EAST HARTFORD, Conn. -- The contents of the auction held Wednesday in East Hartford all come from people in town who either lost a home to foreclosure or an apartment to eviction.

Town officials said that when people lose their homes, their stuff ends up on the curb, and state law says the town must deal with it.

“This is a losing proposition for the town,” said Richard Toce, assistant director of the East Hartford Department of Public Works. “We have to move from the curb to our storage area. It stays in storage for at least 15 days, then we have a five- to six-man crew to move it to the outside to auction.”

Town officials said the auctions have been busy lately. They said how much ends up at the auction is directly related to the economy.

“We hold an auction every three weeks on a Wednesday, and this is probably double the size that we normally have,” said Toce.

The treasures are few and far between, he said, but they have had some. In the past, they said, there's been designer furniture and even a Rolex watch.

Buyers like Michael Brown said they feel bad for the original owners, even as they hope for a bargain.

“Unfortunately, I can relate to what people are going through,” said Michael Brown, who is staying in East Hartford.

Anything not sold at the auction goes to the dump, officials said.