H Newton appraisal policy chapter 5 or 6

Maybe this spells it out more clearly than in previous posts ?
You be the judge.

email received and responded to this morning.


Greetings,

I have a painting by H Newton that my dad gave me years ago. He acquired it when he lived in Palm Bay, Fl. It is approximately 18 by 22 and it is in great shape. I have attached some pics. Would you be a buyer? If not, can you direct me to an interested party?

Thank you kindly,


Ed, this is how I do it.

I can appraise paintings by use of images from emails in most cases. Yours are excellent.
I have a pretty good handle on which artists' works exist as prints or giclees, having studied this market since its birth 15 years ago.

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Each highwaymen artist has his own market, with values depending on a multitude of factors, most obviously the scene itself, elements within it, and size.

And although every painting is unique, there exists a lot of repetition.

There are several prices or values for each piece based on many factors.

A liquid price, which means I write a check to you and we're done.
If you choose this option, I return the appraisal fees. This requires physical inspection.
A fair wholesale asking price which is a little higher than what I would pay .
A fair retail price, higher still. What I would expect the market to bear.
What you could expect at auction minus commissions.
And the high retail insurance value I use for the certificates.

Upon payment, I give you these numbers and create the certificates.

There are willing buyers at fair wholesale. Fortunately I know a few.
Retail buyers are more difficult to find. And they are both fickle and picky.
However, there are probably a hundred buyers out there for something with the Harold Newton signature due to his fame on a national level and due to the promotion of getting him listed in various art references.
The two books about him don't hurt, either.

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My specialized knowledge has value.

I found out many years ago that if I give a free appraisal, I'll usually see the painting on eBay within a week and not even get a word of thanks.

Having a keen sense of the obvious, I found that annoying.
So, I adjusted my thinking.

I charge a flat fee of $ 100.00 per painting for appraisals which include a certificate of authenticity, an example of which is on the first website below.

This is a fraction of what you can pay for an appraisal by someone who is accredited by some group with initials, but unfamiliar with the market itself.

More detailed info on how I appraise things can be found in this newspaper article.

http://www.antiqueshoppefl.com/articles/sept10/newton0910.htm

Some people think I'm fair, some don't.

regards and happy holidays.

BOB

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As an addendum, at least I got a fair response, as I'm posting below.

Free appraisals are worth what you pay for them. That's what offers really are.
I have no use for internet bidding wars.

I also believe that passing his information on to others has value.
So, I guess I'll have to turn that request down.

Bob,

Thanks for the reply. I am not in a position to pay money, I need money. That is why I am willing to part with the painting. If you are willing to make me an offer, I am all ears. If not, please pass my information on to others.

Thank you for your time.