague!! I wish that I could give them zero stars. read more

Leland Little is a great auction which conducts it's business with a high degree of integrity and professionalism. I have been a buyer on several occasions through their online bidding process. Most recently, I purchased several sterling items with a hammer price in excess of $4000. Unfortunately, I can no longer participate in the fine auctions held by Leland Little due to the predatory and exploitative charges of local shippers. Let me explain. The sterling items mentioned above were bulky--the lot included a large tray--but overall, not very heavy. Two medium-sized UPS boxes at about $50.00 each would be more than sufficient. The first quote I received to ship the items came from one of Leland Little's recommended shippers, Packaging Express. The woman attempted to charge me $515 to ship these items from NC to FL. Just to illustrate the absurdity of this charge, please note that I could buy round-trip airfare from Orlando to North Carolina ($170), stay at the local Hilton Hotel ($160), rent a car ($65), have a steak dinner ($40) and STILL HAVE ALMOST A HUNDRED DOLLARS LEFT OVER FOR THE ABSURD PRICE QUOTED. So then I knew that the local shippers are at least tripling their price for Leland Little customers. I called another place recommended by the auction house and was basically forced to settle for a still absurd $306, but this was after plenty of bellyaching to the guy. Who wants to go into an unpleasant negotiation just to have your auction items shipped? It's like having car trouble at night on the road far from home. You are at the mercy of the unscrupulous local mechanic. It absolutely kills my interest in buying at auction and made me sorry I ever heard of Leland Little. When the parcels arrived, I took them to a FedEx location and had the actual shipping charges calculated. The actual cost to ship these two boxes was roughly $94! So for the shipping materials (which were minimal--nothing special--maybe $20) and the pickup and the PROFIT of the shipper, I paid an extra $212! And this was the discounted price I got after raising a fuss over the first quote. This is predatory and exploitative. I include this information as part of a review for Leland Little for this reason: the auction house intentionally solicits online bids from buyers who are far away. They are well aware that items must be shipped. After the sale has ended the buyer--Leland's loyal customer--is turned over to the ravenous wolves (local shippers) to be raped and pillaged. Being forced to deal with unscrupulous shippers is an integral part of the transaction a bidder enters into with Leland Little. I leave this review so online bidders will know the headache and overcharges that will be heaped on them should they (unfortunately) "win" any online bids with Leland Little. Clearly, the predatory shippers are basing their absurd prices on what they think I can afford to pay, based on what I purchased, rather than the actual cost to pack and ship the item. I understand that these businesses must make a profit and they should make a fair profit. So I understand there will be an up-charge to pay for their services. But what they are actually doing is price gouging. For this reason, I can never purchase from Leland Little again, and I caution any online bidder to avoid this great auction house. The local shippers will take advantage of you as much as they possibly can. read more

I have purchased 3 items from Leland. 2 sofas and 1 dining room table. I have purchased both online and in person. The company describes the items accurately and researches their authenticity thoroughly. The staff is knowledgeable and goes the extra mile to help clients with questions. read more

I live in Southern California and wanted to sell an old painting that had a much broader market in the eastern U.S. than here on the west coast. Researched auction houses and Leland Little wound up at the top of my list so reached out them. Excellent experience, especially with my contact Claire. Everything was explained in advance, payment was prompt. Also, they were very candid and meticulous describing the condition of the painting, showing alot of integrity towards bidders as well. Very trustworthy, would use again, highly recommend. read more

I appreciate having Leland Little in the community, they play an important role in the fabric of central North Carolina region. The staff is helpful and the whole outfit has a classy vibe. They sold an antique map for me in the catalog and I was happy with all aspects of the transaction. I have also bought items, all exceeded my expectations and were reasonably priced. However, I understand why there are some low scores here, and they're just misplaced opinions. Supply and demand determine price and Leland is simply the vehicle for the journey. To that end, Leland seems responsible, organized and professional - and quite frankly I think they're the best high-end auction houses between Washington and Atlanta. If you're looking for bargains you could do better. If you're looking for quality you probably can't do better than Leland Little. read more

