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Can anyone suggest any online places that would give valuations on:-
Watches, hi-fi equipment, practise amps & associated electronics, gaming consoles & games (retro & modern).
My friend has left a % in his will to some charities so I need to get professional valuations on everything and he has multiples of everything (eg I've counted at least 4 hi-fi set ups & 13 guitars so far). Thanks.
Sorry for your loss.
CEX lists buy/sell prices for games and consoles.
At that scale though... can't you sell it, keep records, then work out the charity value?
Would the quickest cheapest way to value not be to just type the makes / models into eBay - you can search to include sold listings so to can see final prices for sales rather than asking prices.
adjust down from those prices though as eBay reflects the highest price an item is likely to sell for individually , you’d get less per item selling as job lots and you also need to deduct commission cost
Yeah, I can easily find a value on eBay etc the problem is that the charities need to do due diligence to make sure they are getting their % so I need to get professional valuations on it all.
Tip - if you're leaving money to charity in your will give £££ rather than % it'll make your executors life a lot simpler.
if you’re leaving money to charity in your will give £££ rather than % it’ll make your executors life a lot simpler
I've been through this thought process as I reworked my will last year. The problem is that you've no idea how much money you're going to die with. If I was to die tomorrow I'd be quite happy to leave my designated charities several hundred thousand. But in twenty years that might be all I've got and it would leave the children with nothing. So it's either put a figure in and take the hassle of updating the will every year, or put a percentage and give the hassle to the executors.
At that scale though… can’t you sell it, keep records, then work out the charity value?
According to his solicitor that's not the way it works, I need to get valuations and my friend was a lot wealthier that you'd expect based on his lifestyle & the charities will be expecting some value in his chattels given that for example he had over £100k* in his current account.
*I no idea until he told me to take his bank statements and details a couple of weeks ago
@onewheelgood point taken, my friend only made his will 6 months ago when he was diagnosed & apparently was advised, mind you he always could be an awkward bugger.
@dickyboy but I also take your point. If I am ever diagnosed with something terminal I'll try and remember to update my will!
snip...the problem is that the charities need to do due diligence to make sure they are getting their % so I need to get professional valuations on it all
Maybe the charities should sort it out if they're doing due diligence anyway. Some with shops will have experts (it probably doesn't work like that either!)
Would a bricks and mortar auction house do? There's usually one not too far away and some will visit if the circumstances suit
For the above reasons I would never included a charity in a will. Dealing with the death of a relative or friend is hard enough without complicating it further.
My mum raised money for cancer research for years. My dad received assistance from MacMillan nurses. After his death my siblings and I each made a 4 figure donation to MacMillan after the estate was settled. There was nothing in the will though.
We've just been through this with a family friend and a family member. For some items we had to use a valuation from an auction house specialising in those items and others we were able to get valuations from the musical instrument shops which had sold her the instruments.
If you have a guitar shop or vintage guitar shop nearby they should be able to help with the guitars or if you can find out where he bought them from they may be able to help. Similar with the hifi set up.
I’d try and find a shop day sells used guitars etc. See if they will do it in return for buying the lot trade when it’s all sorted. They didn’ don’t have to be local I expect it could be done on a video call
I’d then price the non music stuff and include that in their valuation
Google bought up loads of potential useful companies
But ask cex and cash converters if they offer this as a device
Local auction house?
https://2ndhandhifi.co.uk/
Will give you a valuation on the systems. Is there anything “esoteric” like a set of Nautilus speakers? Or some Wharfdale Westminster’s and a set of Quad valve amps? If so you could try a more local hifi dealer. You’ll need a specialist dealer for those. My sister is a probate lawyer and works for both sides, can ask her if you have any questions.
look on HiFi Shark too, lists for sale and also shows sold prices
If all this stuff isn't itemised in the will, how can the charities do 'due diligence'. Over complicating things with getting valuations for masses of stuff is just making a difficult and trying job even harder. Move all the gear on in an easy and efficient way (Ebay, auctions, specialist dealer.) Probate is hard enough as it is, especially for us amateurs.
Having done probate for an estate I'd say @rilem has wise advice on being pragmatic with the level of effort. You'll end up spending forever valuing stuff that makes a negligible difference to the sum.
Sorry for your loss.
