Where to buy second hand diamonds and what are the pitfalls ?

[SKR]

As per the thread title. Interested in this topic as the consensus seems to be that these can be substantially cheaper than new retail. My cousin is very interested in buying a stone and I said I would look into it for her.

Any good retailers that you are aware of and how much can prices be lower than new retail ? I guess diamonds don''t go bad with age so are their any known pitfalls?

Thanks

 

[Cehrabehra]

the known pitfalls are the obvious ones IMO - yanno - getting taken for your money. As for where - try your local pawn shops and take a loupe and an idealscope. If you''ve learned anything here that should make you fairly well armed to determine relative quality - and just know how much you want to pay per carat and how to negotiate.

 

[ladykemma]

read renee newman''s book before you start. you will see a lot of garbage and dirt. you will see diamond earrings that have not been cleaned in ten years. you will see poor quality. you will see high quailty under layers of dirt and you WILL know it when you see it. look for platinum prongs, usually a sign that it came from a better store. 18k is usually a sign of quality too.

there are good shops and there are bad shops. usually the price is half what''s on the sticker.

a 1/4 carat will be around $100, 1/3 about $150
1/2 carat $500, 3/4 carat 1500
1 carat about 2k

if you are in houston i saw a 1 ctw platinum three stone ring size 7 in houston last saturday. $600.

remember you are looking at the STONES, ignore the ugly gross settings. jared''s has fresh remounts.

 

[jayreneepea]

There''s always signed pieces too if she is looking for Tiffany or Cartier.

Pearlmans also sells previously owned.

What size is she looking for?

 

[SKR]

She is looking for a 2.0 - 3.0ct RB stone. I guess these are pretty rare ?

 

[starryeyed]

Hi SKR. I''m not sure where you are located or how comfortable you are with auctions, but Sotheby''s has an auction coming up in New York on Dec 6th called "Magnificent Jewels". Here is a link to the Auction Calendar . You will have to register, but the catalog is viewable online. I just flipped through the first few pages and there are several large diamond rings. You need to know what you are looking for though - some pieces come with GIA reports, some do not. Good luck - sounds exciting!

 

[jayreneepea]

Date: 11/26/2006 5:13:41 PM
Author: SKR
She is looking for a 2.0 - 3.0ct RB stone. I guess these are pretty rare ?

Pearlmans has a 2.40ct previously owned right now for $33,000. The specs are a bit weird, though. It has a football field for a table and is very shallow, so maybe not such a great deal?

 

[SKR]

Date: 11/26/2006 5:48:21 PM
Author: jayrenay9

Date: 11/26/2006 5:13:41 PM
Author: SKR
She is looking for a 2.0 - 3.0ct RB stone. I guess these are pretty rare ?

Pearlmans has a 2.40ct previously owned right now for $33,000. The specs are a bit weird, though. It has a football field for a table and is very shallow, so maybe not such a great deal?

Your right, it sounds expensive. You can probably get a new ACA for that kind of price. I will point her to the site so she can keep a lookout. Thanks

 

[SKR]

Date: 11/26/2006 6:54:57 PM
Author: starryeyed
Just a thought, there is a 2-carat H VS2 premium cut diamond set in a Michael B. Lace replica setting offered by the Diamond Brokers of FL for $20K. Their website is www.dbof.com. Pictures of the ring can be found here .

I''m not sure if your cousin wanted just a stone or a ring as well, but Michael B. is a totally hot designer and his stuff is REALLY expensive. This ring looks like a lot of bang for the buck. I looked at it myself - it seems like a good deal. You could probably even make an offer. Just a thought.

Thanks. She is looking mainly for a stone but this sounds interesting.

 

[SKR]

Date: 11/26/2006 5:26:14 PM
Author: starryeyed
Hi SKR. I''m not sure where you are located or how comfortable you are with auctions, but Sotheby''s has an auction coming up in New York on Dec 6th called ''Magnificent Jewels''. Here is a link to the Auction Calendar . You will have to register, but the catalog is viewable online. I just flipped through the first few pages and there are several large diamond rings. You need to know what you are looking for though - some pieces come with GIA reports, some do not. Good luck - sounds exciting!

Most of the auction stones are more than my cousin is willing to spend but some of them have got me interested. I logged on and their seems to be some massive stones for sale at very cheap prices (compared to new). Most have GIA certs as well. Is it possible to get hold of the GIA certs or more details on each diamonds spec prior to the auction commencing ? Also do they guarantee that the stones arent chipped etc ? I have zero auction experience but am really interested in the 2.4ct tiffany heart shape stone.

