First time clueless buyer - Spend my money for me please!

[kbean]

Re: First time clueless buyer - Spend my money for me please

Update:

I purchased the first stone and the first ring in Gypsy's last suggestion, from WF. The total came to $8070.00, plus coupon code welcome25 ( -$25.00) plus (3% wire discount of$241.35) Came to a total of $7803.65.

I was ready to go with Niel's suggestion last night, but the tax brought it to over $6900.00.

So in the end I felt the WF setup for $900 more was worth it, especially knowing almost $600 wasn't going to go to tax.

To be specific:

The diamond is AGS-104084813002, 1.026 ct, H, ACA Hearts and arrows Super Ideal Round Cut: $6795.00

The ring: Platinum Legato Sleek Line: $1275.00

I hope she loves it!

THANKS AGAIN TO EVERYONE FOR ALL THE AMAZING HELP. YOU LADIES/GUYS ARE THE BEST!

Great choice! What size? She's going to love it!!

Perfect. She will.love.it. Good job on ring size sleuthing.

Most appraisers out there suck. Listen to Molly. I would.use David or Neil. You don't want to cheap out on the appraisal. Also many appraisers are financially linked to retail vendors so they will scare you and talk down about your purchase (esp. online ones) in order to get you to return and buy from them. Shady.

Thanks, and it's funny you say that about the appraisers, as my mind was in the same exact place. But to be perfectly honest, I thought the same thing about the David and Neil guy mentioned here. I was wondering if they are all kinda linked to one another and the supporting vendors or forum favorites here, if you know that I mean. I also completely agree about other local vendors will want to put down your purchase and steer toward returning it and buying from someone they are affiliated with.

What I think is best to do is either
A.) Just forget about getting it appraised by a third party
-OR-
B.) Take it to an appraisal and only show them the actual ring and say nothing about where it came from. (This is what I planned to do from the beginning). And that's why I ruled out shipping it directly to an appraiser as they will obviously know where it came from plus have all the paperwork on it. That seems pointless to me, unless I could somehow 100% trust them, which I can't.

It's unfortunate that I don't seem to have a solid means of verifying the value of the purchase.

Also, I want to say that everyone has been extremely helpful, I'm not sure why there is a little bit of bickering. I understood exactly what Neil and flyingpig were saying, and don't think it was anything against what Gypsy was saying. Seems she might be a touch sensitive? But Gypsy is clearly very knowledgeable and very helpful. I could right away she was one of the top guru's here and to listen closely to what she sad, and in the end I chose the setup she picked, and I really appreciate that.

Oh and thanks so much Molly for the appraisal info, I'll check out that one in Manhasset.

 

[MollyMalone]

Re: First time clueless buyer - Spend my money for me please

Thanks, and it's funny you say that about the appraisers, as my mind was in the same exact place. But to be perfectly honest, I thought the same thing about the David and Neil guy mentioned here. I was wondering if they are all kinda linked to one another and the supporting vendors or forum favorites here, if you know that I mean. I also completely agree about other local vendors will want to put down your purchase and steer toward returning it and buying from someone they are affiliated with.

What I think is best to do is either
A.) Just forget about getting it appraised by a third party
-OR-
B.) Take it to an appraisal and only show them the actual ring and say nothing about where it came from. (This is what I planned to do from the beginning). And that's why I ruled out shipping it directly to an appraiser as they will obviously know where it came from plus have all the paperwork on it. That seems pointless to me, unless I could somehow 100% trust them, which I can't.

It's unfortunate that I don't seem to have a solid means of verifying the value of the purchase. * * *

Responding to your comments I bolded
* There aren't all that many independent gem-jewelry appraisers in the country because it's not an easy way to make a living & it's not surprising that you see David Atlas and Neil Beaty frequently mentioned here. They have been valued, frequent contributors to the forums, and consequently have garnered lots of good will through the years because of their thoughtful, informative posts. (Several other PS Trade members that come to my mind who are independent appraisers either have not posted at all in recent years or post much more sporadically).
Plus, suggestions have little meaning if they are "pulled out of a hat." So consumer PSers who are frequent posters here recommend those with whom they have had good experiences, or have heard positive feedback about from fellow PSers, and there is a snowball effect because of that.

