Diamond appraisal in NYC: what it tells a seller, and what it does not

Diamond Buyers NYC is an independent referral service, not a buyer, pawnshop or dealer, and it does not appraise, grade or value anything. When you call or send the form, your details go to an independent buyer in New York, who makes any offer.

Three documents, three questions

Document	The question it answers	Who writes it
Grading report	What is this stone? Its carat weight, color, clarity and cut, and whether it is natural or laboratory-grown.	A laboratory such as GIA, or IGI, another laboratory that issues diamond reports.
Appraisal	What value does this piece have for a stated purpose, such as insurance or an estate?	An appraiser, who is not offering to buy.
Offer	What will someone pay for it today?	A buyer.

Only the last of the three puts money in your hand. A grading report describes the stone but gives no price. An appraisal gives a figure, but for a stated purpose, and nobody is bound to pay it. An offer is the only number that is actually available to you, and it is the one to compare.

Why an appraisal is not an offer

An appraisal written for insurance answers a different question from the one a seller is asking. It is meant for an insurer, and the appraiser is not offering to buy anything. A buyer, by contrast, is deciding what the piece is worth to them to resell, reset or melt. A retail price includes a store’s costs and margin, and a buyer’s offer does not, so an offer is lower than what was paid in a store. Neither number is wrong. They are simply answers to different questions.

Jewelers Mutual, an insurer, suggests getting an appraisal first and using it as a guideline when you sell. That is sensible as long as you treat it as background: it tells you what the piece is, and roughly how it compares with similar pieces, not what you will be paid. The guide to diamond resale value explains why the gap exists.

Grading report or appraisal: which helps a seller more?

For a seller, a grading report usually does more work than an appraisal. A buyer prices a diamond on its four Cs, the factors GIA set out in the grading system it developed in the 1950s, and a report records exactly those. It also says whether the stone is natural or laboratory-grown, which the FTC’s jewelry guides require to be disclosed clearly for a lab-grown stone.

• Carat weight. A carat is 200 milligrams; a point is one hundredth of a carat.
• Color. GIA grades color against masterstones on its D to Z scale.
• Clarity. Flawless, GIA’s top clarity grade, means no inclusions or blemishes visible to a skilled grader under 10x magnification.
• Cut. How well the stone is proportioned and finished.

GIA offers a Report Check on its website where a report number can be looked up, so a buyer can check the stone against its paper. An appraisal may repeat the same grades, but if it was written without a laboratory report, its grades are the appraiser’s own estimate. If your stone has a report, bring it; the article on how to check your GIA report shows how to look it up first.

When an appraisal before selling makes sense

An appraisal is not always worth the fee when you are about to sell. A few situations where it can help:

• An estate. When jewelry passes through an estate, a written value may be needed for reasons that have nothing to do with selling. Ask the estate’s lawyer or accountant what kind of valuation they need.
• Dividing pieces among family. A neutral written value can settle who takes what before anything is sold.
• Signed or unusual pieces. For a piece from a maker such as Tiffany & Co., Cartier or Van Cleef & Arpels, or an antique, an appraiser can describe what it is and what makes it unusual, which helps you explain it to buyers.
• You want to understand it first. If you have no report and no receipt, an appraisal at least tells you what you have.

And where it usually does not help: a small stone or a simple piece, where the fee could be a large share of any offer, and any piece you already have a grading report for. In those cases, going straight to two or three written offers tells you more.

Choosing an appraiser in New York

New York has many appraisers, from independent gemological practices to jewelers who appraise alongside their main business. Whoever you choose, ask a few questions before you hand anything over.

1. What is the appraisal for? Say that you are thinking of selling, so the document answers your question.
2. Is the fee agreed in advance? Ask how it is worked out before the work starts.
3. Will the appraiser also offer to buy? An appraiser with no stake in buying the piece gives a cleaner opinion.
4. What training and equipment does the appraiser use, and will they test the stone or rely on its report?
5. Will the piece stay in your sight? You may prefer an appraisal done while you wait.
6. Will you get it in writing, with a description of each stone and the metal?

Using an appraisal when you sell

Once you have an appraisal, treat it as a description, not a target. Bring it with the grading report, receipts and any box and papers. Show it to each buyer so they all start from the same description. Then compare the written offers with each other, not with the appraisal figure.

If the diamond is set in gold, remember that a buyer values the metal separately, from its weight and purity. In New York City any business that buys precious metal must have a scale and tell you the troy weight. The page on how to sell gold in NYC explains karat and melt value.

What a buyer in New York must do

Appraisers are not the same as buyers, and the city’s secondhand dealer rules are written for buyers. When you do sell, the business needs a Secondhand Dealer General licence from the NYC Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP), posted where you can see it, with the number on your receipt. It must check your official photo ID and have you sign in front of the dealer, weigh precious metal on an approved scale, and record the sale. The step-by-step guide on how to sell diamonds in NYC covers each of those.

Where the Diamond District fits

West 47th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues holds, according to the 47th Street BID, the largest concentration of diamond and jewelry related companies and retailers. That makes it a practical place to get several written offers in one trip. The guide to the Diamond District NYC covers how to get there and what to bring.

Questions people ask