How should I prepare for a house appointment? There are a number of things you can do to prepare for a scheduled house appointment to help the meeting go smoothly. If you have any old invoices, family letters, or other information regarding the items to be appraised, it would be very helpful to gather those documents prior to the house appointment and have them available for me as I will need to include and consider provenance information of that nature in my research.
In advance of a house appointment, it is also helpful to gather items to be appraised that are inaccessible in their typical storage locations and move them to an area where they can be easily inspected. Another good idea is to plan which items you would like to have appraised and have a mental or written list of objects you would like to have me look at, especially if some of them are in boxes that are not readily visible in the house. If you have sterling silver to be appraised such as a set of flatware, or a china dinner service, please have all items in a location where I can count and inspect them, as I will need to generate a total count for the appraisal.
It is also wise to have a copy of your insurance policy or any legal documents pertaining to the intended use of the appraisal available. Some insurance policies use levels of value other than retail replacement value, such as actual cash value, so in order to fulfill your intended use it is critical to have all the necessary information specific to your situation.
