Free Online Antique Price Guide

A free online antique price guide can help a buyer, seller or owner determine the market value for an antique. These guides list the costs of items, so you can see what other dealers and individuals are asking and paying for a piece. This provides a reference point for determining the value of a particular item.

Do you know who made your mantle clock?

A good guide will explain how it has calculated its price. It may come from auctions, prices at shows, or by observing dealer pricing. Any one method alone does not give a true value. Auctions buys may be too high because of an over-heated bidding war. Show prices can show up too high at the end of the show or too low at the beginning. Dealer pricing may also be misleading, as many times it will depend on how long the dealer has had the piece for sale. The best ones will use all three methods to determine a value.

Condition can be critical in antiques. A guide will take into account condition factors and post these. More importantly, these variations will take into account the rarity and desirability of the piece, and not place a standard discount on condition rating. One that automatically values an item in "very good" condition at 60 percent of a "like new" item should not be given much credibility.

It should list the variations, such as color, that affect the value of the piece. If it does not list these, you will not be able to make an effective estimate of the value.

Usually divided into two main categories, price guides have two types: the general and the specific. Each type has its advantages and disadvantages.

General guides list the prices for all categories of antiques. They are the encyclopedia of the antique world; they are especially useful for identifying a piece or finding basic knowledge about an item. Kovels is a popular general website.

The broad scope of a general guide is also its disadvantage. Rather than focusing on all variations of a particular antique, such as all types of Steiff bears, it will limit the listing to just a few. Since your exact item might not be listed, you may not find an accurate value.

Just as a specialist doctor has more expertise in a particular area than a general practitioner, a specific guide has more information about its specialty. These "specialists" concentrate on one type of antique, such as toys or pottery, or one brand, such as Spode china or Steiff stuffed bears. Here are a few of the specific free online antique price guides:

Guides are a valuable tool; be smart when using them. Avoid these common mistakes:

• They are guides, not commandments. Antiques have many variables that change constantly. If you take the price too seriously, you may miss the correct value. Use it as a resource, but know your market as well. Check other sources for value estimates, such as eBay and antique malls.
• The antique world changes constantly. What was boring yesterday may be today's hot item. Be wary of price guides whose information is over five years old.
• It's tempting to use the highest price found as the value, but that's a mistake. Instead, try to reach a middle value.
• Relying on one source to determine the value is the biggest mistake of all. Be sure and look at multiple sources to get the most realistic value of your item.

For more information on general price guides, see the LoveToKnow articles Free Antique Price Guides and Antique Price Guide Free.

There are many online guides to help you value an item. Use them correctly and you have a good tool for determining the worth of your piece.

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