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We are often asked if we provide appraisal services. Though this is beyond our field of expertise, we can obtain a professional third-party appraisal for you if you need to know how much something is worth. This is a very beneficial service for those who want to sell items online or offline since it offers an unbiased and documented professional opinion. The company we have been using for over 7 years has delivered exceptional service and is the only appraisal service we trust our business to. They have a network of more than 120 appraisers who are some of the foremost authorities in a wide variety of industries. You can be sure that the assessment of your item will be the result of years of highly specialized experience.

If you are selling a collectible, vintage item, art, rare or unusual item, and so forth, obtaining an independent professional appraisal is necessary and advantageous. For example, one client decided said she would accept $1,200 for an original oil on canvas painting she hired us to list on eBay for her. We strongly urged her to let us obtain an appraisal. To our shock and hers, the appraisal showed it was worth over $11,000!  If she tried to list the painting on eBay for $1200, she would have thrown away almost $10,000 because she would not have known how to price it or even where to get it appraised at a reasonable price! Don't make this mistake. Get an expert opinion before offering your item to the world. Let us arrange it for you.

How it works:

1. Fill out the Appraisal Questionnaire at the bottom of this page. You may submit your responses in one of two ways:

• use copy and paste to place it in an email message, enter your responses next to each question, and email it to us

• use copy and paste to place it in a word processing program, enter your responses next to each question, print it out, and fax it to us at (206) 337-9203

• use copy and paste to place it in a word processing program, enter your responses next to each question, print it out, and snail mail it to us at Appraisal Services, P. O. Box 860012, St. Augustine, FL 32086

2. Send us your photos (see the "Photographs" section below for important guidelines on taking pictures and how to send them). Up to 10 digital photographs may be emailed to us. If you only have hard copy photos, please mail them to us and we will scan them for you for an additional $3 per photo and then return them to you. This price includes a bonus: we'll put your new digital pictures in an online photo album so you can save them to your computer and store them digitally too!

3. Submit payment to us -- click here to enter our order page.

4. We will handle everything from here ... finding the right expert appraiser, furnishing him/her with details about your item, photo management, etc.

5. In 3-6 business days, we will email you the appraisal results.

NOTE to local St. Augustine, Florida residents: if you need an in-person consultation, local pickup and return of any hard copy photos, etc., or if you need us to take photographs of the item(s), there will be an additional charge for these services above the cost of the appraisal which will be determined on a case-by-case basis.
 

Here are our fees and what each level of appraisal will include:

$25.99 -- Level 1 appraisal for a single item

• Current Fair Market Value (wholesale value)

• Replacement Value (retail price)

• Some details about your item

$38.99 -- Level 2 appraisal for a single item

• Current Fair Market Value (wholesale value)

• Replacement Value (retail price)

• More detailed information about your item such as historical information, manufacture details, etc.

• Sources the appraiser used in obtaining the valuation

• Tips on how to care for your item, how to store it and other useful advice
   

$64.99 -- Collection appraisal for 15 (or more) items of the same type

To qualify as a Collection appraisal, all items in the collection must be the same type -- for example: all dolls, all coins, all china teacups, etc. If your collection contains more than 15 items, simply add $5.95 per item to the $58.99 fee.  If you have less than 15 items, they must be appraised individually at the rates for single items above. If you have a very large collection and would like a discounted rate, please contact us with details so we can offer a special deal. 

You will receive a valuation on the collection as a whole and details regarding which items in the collection are the highlights.
 

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APPRAISAL QUESTIONNAIRE
 

Please answer these questions in detail. Don't be afraid to speak volumes when inputting descriptive text. Try to be as clear and concise as possible and never assume that any detail is too small to mention.


What is your item?    

Date/Era or Period of item (if known):

Item Condition:
(Specific details including any and all marks, tears, scuffs, scratches, broken pieces, repairs etc.)

Origin of Item:   
(Where the item came from -- did you inherit it from a relative, find it at a flea market, in the wall of an old house etc?)
 
Has this item been sold at auction or listed in any books or periodicals? Has it been owned by a famous (or infamous) person?
 
When did you purchase/acquire the item(s)?    

Purchase price of item (if known)?    

What is the main material your item is made of?    

Manufacturer/artist: (if known)  

If art, is it signed by the artist?    

Height of item:   

Width of item:   

Length of item:

Weight of item: 
  
What is the subject matter of your piece?    

Give any other details you feel are pertinent.
   
What is the main reason for your appraisal?    

Are there any notations such as identifying/foundry marks or signatures? If yes specify:    

 

For Collection Appraisals:
Write out a description of each individual item in the collection, including information particular to each piece.

   
PHOTOGRAPHS:     

We highly recommend submitting photos of your item in order to better establish its value. The appraisers can often instantly recognize an item from a clear image. This accelerates appraisal time. Up to 10 pictures is generally plenty. If you're submitting a collection appraisal, take photos of the collection as a group AND separate photos of each individual piece.

Tips for taking good pictures:

• Use a contrasting plain background. You may photograph the item on a table against a plain wall, or use white or black poster boards as the background. Be sure there is enough lighting for the item to show clearly.
• Include images of important details. For example: dates, hallmarks, signatures, manufacturers marks, elaborate carving, etc. The more detail you provide, the better.
• If possible, show your item from more than one point of view.

Learn more picture-taking tips here.

~If you are using a digital camera, upload the photos to your computer.
~If your photos were taken with a film camera, you can use a scanner to convert them to digital format. Or if you cannot obtain digital format, you can mail them to us and we can scan them for you for an additional fee of $5. We will then return them to you by mail.
~If the digital photos you'll be sending us total more than 1 MB, please do not send them as email attachments. Here are options:

• Save them to disk and mail the disk to us.

• Resize them to make them smaller. If you don't already have photo editing software, you can edit online with Pixlr.  There's even a super easy version here. (These are both free).

• Open a free account at photobucket.com to upload them to your own photo album. You then simply provide us the URL of each photo as shown in your album. For example, CLICK HERE to see a photo we have uploaded as a demonstration.

URL of your item's photographs:

 

 

Date:
Your name:
Address:
Email:
Telephone number:

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