The Antique Register™, Inc.

Sept-Oct 08
� Feature Story �
Some Considerations When Selling
A Specialized Antique or Collectibles Collection
I frequently am approached by individuals seeking advice
on how to best sell a specialized antiques or collectibles
collection. Whether the inquirer is the person who assembled
the collection, a widow or widower or the executor of an
estate, my answer rarely varies.
First, seek professional advice. If the asker is the person
who assembled the collection, this is doubly true. A collector
is too intimately involved with his collection to objectively
evaluate it for sale purposes. He needs advice from a neutral
party. Fellow collectors are not neutral. Since they are
potential buyers, they should play no role in developing a
dispersal plan.
Historically, when faced with the sale of a specialized
antiques or collectibles collection, the standard approach was
to do one’s own research by going to a local bookstore and/
or public library and obtaining one or more reference books
and/or price guides. This approach is no longer valid.
The secondary antiques and collectibles resale market
has grown in complexity during the past two decades.
The Internet, especially eBay’s impact on pricing, rapidly
changing collecting and decorating trends and development
of a global marketplace are three primary reasons. This
complexity requires (1) all prices, especially those in a
price guide, be interpreted; and (2) a wider search for sale
opportunities is necessary.
There are a small, but growing number of independent
appraisers and other individuals specializing in collection
disposal management. These individuals are not dealers and
have no ties to specific auction houses or other sale sources.
Their clients are their only interest. Beware of individuals
who offer to help for free or request the right of “first” buy
from the collection for their services.
Alas, America is a “do it yourself” nation. Most individuals
faced with the disposal of a specialized antiques or collectibles
collection will ignore the above advice, primarily because
they do not want to pay for something they feel they can do
just as well themselves. The next step is the same, whether
done by the professional or the amateur freelancer.
Second, make a list of the collection using Excel or graph
paper. Allow for four columns to the right of the descriptive
listings column on the left. Record condition information
(graded on a scale of 1 to 10 with 1 the worst and 10 the highest
grade) in the first column, pricing information obtained from
a price guide in the second, pricing information found on
eBay or other Internet sources in the third, and an estimated
“reasonable” secondary market sale price in the fourth. If
the person who assembled the collection maintained a
purchase price journal, create an additional column with this
information between the third and fourth column.
This information is essential before developing a dispersal
plan. Pay careful attention to the pricing differences between
price guide values and those from Internet sources. Assume
eBay prices are retail. Do not fall into the trap of equating
eBay with a standard auction house.
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By Harry Rinker
Dealers purchasing for resale are one of the main auction
buying groups. Since they wish to profit , they have to
place a higher value on these items when offered for sale
at their mall, shop or show booth. When a collector is the
final purchaser, an auction price can reflect full secondary
market retail, but not always. Even collectors find bargains
at auction.
Is there a specialized price guide for every collecting
category? While the answer is no, not for “every” category,
over two-thirds of all major collecting categories have been
the subject of a price guide at some point in the last twentyfive
years. There is the rub. Although specialized price
guides exist, not all specialized price guides are current.
Always check the copyright date of any specialized price
guide before using it. Specialized price guides appear when a
market is strong and disappear when it is weak. No one likes
purchasing a specialized price guide whose prices indicate
the value of their collection has decreased.
Specialized auction catalogs, general auction catalogs
with substantial listings of a specific collecting category and
sales lists from collectors’ club convention auctions can be
helpful, especially when no printed price guide exists. In
order to obtain the price received by the seller, subtract the
amount represented by the buyer’s penalty (remember, it is
not a premium as far as I am concerned) and the auction
house commission for the final sales price.
Take the same approach with pricing information obtained
from eBay. Prices realized do not include shipping. When
shipping exceeds five dollars, bidders will deduct the shipping
cost from their final planned bid, not something they would
do when bidding if present at an auction or contemplating a
buy at a mall, shop or show. EBay has layered fees. Again,
these need to be deducted from the final sale price if one
wishes to obtain an accurate price realized by the seller.
There are many electronic pricing sites, especially in
the fine arts area. Go Antiques’ PriceMiner covers a much
broader market spectrum. I recommend it.
Third, understand where value rests. Value is not spread
evenly among most collections. Typically the top twenty
percent of a collection’s value represents more than half of
the collection’s total value. If the goal is to sell the collection
as a unit, this top twenty percent is a primary inducement
for the buyer to purchase the whole. Allowing one or more
of the top items in a collection to be cherry picked, i.e., sold
separately, disproportionately diminishes the value of the
entire collection.
Understanding where and how value resides in a collection
is critical to deciding whether to sell a collection as a unit or
break it apart and sell it singly or in smaller groups, either
privately or via auction. Identifying and understanding sale
opportunities is another.
Fourth, study the antiques and collectibles secondary
resale marketplace. Focus on these two truths: (1) the resale
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