Feature this article from one of the best site about buy and sell art. It's about free appraisals, arts, buy arts, sell arts. Enjoy.
Q: I never pay for an art appraisal. When I find an interesting piece of art and need an appraisal, I usually take it to a local auction house and have their appraiser tell me what they think they can sell it for. I hardly ever sell through them though. I either keep the art for myself or sell it to collectors on my own. I get the best of all worlds by saving on appraisal fees, auction house commissions. Is this a good idea? And what about those appraisers or dealers on the internet or in the phone book who advertise free appraisals? I'm thinking about starting to use them too.
A: A "free appraisal" is never free, and they're bad ideas for several reasons. The obvious one in your case is that you're repeatedly using the same people for free advice at the auction house. The auction house offers free appraisals to attract merchandise to their sales; they're not a public service or a price research service for your personal dealing and collecting needs. They very likely know you're taking advantage of them and that nothing will come of the time they spend with you, so as a result, they move you in and out as quickly as possible with minimal efforts on their part. They won't bother performing in-depth research or fine tuning the accuracy of their initial figures unless you consign the art. Why waste time with you when there's nothing in it for them?
The less obvious problem with so-called free appraisals from auction houses is that they're not really appraisals at all. They're only quick approximations of what auction houses think your art will sell for at their sales. The estimates do not necessarily reflect how the art might sell at someone else's auction or what it's fair market value might be. What one auction house can sell an item for might be completely different from what the next one can sell it for. Hammer prices at any particular auction house more accurately reflect the client base of that auction house than it does the market in general or the fair market values of the art that they sell.
But wait; there's more. Another problem with free appraisals is that, except in the case of the world's major auction houses, the staff people who conduct them tend to be younger, less experienced, and not necessarily able to accurately assess dollar values. Actual auction results may differ drastically from what you are told. Even the major auction houses can be way off in their estimates with art selling for either far greater dollar amounts than their estimates or failing to sell at all. Also keep in mind that auction houses try to keep estimates on the low side because that means they stand a better chance of selling the art.
Read the complete article here...
Q: I never pay for an art appraisal. When I find an interesting piece of art and need an appraisal, I usually take it to a local auction house and have their appraiser tell me what they think they can sell it for. I hardly ever sell through them though. I either keep the art for myself or sell it to collectors on my own. I get the best of all worlds by saving on appraisal fees, auction house commissions. Is this a good idea? And what about those appraisers or dealers on the internet or in the phone book who advertise free appraisals? I'm thinking about starting to use them too.
A: A "free appraisal" is never free, and they're bad ideas for several reasons. The obvious one in your case is that you're repeatedly using the same people for free advice at the auction house. The auction house offers free appraisals to attract merchandise to their sales; they're not a public service or a price research service for your personal dealing and collecting needs. They very likely know you're taking advantage of them and that nothing will come of the time they spend with you, so as a result, they move you in and out as quickly as possible with minimal efforts on their part. They won't bother performing in-depth research or fine tuning the accuracy of their initial figures unless you consign the art. Why waste time with you when there's nothing in it for them?
The less obvious problem with so-called free appraisals from auction houses is that they're not really appraisals at all. They're only quick approximations of what auction houses think your art will sell for at their sales. The estimates do not necessarily reflect how the art might sell at someone else's auction or what it's fair market value might be. What one auction house can sell an item for might be completely different from what the next one can sell it for. Hammer prices at any particular auction house more accurately reflect the client base of that auction house than it does the market in general or the fair market values of the art that they sell.
But wait; there's more. Another problem with free appraisals is that, except in the case of the world's major auction houses, the staff people who conduct them tend to be younger, less experienced, and not necessarily able to accurately assess dollar values. Actual auction results may differ drastically from what you are told. Even the major auction houses can be way off in their estimates with art selling for either far greater dollar amounts than their estimates or failing to sell at all. Also keep in mind that auction houses try to keep estimates on the low side because that means they stand a better chance of selling the art.
Read the complete article here...
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