There is nothing "little" about the shipping charges that they corner you into paying ($33 UPS ground for a $300 ring in my sad case). Their refusal to take credit cards as payment for jewelry auction items was another warning sign I should have heeded. It's curious that a business demands payment by bank wire/money order/cashiers check or personal check (subject to clearance, naturally). Basically, long-distance cash. I also noticed that most positive reviews were from buyers who are also in NC. Makes you wonder about the happy coincidence. In any case, it doesn't appear that their business "model" has much to do with attracting repeat buyers. read more

While I've gotten a good deal here in the past, I was very disappointed with the last auction item for which I placed an absentee bid for and won. The estimate was in retrospect and in my opinion VERY HIGH (in comparison to when I picked up the piece of JUNK, VERY DISAPPOINTING JUNK). Also, with all the nice well-lit photography that encouraged my bid, I was disappointed with the actual dark item and couldn't get even 15% of what I paid. Just buyer beware as you can't trust auction estimates nor photographs like seeing the item in person. BE SELECTIVE. This place is likely better for sellers (and certainly Leland! as he sure got too much of my money for this item) than for buyers/collectors. I plan to delete future LL auction emails, burned once but won't be burned twice! read more

Hi there, I am weighing in on my experience with Leland Little Auctions. I love shopping for gently used goods, and when I found that I could get great items, with honest descriptions at Leland, I was sold! Believe it or not, I found Leland Little, after binge watching the Antiques Road Show! I created a spreadsheet with a list of dealers who appeared on some of the episodes. I organized my list according to genres I was interested in and the experts of that field of interest from the show. I don't like to be bamboozled, and felt that I could get real antiques, from folks who have a reputation at stake! So, for my first auction experience, I chose Leland Little (as a first litmus test). And, I have decided that this is the place I want to deal with, when I feel the need to make an antique purchase. I still love the Antiques Road Show, from which I learned so much. And thank you Leland Little for appearing on the show, and for being a genuinely honest Auction House. My first purchase was a bit pricey. I really enjoyed the experience I had, and the customer service was quite excellent! I am on the other side of the USA, and my shipping charges were higher than I expected, but, I was willing to pay the in-house charges, for good quality shipping. All this to ensure my items arrived intact. And, I got exactly that! I bought a great deal of sterling silver, and when my items arrived, I couldn't catch my breath! They were stunning! I love my purchases very much, and will not hesitate to participate again and again (which I already have). I was treated with respect, and felt valued as a bidder. And, if at some distant time, my experience with Leland Little, is less than perfect, I wouldn't dare hold that experience against the Auction House. Because no place is 100% perfect each and every time. Conversely, if at some future date, I should take on a road trip (likely on a bucket list), I would love to stop by just to take in the experience and bid in person, rather than over the phone. For a job well done, I salute you! Thank you kindly, Stormie read more

Great place in our beautiful Hillsborough! I have participated in several auctions. My sincere advice would be: if possible ALWAYS look at your items before bidding. LL photography is excellent, and at times, can cause your piece to look better than it might appear to you in person. As we know, monitor colors vary, knicks and dents, scratches vary with respect to damage. Pieces may have corners nicked, unglued, taped in the rear. While buyer beware is de rigueur, one can get caught up in the emotion of buying something. My overall buys were terrific, but I did my due diligence first. Truly happy we have such a marvelous venue here. Do come visit! read more

Two auctioneers passed my highest bid and refused to recognize my right hand bid that was the highest bid at the December quarterly auctions. Beware of this auction house. While the staff appears friendly, it is interesting why they do not always award the item to the highest bidder and ignore high bidders on the floor. Make sure you stand and shout your bid. Very interesting. Gives the appearance of selected purchasers and not open, fair bidding. read more

