Is it necessary?! (Independent Appraisal)

[wwe]

I received my JA princess, 1.13c, D, VS1, Ideal cut yesterday. It looks unbelievable. The one question I had is that it came with an appraisal already. The appraisal was 5k more than my purchase price.

Do I need to go to an independent appraiser to just be 100% sure?

Also if so, has anyone had any experience with "JUST APPRAISERS" in NYC? They are listed in the pricescope independent appraisers list.


Thanks!

 

[pricescope]

Wwe, such appraisal can be used for insurance purposes although you might want to check how much of insurance premium this extra $5K will cost your.

Independent appraisal is just like this: independent professional opinion on your expensive purchase. You don't necessary need it if you feel comfortable enough with your diamond/ring. Btw, some independent appraisers now charge as much as lawyers for their time...

RE: "JUST APPRAISERS" and David Wolf. You can run a search on this board to find the feedbacks.

 

[wwe]

Thanks for the info. But other than getting appraised for insurance reasons, I should also make sure that the diamond/ ring is what it says on the GIA report, right?

Thanks

 

[pricescope]

Date: 4/18/2007 10:48:19 AM
Author: wwe

... I should also make sure that the diamond/ ring is what it says on the GIA report, right?

Personal preference. Appraiser can point out to some hidden problems with your diamond/setting, durability, quality, etc. However, if you feel comfortable with the vendor and can tell the diamond matches the papers (e.g. GIA report) and going to insure your ring, why spend time and $$?

 

[rjdodd]

Keep in mind that how ''high'' the appraisal is really depends on what type of insurance you are going to get, and how often you are going to re-appraise the ring.

For a like-kind, if you are going to reappraise every three years a ''fair'' appraisal in my view could run 50% or more above what you paid - that allows for 15% per year price appreciation (is this realistic? I don''t know). With Chubb that''s built into the cash out option (I think). With more normal insurance (like-kind replacement, max is insured amount) you better have enough insurance to cover not just the value today, but up until the day you get it reappraised in future.

Full disclosure: I''m not an insurance expert, I am not an appraiser, I am not a diamond expert. I did not stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night.

 

[wwe]

Understood. Thanks.

My concern is that I just want to be assured that what I paid for the ring is worth it. I want to make sure that the specs I paid for are legit.

Does that make sense? Has anybody been told something else by an appraiser that was different than the GIA report? If so what online vendors were used?

 

[Psoasmajorman]

wwe...

I recently purchased a three stone ring from Blue Nile, which came with AGS reports for all three stones as well as a Blue Nile retail appraisal (which was 69% greater than the price I paid). Though the ring and the stones were beautiful, I elected to take the ring to an independent appraiser that I located on this website. The appraiser confirmed all the details...specifically, that the diamonds were indeed the diamonds I''d selected. Further, he inspected the ring for workmanship and quality of the settings and found them to be in excellent condition. Finally, his appraisal was slightly lower than the one that came with the ring, but still was 63% greater than the price I paid. I will use his appraisal for insurance purposes.

Good luck

 

[surfgirl]

I would never ever make a huge diamond purchase without an independent appraisal. They are worth the peace of mind so long as you go to an actual "independent" appraiser. That means the appraiser should not be an owner, co-owner or dealer in diamonds; nor should they have any affiliation with a dealer or shop. I recently had a weird experience with an appraiser who co-owns the shop he operates out of and he dissed my stone endlessly over silly little details that weren''t that big of a deal, and then tried to sell me one of his GIA stones at a cheaper cost than the one I brought in for appraisal. That is rather unprofessional and sketchy, to be honest. I then went to my old tried and true appraiser and he was great, and basically I realized the other guy was just trying to get me to doubt the quality of my stone so he could sell me something else. So all that is to say, make sure they are really independent. From your posts, it sounds like an appraisal will set your mind at ease so go for it.

Also, regarding the amount of appraisals...my old appraiser told me that there really should not be any difference between an "insurance appraisal" and any other type of appraisal. He said that unfortunately, the appraisal business has gotten rather shady over the recent years, jacking up appraisals for insurance purposes. He said he figures out the fair market value of the item and that is the appraised value. So it would be interesting to see if an independent appraiser added on the extra $5k to your ring or not. Let us know what they say after the appraisal...I''m just curious...

 

[Regular Guy]

Date: 4/18/2007 11:13:43 AM
Author: rjdodd

Full disclosure: I'm not an insurance expert, I am not an appraiser, I am not a diamond expert. I did not stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night.

Also...I used JA...and an appraiser...and based on the appraiser's comments, was glad to be warned that a prong or two would cause trouble if they were not tightened. Further, I did want the inscription visible, somehow that info (put in writing ahead) did not get acted upon by the setter...so I brought the ring to a local outfit to have the diamond spun in place and tightened (but by agreement, the local jeweler also re-crafted the prongs to be platinum...they had been white gold).

 

[Modified Brilliant]

Date: 4/18/2007 1:24:02 PM
Author: Regular Guy

Date: 4/18/2007 11:13:43 AM
Author: rjdodd

Full disclosure: I''m not an insurance expert, I am not an appraiser, I am not a diamond expert. I did not stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night.

Also...I used JA...and an appraiser...and based on the appraiser''s comments, was glad to be warned that a prong or two would cause trouble if they were not tightened. Further, I did want the inscription visible, somehow that info (put in writing ahead) did not get acted upon by the setter...so I brought the ring to a local outfit to have the diamond spun in place and tightened (but by agreement, the local jeweler also re-crafted the prongs to be platinum...they had been white gold).

I see laser inscriptions covered by a prong quite often with new engagement rings. The setter must be informed ahead of time. Also, when this happens, it makes it difficult for the appraiser to match the inscription to the report.

www.metrojewelryappraisers.com

 

[Regular Guy]

Date: 4/18/2007 8:18:05 PM
Author: Modified Brilliant

Date: 4/18/2007 1:24:02 PM
Author: Regular Guy

Date: 4/18/2007 11:13:43 AM
Author: rjdodd

Full disclosure: I''m not an insurance expert, I am not an appraiser, I am not a diamond expert. I did not stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night.

Also...I used JA...and an appraiser...and based on the appraiser''s comments, was glad to be warned that a prong or two would cause trouble if they were not tightened. Further, I did want the inscription visible, somehow that info (put in writing ahead) did not get acted upon by the setter...so I brought the ring to a local outfit to have the diamond spun in place and tightened (but by agreement, the local jeweler also re-crafted the prongs to be platinum...they had been white gold).

I see laser inscriptions covered by a prong quite often with new engagement rings. The setter must be informed ahead of time. Also, when this happens, it makes it difficult for the appraiser to match the inscription to the report.

www.metrojewelryappraisers.com

Not sure what point we''re making here...you hightlighted my text, and I''m making it bigger. The request to make the inscription visible was not made casually, but put in writing, with my order...

 

[Modified Brilliant]

Thanks for the super size bold highlight.

It reinforces our point to clearly specify before the diamond is set.

www.metrojewelryappraisers.com