 

[widget]

Date: 11/27/2006 6:56:13 AM
Author: SKR

Most of the auction stones are more than my cousin is willing to spend but some of them have got me interested. I logged on and their seems to be some massive stones for sale at very cheap prices (compared to new). Most have GIA certs as well. Is it possible to get hold of the GIA certs or more details on each diamonds spec prior to the auction commencing ? Also do they guarantee that the stones arent chipped etc ? I have zero auction experience but am really interested in the 2.4ct tiffany heart shape stone.

I'm pretty sure if a stone were chipped or something, it would be mentioned in the description. I do know that you can contact the auction house and request a "condition report" on jewelry...don't know if this is true regarding unmounted stones.

My biggest concern about buying at auction is the lack of a return policy. For a purchase like this, I'd either travel to NY to see it in real life before bidding, or perhaps hire an expert to go look at it on my behalf. Other potential bidders must have this problem...I'd be tempted to call Sothebys and ask how others handle it..

widget

ETA: And if you do call and ask, do come back and tell us what they say....I've always been curious about this!

 

[starryeyed]

Hi SKR. Widget''s comments are right on. I think your best bet will be to call Sotheby''s and find out the details first-hand. Keep in mind that there is a "Buyer''s Premium" that you will need to fork over if you are the winning bid. It is usually around 20%, which can significantly add to the price.

The heart-shaped Tiffany is to-die-for! They do have some gorgeous stuff. I''m drooling over Lot 214 - the 3.80 F IF Oval with 1.20 ctw Pears. Wow.

 

[SKR]

You can get all the details beforehand including condition reports and copies of the GIA certs. I already have them

 

[SKR]

Date: 11/27/2006 10:23:33 AM
Author: starryeyed
Hi SKR. Widget''s comments are right on. I think your best bet will be to call Sotheby''s and find out the details first-hand. Keep in mind that there is a ''Buyer''s Premium'' that you will need to fork over if you are the winning bid. It is usually around 20%, which can significantly add to the price.

The heart-shaped Tiffany is to-die-for! They do have some gorgeous stuff. I''m drooling over Lot 214 - the 3.80 F IF Oval with 1.20 ctw Pears. Wow.

Not to put you off but the oval has a smallish table and is very deep (67.4%). My wife has a similar carat weight oval but with ideal proportions and it has substantially more spread. GIA cert is however dated 2006.

 

[starryeyed]

Thanks SKR - so now I don''t feel so bad about probably not being able to afford it! Ha-ha! I feel much better now. I noticed that quite a few of the pieces had more recent GIA certs. Interesting.

I''m not sure if you noticed, but you can also browse results from past auctions. It''s not the easiest thing, but if you locate the online catalog, write down the lot number, and then go to auction results, you can find out what the winning bid was (with the Buyer''s Premium). This may be a way of figuring out what something similar has sold for in the past.

Are you thinking about going to the auction, or maybe just doing an absentee bid?

 

[SKR]

Starryeyed - I was thinking of sending down my appriaser for the full low down and getting him to bid. He is a great guy and I trust him. However I asked for the details on 5 stones and tbh I am dissapointed with all of them. Proportions wise, none of them were even near great.

Thanks for the tip on the previous auction results. There seems to be a few of them each year and I may just hang on for the next one.

 

[starryeyed]

Even the heart-shapped Tiffany? Perhaps it''s worth someone taking a look for you - I can''t imagine Tiffany putting together a shabby piece. I don''t know much about proportions for fancy shapes - you''re lucky you have a feel for that! I''ll be anxious to hear of any outcome!

 

[WinkHPD]

Date: 11/26/2006 3:11:34 PM
Author:SKR
As per the thread title. Interested in this topic as the consensus seems to be that these can be substantially cheaper than new retail. My cousin is very interested in buying a stone and I said I would look into it for her.

Any good retailers that you are aware of and how much can prices be lower than new retail ? I guess diamonds don''t go bad with age so are their any known pitfalls?

Thanks

Buying second hand means having to accept what you find. Sometimes there are treasures, but rarely. You can not usually go out and order up a 2ct H&A cut D-IF, but may occassionally find a rare gem.

Also as to your second question. A good retailer will not be selling a used stone cheap very often. Occassionally they might have an estate that needs the stone sold quickly, but if a stone is worth 10k at wholesale, you can bet they will not be selling it for 5. A private might easily sell it for 5 just to get the cash, but not a good retailer.

In my career as a jeweler I gave up long ago looking for "steal deals" in the classified, most people wanted way too much for what they had. It always sounds so easy, but finding a nice stone is the hard part. If you can find the stone, you can almost always negotiate a good price.

Wink