help me to find a value for my ring

[shine0-0]

the ring is 1.54 ct solitare tiffany setting 14 ct white gold its colour is f/g and clarity is i3 can you help to give me a rough estimate thanks andrea

 

[Colored Gemstone Nut]

Hi a-spence...




Well I am not a vendor, but I would venture to guess whatever the value on this diamond is the re-sale value if indeed you are looking to cash in will not be high because of the market demand and the I3 clarity...




Do you have any measurements on the stone either stated on the grading report (AGS/GIA or EGL examples of labs which grade diamonds) or any pertinent info that accompanied a written independent appraisal..




Maybe if you post more info some vendors and proffesionals will be able to give you a rough estimate..

 

[phoenixgirl]

It depends on what you mean by "value." Do you mean how much would you expect to pay for it new in a store? Do you mean how much could you get for it if you sold it? Are you looking to appraise it?

I3 is the lowest clarity grade that a diamond can receive, and I can't find any examples online that are similar.

I did find a 1.52 F I2 that is going for around $2500 and a 1.54 G I2 that is going for around $3000 on the internet. These are both certified stones. Factors such as cut quality, the nature and placement of the inclusions, whether or not the stone is certified and by whom, and flourescence can make a diamond that seems similar to yours be priced more or less than this. Certainly with a lower clarity, your diamond would not sell for as much as these stones. Also, you never mentioned what shape your diamond is.

The only way to find out is to have the ring appraised. You can look up an appraiser in the phone book. You should be able to get an appraisal for $50-$100. Just remember that when the appraiser gives you a "retail replacement value," that is for insurance purposes, and is always much greater than what you would pay to buy your ring new from a store, and much much much greater than what someone would pay to get your ring secondhand.

Here a 1.41 princess cut J I3 diamond ring sold for $565 on ebay.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=10217&item=2673991553

Here's a 1.7 round F/G I2 diamond ring sold for $795 on ebay.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=42948&item=2672767794

Here's a 1.58 G/H I3 diamond ring sold on ebay for $585:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=42948&item=2665853062

This seller has other similar rings if you want to look at more comparisons. Notice the big difference between the "appraisal value" this seller lists and what he actually sells the stones for. So unless you are trying to insure this ring, you may not want to bother getting an appraisal since it will surely be more than anyone would ever pay for it.

 

[newenglandgemlab]

Just remember that when the appraiser gives you a 'retail replacement value,' that is for insurance purposes, and is always much greater than what you would pay to buy your ring new from a store, and much much much greater than what someone would pay to get your ring secondhand.

A good appraisal should not be higher than a B&M replacement new. I like to use a well negotiated figure since most retailers are working on short margins due in a large part to the internet. We have to find out what market they want it appraised in. Fortunately we don't get to grade too many of these and my recommendation would be to save your money for something of much better quality. It is of no service to the client to appraise using inflated figures.

 

[phoenixgirl]

It's been my experience that retail replacement values are inflated. I'm not saying it's due to an evil conspiracy on the part of appraisers, but that appraisals have to be at the very high end of what a diamond would sell for. It would not go over well if people consistently received appraisals for less than what they paid, although surely there are people paying more than they have to out there (which is how the market works, there is nothing wrong with this. This leads some consumers (not vendors) to believe that they will be able to turn around and sell their rings for more than what they paid, which is ridiculous. I just didn't want Andrea to imagine that an appraisal was an indication of what she could expect to receive for her ring, especially considering the clarity.

I have a dinner ring of my grandmother's: platinum, center stone 1.1 ct. J-K SI1, side stones I-J VVS2-VS2 -- six baguettes at 0.32ctw and eight rounds at 0.44ctw. It was appraised for $10,000. Come on now. Maybe an uneducated person who showed up at a mall store which has to pay the overheads of an expensive lease would pay that if he didn't try to negotiate or shop around at all, but certainly no insurance company replacing it would shell out $10,000 for a comparable ring. So what am I paying a premium on a $10,000 piece of jewelry for? If I hadn't done a little homework, I might be one of those poor people trying to sell my ring on Ebay for $8 grand or something ridiculous like that, insisting that it's really work 10K.

This is totally a non-scientific subjective observation, but it seems to me that the best internet deals generally run 50-60% of common "retail replacement values." Am I way off?

 

[phoenixgirl]

I'm stuck at home with the flu, so I'll pontificate on this point a bit further.

There's nothing wrong with price discrimination. It's not illegal, although it is frustrating for some consumers -- hence CarMax and other no haggle places. (I admit it, the Honda place got me to burst into tears during my first car buying experience).

I've even seen price discrimination on US Airways.com. My sister and I took a trip to the Bahamas once that was going for $1000 a piece every two out of three times we visited the site, but $500 a piece the third time. If someone is willing to pay $1000 for it, then that is how much the trip is worth to them. They have a finite number of seats, and want to sell as many as possible without running out.

We might call it "special deals for Price Scope members" to have vendors list lower prices on stones listed by multiple vendors on PriceScope than on their own sites. It's really a way to increase their chances of being the one chosen to sell that stone here, but without having to decrease all their prices.

And then there are the mall stores, where there always seems to be a sale. "These 1/4 carat diamond studs retail for $599, but they're half off today for $299." It's the steal of the century! Oh wait, no it's not. Their "sale" is just starting to bring the price into the reasonable territory. I'm sure once in a while someone even pays that retail price. I know my brother bought my sister-in-law a 1.75 carat rock and did no research on prices or shopping around at all! I shudder to think what he paid.

What a diamond is "worth" is really in the mind of the beholder. It's worth how much you are willing to pay for it and/or part with it for. Appraisers really have an impossible job of trying to put a price on something that is a luxury item/emotional buy anyway. If there were no status affixed to diamonds, we would all sport super simulants. But there is, and the price we're willing to pay for it varies greatly from person to person. I can't imagine that anyone who got a fair deal would pay more than a retail replacement value, because I assume that this value is usually at the top of what could be paid in the market assuming full disclosure for that piece.