I have been an honest customer since 2015. Buyer beware when buying stoneware from this auction house. They have been selling a lot of repaired pieces and not describing them accurately. Last piece I took a major loss. Very disappointed in Leland Little, with the 26% buyer's premium with each item you win you expect with these kinds of fees you should know that if you buy something its accurate and legit. Not true with this company for the past two years. I will be buying my pottery from Mebane going forward. Thank You Mr Smith read more

Leland Little Auctions is not for everyone. And I'm ok with that. I'm familiar with a number of local auctioneers, consignment shops, antique shops, and other local sales venues. Leland consistently has more quality items for sale because he has built his business and reputation up over a number of years and simply doesn't accept a lot of "junk" to sell anymore. If you want Nordstrom quality, then Leland's is your place. If bargains are your primary mission and you're ok with Walmart quality, there are plenty of other places around town to spend your money. As for the two negative reviews posted earlier, if you're a real stickler for a bargain, they're more readily available at Leland's Saturday Estate Treasure sales vs the quarterly catalog sales (particularly if the weather is bad, as less people usually turn out). Additionally, if you're going to be bidding on items online, you should absolutely have to provide your payment info upfront. Otherwise, what's to keep you from bidding on something you can't afford and/or not paying for the item after winning it? All reputable auction houses should require some sort of payment info upfront, as do most online auction sites. I don't get the impression that "L.X." does much bidding online. read more

Leland Little Auctions are about as good as it gets. I have taken the time to read through all of these reviews and felt the need to leave my opinion as well. I have worked with this firm for over 10 years. I have been a buyers, a seller, and referred many of my clients to them. Each and every experience with them has been A+!!! Leland and his team are dedicated to customer service and always act in the best interest of all parties involved. Many of the negative reviews you are reading are from uniformed parties. No company will ever be able to please everyone, however Leland and his team do their absolute best to provide excellent results and set realistic expectations from the beginning. I strongly advise you make your own opinion before making a judgment. read more

This really is a North Carolina gem! Truly a special place and person. The only auction house for premier art, antiques, and collectibles.

Very fair, very professional and helpful. Best auction house I know of. I don't understand the negative reviews at all.

Excellent auction house. I have been very happy with the selections and with the results of the auctions I've won. Recently picked up an item and overlooked some paperwork. They immediately called me and offered to mail the items to me. Excellent service. Looking forward to bidding on many more items. read more

Great auction house, online bidding is great, they sell quality items!!! Not junk....also consigned with them, they get fair prices and pay quickly! The entire process was handled very professional!! read more

Instead of listing their shipping prices like other reputable auction houses, they gauge you after the fact. Seems like they need to make more money by charging unreasonable fees on the shipping side. Pretty sad. I'll only let them fool me once as I will never buy from them again. read more

I placed a bid on an item with Leland Little Auctions. I received an email that was very nice. I then looked at my bid and it had been cancelled for no apparent reason. I received absolutely no explanation as to why they cancelled my bid. I have tried to contact them by phone and email and have not heard an explanation as to why I was denied. I was very much interested in the item I bid on. I feel bad. This is the first time something like this has happened to me. read more

Fabulous seamless experience - I have have purchased from the finest auction houses extant and have never had a better experience - from the initial research on the object- to bidding and in house shipping-this should be the Gold Standard of how a client is treated.... William Tinsley read more

