When Quick Cash is Needed

Jo Desmond, ASA and Journal of Advanced Appraisal Studies contributor send me an interesting article from the Philadelphia Inquirer. The article discussing collectors reassessing their collection and need for items within their collections during the current economic climate. The article also mentions Susan Golashovsky, a Doylestown-based accredited senior appraiser. It certainly appears that in these time of slower economic activity, a lot of appraisers are getting mentioned in the press.

The article states Going through the economy has a lot of people looking around at their furniture, their art, their jewelry, and their collectibles and wondering how to turn these items into quick cash.

Glenn Hudson, a florist, photographer and potter in South Jersey, has long used his second bedroom as a walk-in closet for more than 600 vintage garments he has been collecting for more than 25 years. He has mostly used them as props for his photographic portraits. Hudson recently took a six-hour class at the Hammonton Inn on the ins and outs of eBay, taught by a Power Seller. Now, he's begun cataloging his pieces and strategizing the best way to catch buyers' attention in eBay's very active vintage-clothing category.

"I could use the money," Hudson says. "That's the main thing." He's hoping to make a few thousand dollars to pay bills, fix up his house, and invest in some new camera equipment.

Lentini's also going the eBay route, with the help of an eBay-savvy friend, who offered to research the market value of some of his knickknacks. It turns out the L&M lighter that's still in its box is now worth around $199. Lentini paid $15 for it at a flea market. His collection of cobalt, clear, and olive-green glass eye cups could probably go for $199 a pop. He's thinking he might be able to parlay his profit toward the price of an original Warhol print.

"I never would've expected that," says Lentini, "but it makes some sense. Economically speaking, it's a good market for things that aren't that expensive. People have money for items around a hundred dollars."

That low-end market and the very-high-end antiques market might be the only ones doing much business right now.

Susan Golashovsky, a Doylestown-based accredited senior appraiser of antiques, says the middle market is dead. She defines the middle as furniture below $15,000 and smalls (decorative items, collectibles) priced lower than $5,000. Unfortunately, most of the phone calls Golashovsky's getting these days are about pieces of furniture that aren't moving. "People think they have something that's worth money because it's large," she says.

In the last six months, the calls she receives in which the caller's objective is to unload an heirloom as quickly as possible have gone from one a week to one a day. "People are calling and saying, 'Can you help me sell? Will you tell me if it'll sell?' " she says. "They tell me flat out, 'I need the money.' "

To read the full article, click HERE.