* You already know I think an independent appraisal is unnecessary, but it seems you're wanting it for reassurance you got your money's worth, not for insurance purposes. At the same time, you lack trust in even independent appraisers as a class. I wish I had a magic wand that would resolve this internal dilemma for you, but I don't. I imagine, however, that independent appraisers encounter this often and will address a skeptical customer's concerns in this regard.

* fyi: it won't be a huge secret where your ring came from. Whiteflash's trademark will appear on the inside of your ring. Such trademarks are required by the United States' National Gold and Silver Marketing Act whenever merchandise is stamped/engraved with a metal quality mark re gold or silver (e.g., 14K). And it's become customary for a trademark to appear in conjunction with a platinum alloy mark, even though not required by US law, because a fair number of other countries require both the metal quality mark & the trademark a/k/a maker's mark regardless of whether the item is gold, silver, or platinum.
The AGS lab report number is laser-engraved on your diamond & any decent appraiser will want to incorporate reference to that in their appraisal report (and attach a copy of the lab report) as confirmation to you, and your insurer, that the diamond is indeed the same.

* It's not easy to retrieve retail comparables re an AGS stone because it seems that most jewelers who have diamonds with AGS lab reports don't have online databases. But here are the closest ones from Brian Gavin's current inventory:

And here are two, 1.02 ct diamonds (albeit with not precisely the same proportions-angles as yours), which GIA graded as a H - SI1 with Excellent cut, listed by Kay Jewelers and Jared for appreciably more money than the non-wire price for your Whiteflash stone:
http://design.kay-diamonds.com/diamonds/diamond/diam1316991/
http://design.jared-diamonds.com/diamonds/diamond/diam2862063/

 

[Gypsy]

Re: First time clueless buyer - Spend my money for me please

Eh... I was clearly oversensitive.
I try very hard not to be a vendor fan girl and keep the poster's needs in mind, not my personal preferences. It's something that is important to me. So I guess I took the comments the wrong way. No more bickering. Enjoy your purchase.

 

[kbean]

Re: First time clueless buyer - Spend my money for me please

@Molly – Good points. I’m still on the fence whether to get an appraisal or not. I’ll probably still just give them the ring, even though they can tell it’s made by WF, I won’t tell them anything else. It’s not so much that I don’t trust them, I just want the appraisal to be as authentic and unbiased as possible.

Do most insurance companies require a 3rd part appraisal? We have Allstate Home insurance. I was going to ask how much it would cost to add a rider for the ring. I still have no idea if it would be cheaper to purchase the ring its own separate jewelry insurance and not sure if they require an appraisal either.

Nice work on the comps…thank you, that made me feel good about the price I paid. Granted, I’m still a “noob” but from what I’ve read so far, those ACA H&A diamonds are the cream of the crop, so I would guess the diamond I am getting is just as good if not better than those $8k+ diamonds you linked. What do you think? Anyhow, thanks so much for the time you spent on your response.

@Gyspy - I know you had my best interest in mind and I truly appreciate that - Thanks again for all your help. I think you picked the perfect setup for my needs and budget.

 

[Niel]

Re: First time clueless buyer - Spend my money for me please

@Molly – Good points. I’m still on the fence whether to get an appraisal or not. I’ll probably still just give them the ring, even though they can tell it’s made by WF, I won’t tell them anything else. It’s not so much that I don’t trust them, I just want the appraisal to be as authentic and unbiased as possible.

Do most insurance companies require a 3rd part appraisal? We have Allstate Home insurance. I was going to ask how much it would cost to add a rider for the ring. I still have no idea if it would be cheaper to purchase the ring its own separate jewelry insurance and not sure if they require an appraisal either.