Item not as described. I am writing this review unexpectedly due to a bit of a back stab by Leland Little. I have been a somewhat regular bidder through Live Auctioneers for several years in Leland Little auctions having won many times over the years. Because I place my bids on-line, I have to trust Leland Little to be my eyes as I cannot be their in person to examine lots which I am interested in. This past June I bid on and won a very expensive item which I was excited about. I received the item in the mail only to discover that it had been badly damaged and that damage occurred some time ago and not during shipping. Unfortunately for me, I had to rely on only 3 photos in the listing, none of which show the extent of the damage and the condition was listed as, "Good estate condition". and "some separation of gold at the whistle juncture". In one of the photos, this did look like separation as in a seem that might have started to separate, so I placed my high bid accordingly. I immediately informed them that this item had been dropped and the area which they refer to as "Some separation of gold" was in fact completely crushed and that "separation" was 3/4" tear in the gold. That said, this piece was close to destroyed. I pleaded my case to them and suggested that they refund the profit they made from me ie the buyers premium in which they did. Though I did feel that this 18th century gold whistle was positioned in the photos to downplay the actual damage and the condition report in no way reflected the truth, I was happy enough that they agreed to a partial refund. So why am I writing this review now and only giving them a 1 star rating? About 2 weeks ago, I tried bidding in another one of their auctions and was declined. I had called a few times over the following week asking why my request to bid had been declined and an office person told me that her boss would call me back, each time. That call never came. I guess they showed me how they really felt about having to give me a partial refund. I now reflect on the back and forth messages from when I got the antique whistle and remember how they tried to deflect any responsibility by putting it all on me. My advise if you intend on bidding with Leland Little and expect them to have your back by being your eyes and ears because you cannot be there in person, Always assume the worse, that the piece is damaged and they are lying to you. read more

Sellers beware! I was referred to them by a reputable appraiser. This place neither advocates for best price for sellers nor are their appraisers as expert as they say. They are quick to recruit you and promise you high values for your items, but when they list them, the values are far below what they promise in the initial consultation. They did not accurately list at least five of my items (over $3,000) devalued them and sold them for under $600 each. When I complained they rationalized their pricing and then stated they would try to get the items back from the buyers. I NEVER HEARD FROM THEM AGAIN! This is a liquidation house not an auctioneer. Great for buyers, terrible for sellers. If you list with them, DEMAND reserve pricing or list with another auctioneer. read more

I just removed a negative review that I had given becasue after speaking to the owner, Leeland Little, my issues were resolved to my satisfaction. A piece of furniture that we had contracted to auction was damaged and I was not informed. When I emailed the contact person I was told the missing chink of wood would not devalue the item, an opinion I do not share. I was mad because of the damage, mad that I was not informed of the damage and madder that my contact was not concerned that it had been damaged. What really made it worse was that there wasn't even an apology. I informed the contact I would be pulling other items out of future auctions and he said he said they would be available for pick up at my "earliest convenience". In speaking with the owner about my concerns I was assured this was not good protocol and my shipping fee was waived ($300) and my other items are being delivered back to me. Great resolve and accolades to Mr. Little for making things right. read more

As a buyer, you can get a good deal. BUT, if you have high end items, this is not the market for it - I didn't get 1/4 of the Christie's appraised value of certain items I sold through Leland. Maybe "Americana" sells, but my items were more exotic. Wish I had known. read more

Leland holds auctions online. I registered for an auction and they sent me an email requiring that I submit my credit card number, billing address, security code etc. I told them they were in complete and total violation of PCI compliance rules established by the credit card companies. They are not allowed to ask for any of that information. As a merchant, they are not allowed to see the full credit card number or keep copies of any of that information. The woman I spoke to on the phone had no idea what I was talking about. I told her there is no way I am giving that information over the phone because she was going to write all of the info down which is a huge security and fraud issue. Lawsuit waiting to happen. read more

Leland Little and his staff are professional, knowledgeable, and courteous. We have furnished our home with beautiful and unique antiques at a fraction of the cost of going to a dealer. A first rate experience every time! read more

The negative reviews here demonstrate once again why Yelp is of limited use. We've bought bought and sold through Leland over the years, and as someone who once worked in the antiques biz in Boston, I can say that in a world full of sharks he's a rare gem - completely honest and ethical. That extends to his employees as well. He sets reasonable and educated expectations for sellers, and though he doesn't always get every penny consigners expect from every item (who does?), his results consistently meet or exceed projections - just look at his past auctions online. He's worked tirelessly to build his business, and his success speaks for itself. read more