How to Sell Your Jewelry and Paintings for Cash

Why wait months for the auctioneer when you can cash-in today?

Dec 2, 2008

If you're thinking "I'd like to sell my antiques or paintings for cash," just follow these simple steps. Honest dealers will pay you cash for your antiques, today.

People have been cashing in their valuables for ages. But before you attempt it, there is one question you must answer honestly. Will the money you're going to get compensate for the sentimental value you have attached to the antiques you want to sell for cash?

If you are going to be miserable without these things, stop reading right here. But if you are ready to move on, follow these simple steps to a rewarding experience.

To Determine the Value of Your Jewelry or Paintings, Go Beyond eBay.

Knowing what your valuables are worth doesn't mean you have to get an expensive appraisal or wait for the Antiques Roadshow to come to your town.

If you have purchase records or a detailed appraisal, or if your art is by a known painter or the silver is Gorham, you are a step ahead. If you are like most people and only have family stories to guide you, you will have to spend a couple of hours on the Internet looking at comparable items.

eBay is only going to reflect the current situation. A better source is www.Kovels.com, which offers a free search guide to more than 600,000 collectibles sold in the United States last year. If you don't find what you are looking for there, try one of the on-line subscription sites like artnet.com or artprice.com. You can probably get away with a 24-hour subscription, for just a few dollars.

Your local Borders, Barnes & Noble and Amazon carry annual price guides, such as Milllers, that you may prefer to buy and keep for future reference.

If your local auction house has a weekly or monthly Discovery Day, take in your item or a photograph of it. The specialists at the auction gallery will give you a low to high range of what you might expect to realize on a "good day" at auction.

Your Art and Antiques, Jewelry and Furniture Will Bring a Fair Price, Not Retail.

Now that you know what you have, you know how much to ask for it. Unfortunately, even if you own a very valuable diamond ring or a Civil War rifle, you will not realize the full retail value unless you sell direct to a collector. If you don't know any collectors, don't worry. There are professionals you can turn to.

Your town's auctioneer has a responsibility to be trustworthy. If he handles your items, you will have to pay a seller's commission of between 6% and 20%. It will be at least a month before your property goes on the auction block and about another 30 days before you see any money from the sale.

A private dealer will come to you, pay cash on the barrel-head and remove your items. But you must be able to state your price upfront, and then be willing to negotiate.

You must also check reputations. For instance, a trusted dealer who pays cash for antiques in New York, Connecticut and New Jersey for gold and diamond jewelry and oil paintings is Andrew Korman of Sherbee Antiques. 917-748-7622. The Old and New Shop, 212-633-0329, is another honest dealer that pays cash for antique furniture and jewelry and paintings. Eric Caren, ccaren@prodigy.net, is a resource for selling historical documents, especially those of the Vietnam era.

For recommendations of dealers in your area who are honest and will pay cash for antiques and art, email prtothetrade@gmail.com.

The copyright of the article How to Sell Your Jewelry and Paintings for Cash in Consumer Education is owned by Regina Kolbe. Permission to republish How to Sell Your Jewelry and Paintings for Cash in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.