Nice work on the comps…thank you, that made me feel good about the price I paid. Granted, I’m still a “noob” but from what I’ve read so far, those ACA H&A diamonds are the cream of the crop, so I would guess the diamond I am getting is just as good if not better than those $8k+ diamonds you linked. What do you think? Anyhow, thanks so much for the time you spent on your response.

@Gyspy - I know you had my best interest in mind and I truly appreciate that - Thanks again for all your help. I think you picked the perfect setup for my needs and budget.

Here is my opinion on getting a rider.

If you have a claim, do you want to make it on your home policy? No. You dont want to get rated for a theft claim or worse, dropped because that bumps your numbet of claims too high. So I'd get its own policy.

Typically they accept a recent appraisal or receipt

 

[MollyMalone]

Re: First time clueless buyer - Spend my money for me please

Jewelers Mutual will accept, within 30 days (I think) of your purchase, Whiteflash's paperwork in lieu of an independent 3rd party appraisal; JM has set up a special portal for WF customers to make it easy for you to quickly get a price quote:
http://www.jewelersmutual.com/whiteflash

Here's a sample JM policy that could be a useful point of reference when comparing it to whatever rider options Allstate gives you:
https://www.jewelersmutual.com/JewelersMutual/media/MediaLibrary/Images/Personal%20Jewelry/PL-00-03-06-14-Personal-Jewelry-Insurance-Policy-SAMPLE.pdf
At the time I was making the decision a number of years ago, my Allstate agent candidly suggested that I go with Jewelers Mutual, primarily because Allstate did not then offer a jewelry rider as expansive as the coverage from JM. E.g., Allstate did not cover "mysterious losses" or when the insured jewelry was worn while traveling outside the US.

Since your current insurance policies are with Allstate, I'm guessing you don't qualify for insurance provided through USAA. But take a look at USAA's eligibility requirements; PSers who've submitted claims on their USAA jewelry insurance policies seem to be happy campers & the premium prices have seemed very reasonable imo:
https://www.usaa.com/inet/wc/why_choose_usaa_main?showtab=legacyPassDown

 

[kbean]

Re: First time clueless buyer - Spend my money for me please

Jewelers Mutual will accept, within 30 days (I think) of your purchase, Whiteflash's paperwork in lieu of an independent 3rd party appraisal; JM has set up a special portal for WF customers to make it easy for you to quickly get a price quote:
http://www.jewelersmutual.com/whiteflash

Here's a sample JM policy that could be a useful point of reference when comparing it to whatever rider options Allstate gives you:
https://www.jewelersmutual.com/JewelersMutual/media/MediaLibrary/Images/Personal%20Jewelry/PL-00-03-06-14-Personal-Jewelry-Insurance-Policy-SAMPLE.pdf
At the time I was making the decision a number of years ago, my Allstate agent candidly suggested that I go with Jewelers Mutual, primarily because Allstate did not then offer a jewelry rider as expansive as the coverage from JM. E.g., Allstate did not cover "mysterious losses" or when the insured jewelry was worn while traveling outside the US.

Since your current insurance policies are with Allstate, I'm guessing you don't qualify for insurance provided through USAA. But take a look at USAA's eligibility requirements; PSers who've submitted claims on their USAA jewelry insurance policies seem to be happy campers & the premium prices have seemed very reasonable imo:
https://www.usaa.com/inet/wc/why_choose_usaa_main?showtab=legacyPassDown

Thanks Molly, right after you posted this I went thru all the steps at Jewelers mutual, filled in all the info, they pulled up the diamond and ring I bought and they valued it higher than what I paid, and their premium came up at $172/year....I was ready to buy, put in all my info and my debit card which I know there is plenty of cash attached to, and it popped up that there is some kind of problem and I need to call them? Tried calling but they were closed. I Got no email or phone call or anything since then.

 

[MollyMalone]

Re: First time clueless buyer - Spend my money for me please

It doesn't surprise me that you haven't heard from anyone in personal jewelry insurance "intake" during off-business hours; think the reason you got the pop-up message is because WF has not yet shipped off the ring to you