The In's And Out's Of Appraising Antique Jewelry

Sometimes, people are just curious to find out how much their piece of antique jewelry might be “worth”. It could be so they get bragging rights among their friends, or even just out of personal interest. It could even be interesting to try and estimate the value of the jewelry, as a game, and then go to a jewelry appraiser to get the actual answer. However, it really isn’t so straightforward to find out what jewelry is “worth” - because what is the meaning of “worth”? There are several circumstances which affect the true meaning of this word.

If You Are Looking To Sell Your Jewelry

When selling jewelry, the “worth” of a piece of jewelry would be its liquidation value – that is, the value of it as scrap metal. This is the lowest valuation of your item possible. Valuation will depend heavily on the gold content of the item, as diamonds are less likely to be resold unless they are of a very high quality. Pawn shops offer the lowest rates, sometimes 10% of your item’s value. Jewelers who purchase estate jewelry for resale offer higher rates, up to 20% of the retail value.

If Your Jewelry Has Collector’s Value

Sometimes, jewelers do offer a premium for certain special items. Typically, these would include well known brands, very high quality items, or items that the jewelers know there is a market for. In such cases, jewelers may offer up to 25% of an item’s retail value.

If You Need A Valuation For Tax Purposes

Usually, the kind of valuation you would need for tax purposes would be the estate value. This is pegged to the fair market value, which appraisers are required by the IRS to use. Fair market value puts the estimation of the current price of an item down to the current price of a similar item that could hypothetically replace it. This replacement item has to be of similar like, quality, utility and condition, from an establishment that usually sells similar items – the market, so to speak. Estate jewelry and period pieces would be appraised alongside other used items, and appraisers would look at prices from other similar antiques sold by other estate jewelry sellers.

If You Would Like To Buy Insurance

Insurance also refers to the fair market value. It is best to find out an accurate valuation of your item so that you can get the appropriate amount of insurance coverage, to protect you in the unlikely event of a crisis. Using a lower valuation just to pay a lower premium would certainly not help your case during your claims.

If you find that one of the above reasons apply to you, you can always look for a proper valuation of your antique jewelry with us at Global Gold and Silver. We offer various options such as a walk-in appraisal or an online quotation so it’s easy for you to get a quote from us.