Valuing/selling jewellery

JayZed

I've recently come into a small collection of old jewellery (watches, gold pieces, diamond rings etc), some of which I'd like to sell. It mainly dates from the 1920s and 1930s, and I believe that a couple of pieces are quite valuable.

Any tips on where (in London) to get it valued and where/how to sell it? I understand that I'll have to sell a lot of the pieces at scrap value, but I think that a couple of pieces will sell as vintage jewellery in its own right, and obviously the watches have intrinsic value.

I'd like to avoid paying for the valuation if possible - I understand that a lot of jewellers will charge for insurance valuations, but perhaps not if you're selling? Would it be worth going to an auction house?

Also, does anyone have any views on whether this is a good time to sell this kind of thing? I'm quite well informed about the gold price, but I don't really understand how the diamond market fluctuates, and am also not convinced that a recession is the best time to sell vintage watches etc.

John_Pierpoint

ping ping bump

soolin

A local auction house might be able to help you but expect to pay around 25% of the hammer price in fees and commission.

John_Pierpoint

Can anyone suggest names?

I once used a firm called "Lloyds International" but they seem to have gone out of business as the site on a trading estate, South of Wandsworth high st. has turned into (empty?) units.

chja

I would check Yell.com for auction houses or jewellers/traders that may buy. Our local free paper quite often has ads in from people offering to buy gold, jewellery,coins, medals, etc.

Just bear in mind that no one does anything for nothing - an auction house will charge you, a jeweller or trader will give you below market price.

John_Pierpoint

We need an honest market.
I had a ring to sell and eventually got twice what the first jeweller offered, it was obvious to me that the valuation was not of the ring but how much of a mug the jeweller evaluated me as.

I also have been to an auction, where I was able to overhear a small group seeking to "ring" it.

Hence the need for a personal recommendation for an honest market place.

JayZed

John, since I posted I've made a few enquiries and am now looking at two options:

(1) paying for an independent appraiser, i.e. someone who is not actually a jewellery trader (e.g. one of the people on this website http://www.ajappraisers.org/). The person I'm thinking about using, in London, charges £95 an hour for appraisals. She can also obtain offers from people in the trade - if you sell through her the appraisal fee is refunded and she charges 10% of the selling price.

(2) Going through one of the big auction houses, e.g. Bonhams, Sothebys, Christies. I've looked into Bonhams - valuation is free, if you sell through them they charge 15% of the sale price (up to £5K, 10% above that), with a minimum commission of between £20 and £60 per lot depending on location. There's and additional insurance charge of 1.5% payable whether or not the lot is sold.

I'm going to go ahead with a valuation (probably from the auctioneers) in a week or two and then decide how to sell - I'll post here and let you know how I get on.

JayZed

John, I promised to post back when I'd had a valuation done... took me longer than expected to get around to it!

I took my stuff to Bonhams and found them to be very helpful - they gave me a valuation with no pressure to sell through them and explained the factors behind each valuation. They also explained the options for selling through them and set out clearly what the commission and costs would be.

As it happens, I was very pleasantly surprised by their valuation - it was like a bumper episode of Cash in the Attic!

I haven't decided what to do yet - I have to think through the capital gains tax implications - but I will certainly be selling at least part of the collection and I'll be doing it by auction, probably through Bonham's.

John_Pierpoint

Good luck.
Are they all valuable pieces or are you getting over the minimum commission problem by putting the lesser items into one lot (where they will be bought by someone who will break them up perhaps for reuse/remanufacturing?).

JesaRose

I would highly recommend Bonhams - consumate professionals who do an excellent job.

Now is the best time to sell jewellery: gold, diamonds, anything quality and vintage has never been more fasionable

Best of luck

JayZed

John, They're each valuable enough for minimum commission not to be a problem.

JesaRose, I'm glad you think highly of Bonhams. I was wondering whether it's worth "shopping around" at the other big auction houses - I don't know how much of a different it makes to the price you can expect?

I'm also interested in your comment about now being the best time to sell quality vintage jewellery. I would have thought that the recession might give the market a bit of a beating? Would be interested in your views on this.