unknown gun origin

[gunowner1982]

i live in montgomery county and often clean out houses of unwanted furniture, ect. once in a while there is an old shotgun or deer rifle in the basement or attic... 9 out of ten times the home owner has passed away and the contents of the house are sold entirely. how do i go about selling a firearm without knowing the original owner?... do i have to register it? what happens if it ends up being stolen or used in a crime? could i get in any kind of trouble?
thanks in advance for the help.

[pex]

If you're authorized for the control of the disposition...and you are in the business of selling/auctioning estates, in pieces, you need an FFL.

From there, it gets pretty questionable and whether you can consider yourself in the business of selling firearms for a livelihood.

[SteveWag]

If you’re talking about rifles and shotguns then there should be no problem. You can dispose/sell as an agent of the Owner or you are the new “Owner” you can sell your property. You must not have knowledge that the purchaser is unable to own a firearm, but you don’t have to do any background work. If the firearm proves stolen, send the police to the agent you received the firearm from. I would get something when selling, a Xerox of the buyers drivers lic. with a date, signature and description of the firearm is good. Don’t touch a handgun!, your breaking lots of laws! If you only run into a firearm in 1 out of 10 I wouldn’t worry about being accused of selling as a part of your primary income.
Steve

[PA Rifleman]

Here's what BAFTE has to say about it. Bold-red is my emphasis.

From:
http://www.atf.treas.gov/firearms/faq/faq2.htm#k1

(K1) Does an auctioneer who is involved in firearms sales need a dealer's license? [Back]
Generally speaking, there are two types of auctions: estate-type auctions and consignment auctions.
In estate-type auctions, the articles to be auctioned (including firearms) are being sold by the executor of the estate of an individual. The firearms belong to and are possessed by the executor. The firearms are controlled by the estate, and the sales of firearms are being made by the estate. The auctioneer is acting as an agent of the executor and assisting the executor in finding buyers for the firearms. In these cases, the auctioneer does not meet the definition of engaging in business as a dealer in firearms and would not need a license. An auctioneer who does have a license may perform this function away from his or her licensed premises.
In consignment-type auctions, an auctioneer often takes possession of firearms in advance of the auction. These firearms are generally inventoried, evaluated, and tagged for identification. The firearms belong to individuals who have entered into a consignment agreement with the auctioneer giving that auctioneer authority to sell the firearms. The auctioneer therefore has possession and control of the firearms. Under these circumstances, an auctioneer would generally need a license. If you are not sure if a license is needed in a particular consignment auction situation, contact your local ATF office.

And:
http://www.atf.treas.gov/firearms/faq/faq2.htm#k2

(K2) If a licensed auctioneer is making sales of firearms, where may those sales be made? [Back]
In a consignment auction, firearms may be displayed at an auction site away from the auctioneer’s licensed premises and sales of the firearms can be agreed upon at that location, but delivery may only be made to purchasers after the firearms have been returned to the auctioneer’s licensed premises. The simultaneous sale and delivery of the auctioned firearms away from the licensed premises would violate the law, i.e., engaging in business at an unlicensed location.
However, if the auctioneer is assisting an estate in disposing of firearms, the estate is the seller of the firearms and the estate is in control and possession of the firearms. In this situation, the firearms may be delivered from the auction site. See also Question K1 and ATF Ruling 96-2