Pricing for a 1.66 rock

[KAPNIJ]

recently purchased a nice sparkly rock and I think I may have paid a bit of a premium for it...but now sure if that''s true and if it is how much of a "premium"...since at some point the "premium" becomes me getting taken for a ride. Anyway here are the specs:
And thanks everyone in advance for your help and input!

1.66 unbranded H&A
Color: H GIA
Polish: Ex GIA
Symetry: EX GIA
Clarity: VVS1 GIA
Total Depth: 60.9%
Pavil Depth: 43
Pavil Angle: 40.9
Crown Angle: 34.2
Table size: 55.3%
Culet: .8%
HCA 1.2
1A cut

 

[KAPNIJ]

Sorry forgot to add this is a round brillant

 

[Arlington]

Have you considered getting it appraised? You may need an appraisal to insure it, and the cost ($100-$150) will be a miniscule fraction of what you paid for it even if you got a great deal. Worth it for peace of mind, in my opinion.

 

[KAPNIJ]

I did send it in for an appraisal...sent it to Rockdoc (who did a great job)
but the numbers he suggested we a bit higher then what I paid.

 

[Mara]

So what exactly are you looking for? If RD appraised the stone and said all is well, what do you need to know from us? We aren't experts...not like he is anyway!




If you are looking for pricing comparisons, check out Pricescope's pricing online. For something like H VVS 1.66c H&A well cut stone...probably thinking around $14-15k is what you should have paid? Depends on if its B&M or online as well. Appraisal would probably be higher than what you paid if you got an online stone or similar, the markup is much less online.




If the stone came in with a good appraisal with more than you paid, and the stone checked out, then why do you think you overpaid a high premium?

 

[KAPNIJ]

good points Mara...I think I'm just a bit nervous and dazzed about this whole process (spent last month reading, researching, asking advice from friends, etc) and wanted to get some adive from all the "experts" on this site.
I paid a bit under $14K for the little pet rock which doesnt sound like any premium at all at this point.

I think my problem is I'm starting to second guess my decision when I start hearing advice from friends that you should go to so and so because they have great deals or this person got this size and spec ring and paid this much. Then again these are all people that didnt do anywere near the amount of research I've done.

In the end I should stop worrying since I think I got a great ring (awsome results on the b-scope)...and just smile when I notice my ring looks like it's on fire next to someone else's frozen spit (a term borrowed from RockDoc)

thanks all!

 

[Mara]

For $14k I think you got an excellent price!! I used that $14-15k as an estimate from other H&A excellent cut stones prices on Pscope--so if you are at $14k that sounds perfect.




People will always tell you that you could have gotten a 'better deal' with so and so. In the end it comes down to research and also who do you trust? As with anything, deals that seem 'too good to be true' usually are.




We are in the midst of securing a loan right now for buying a place--and I am learning firsthand of all the confusion related with a purchase this large. Hah and to think that a year ago $10k seemed like a big deal for a diamond ring...now we are talking the big bucks and the purchase is really freaking us out! We want to be sure we have all our ducks in a row so that there are no surprises.




So I have lender #1 quoting me Rate A and then lender #2 quoting me Rate B..and Rate B is almost 2 full % points under Rate A. So how does lender #2 come up with such a cheap rate? Oh he is passing me 'rebates and specials'...sound fishy? Yeah it does to me too. Who are these banks passing him such great deals? Who really knows, maybe its a great deal. But if lender #1 (who btw has been doing this for 22 years and is our builder's recommended lender) can't fathom why we are getting such a great rate, and she has been running calcs for us all day and still is not able to match or figure out how #2 is offering us this rate...we start to wonder if #2 is really above water. And we don't want 'surprises' popping up a few days before closing. So in this instance, we are willing to possibly have to pay a little bit more to get the security and peace of mind that comes with someone who has a good reputation in the business--and someone we trust. The 'great deal' that this other lender is offering us could sour into something that smells bad if we find out a week before closing that we need to meet conditions X and Y and come up with an extra $10k. It happens to people--I've read the horror stories!




So yes there are great deals out there, but they all require EXTREME scrutiny and research. In the end you want to feel good with what you have, how your stone looks, and the fact that it checked out great with an independent appraiser (one who has a Bscope no less!). I think you did an excellent job and chances are your friends who say you could have gotten a better deal going with Vendor X or Y just mean you could have gotten a bigger stone that YES...looks like frozen spit.

My two cents...

 

[aljdewey]

Hi, Kap: Sounds like a little touch of buyer's remorse, which is totally understandable!

$14K is no small chunk of change, and it can be tough not to second-guess one's self.




By way of reassurance.....a gentle point: Your friends probably don't know half of what you've seemed to learn about diamonds. They mean well.....they see the commercials for places like "The Diamond Exchange" which claims to be able to give you a 1 ct. GIA stone for $3999, and they pass that along to you with all good intentions.




But they don't know that a RB diamond with a depth of 68% is a piece of junk. They don't know what a crown or pavilion angle is. They mean well, but they certainly aren't as knowledgeable as someone like RockDoc, who makes his living evaluating diamonds.




Relax. You got a great stone at a decent price. Your girl's rock is sure to look 25 times better than any of the mall issue being worn around town. Exhale and enjoy your engagement!

 

[KAPNIJ]

aljdewey I think you hit the nail on the head...just a bit of buyers remorse.
But I am excited and can't wait to see the ring on her hand, which will be it's own bit of stress deciding how and when to propose, asking for her parents blessing...but looking foward to this entire experiance while trying to have a bit of fun doing it.

Mara, good luck with your financing! Hope it works out well for you. Let us know how it goes. Not sure if you tried this already but try checking out lendingtree.com ...they will give you quotes from 3 or 4 lenders, if none come close to that "great deal" rate you could probably assume something is a bit fishy.

 

[Mara]

Actually we are using LendingTree--it is one of their lenders that gave us that seemingly too-low rate! I know LT customers rate their lenders and all (like eBay) but I don't have a high level of trust there if NONE of our other lenders (about 4) can match it or come close. We are also using eLoan and 2 offline lenders for pricing/comparisons.

 

[aljdewey]

Kap....remember to post pics.....we'd love to see your stone. It sounds amazing!

 

[Colored Gemstone Nut]

Excited to see pics...Glad you found pricescope helpful and stick around!