Chattels are basically close to worthless. Just get an auction house that does house clearances to give a nominal valuation for the sake of any form-filling. If you end up getting more when the stuff is disposed, that’s fine. Seriously, no one does “proper” valuation for this stuff, it’s just not worth the effort. My dad’s stuff was valued at 5k or something ridiculous like that and he had a bunch of valuables that were probably over 10x that. NB if you are getting into significant tax evasion that’s a more serious matter but I suspect that’s not an issue for you.
(In my dads case it all went to mum so no tax considerations, we just needed a number on a form.)
Chattels are basically close to worthless.
Hmm, you might be surprised. My parents well used 1970s three piece suite (that I was going to take down the tip) sold at auction for a couple of grand ('lovely patina'), whereas some of their antiques struggled to sell. As has been suggested above, get a decent auction house to visit and give a valuation.
Sure but the point I could have made more clearly is that getting an accurate valuation is a waste of time anyway. The charities will get their percentage of what the stuff actually sells for regardless of what valuation someone made up and stuck on a form.
Unless a beneficiary actually wants to keep the stuff as part of their inheritance, it’s getting sold and the value that matters is what it sells for.
Thanks for all the responses, I've just been going by what his solicitor has told me, ie charities will want to make sure there is nothing of value in the house, maybe she has been laying it on a bit thick with me but there are things of value that a normal auction house wouldn't cover. So far I've got his motorbikes, records and now guitars covered and I have found contacts for a couple of auction houses which I'll phone tomorrow. The secondhand hifi place is a big help as most of his stuff is higher end but not audiophile (his main speakers go for £300+ on eBay). Just finding it churning away in my brain with it all being on my shoulders, arranging funeral, tidying up his house to find contacts & boxes of paperwork to be sifted through etc.
Unless a beneficiary actually wants to keep the stuff as part of their inheritance, it’s getting sold and the value that matters is what it sells for.
Some of this will be happening for sure, some of the beneficiaries were offered stuff but not stipulated in the will.
@Dickyboy
Out of interest, are you one of the beneficiaries of the will (with a vested interest in obtaining the highest proceeds of sale?)?
If not, why go to all this bother?
I'm curious of the legal implications as I'd be tempted to off-load everything as efficiently as possible if it wasn't in my interest...
This isn't some crazy relative who was a pain in the arse it was a mate who he presumably wants to do right by? But that mate wouldn't want the OP to beat themselves up over it.
@vlad_the_invader yes I am a beneficiary (I didn't know until after his death) and due to inherit a life changing amount of money (coke & hookers ahoy) but as I have stated his solicitors have advised me that the charities involved are duty bound to ensure that nothing is overlooked & must get accurate valuations for his chattels as well, despite them being insignificant to the overall estate.
@csb I wasn't expecting anything but neither was my mate the easiest of people to get on with but he was a loyal friend and I will do my utmost to ensure his wishes are met even if it puts me through the ringer.
PS I'm just back from the pub so if this makes little sense I apologise.
The basis of valuation of personal chattels within an estate is what a Willing Buyer would pay to a Willing Seller on the day of death. Quite often this is not a lot.
HMRC Guidance is here https://www.gov.uk/valuing-estate-of-someone-who-died/estimate-estate-value
It says (amongst other things) For items such as jewellery, paintings or other household goods, work out how much you would have got if you’d sold them on the open market. You can use online marketplaces to help work out their value.
So eBay is OK as long as you have evidence of past auctions. Even STW classified could work.
My experience is that Charities are realistic about chattels. They realise that it often costs more to value and dispose of things than they are worth. We have seen frequent examples of people using local auction houses to clear stuff and ending up with the estate owing the Auction house money due to valuation, transport and sale costs (they charge for them all and offset against the sale proceeds).
Tread carefully if you go down that route.
Spoke with my sister and mentioned your case. Basically any reasonable valuation is acceptable for value at time of death. For specialised goods. like hifi, guitars, antiques, a simple valuation from a specialist/dealer is fine. In the event it all comes out in the wash once the estate is sold and the monies passed on. It's seldom a big deal so you don't need to be overly worried.
She has aso dealt with executors who are named beneficiaries. She said they hand communications completely separately, sometimes writing very formal letters on different days to keep the two parties (i.e., you and you) separate. You may have already noticed this.