Beware of Snowballing Family Lore

September 11, 2014 | Julie Hall

I would be a rich woman if I had a dollar for every time I heard a family member tell the story of an heirloom in which the story gets bigger and better with every telling. It’s like the old parable, “The fish that got away was THIS big …” and every time the story is told the fish miraculously gets bigger.

As estate professionals, we have the same challenge when discussing and valuating family heirlooms and other treasured items. I visit clients in their homes and enjoy each of them as I listen to their stories. However, I know what the values really are, regardless of the verbal family stories.

The hard part for me, and for the client, is providing proof that the following really happened:

“Did you know Abraham Lincoln sat in that chair?”
This belt buckle once belonged to Robert E. Lee.”
Our grandmother told us Teddy Roosevelt took a picture with daddy, but we don’t know where that picture is.”

We know what these items are worth on a monetary level, but you can’t place a value on sentimentality. Sentimentality is priceless. Sentimental items are what we mostly find.

Could some of these family stories actually be true? Who’s to say. Perhaps they are. But without provenance, or history of the piece, it leaves a question mark and it’s impossible to valuate. The needed proof would be, for example, a photo of Abraham Lincoln really sitting in that chair with the original upholstery, or a document that proves it was at a historic event or with a person of distinction. Without proof, we can only appraise what we see based on the characteristics or its aesthetic value. It then becomes just an “old chair.”

I look back into my experiences with all kinds of families and wonder why most people seem to exaggerate about possessions. Here’s what I came up with:

It’s their version of the truth as they see it.
To make the item more “valuable”
To accentuate the positive.
To make the mundane more exciting
To give their heirs a legacy they believe is valuable

Maybe Abraham Lincoln did sit in that chair. Or maybe he sat in one just like it, and that’s how the story got started. Someone heard what they wanted to hear and generations of tongues did the rest. It happens in every family. Remember too, that people hear what they want to hear.

The bottom line is that we professionals don’t want our clients to be disappointed when they go sell these items and the prices brought don’t match the stories behind the pieces. Very often, this is the case. Setting your expectations in neutral before the estate process gets started means we all are one step ahead.

Research professionals before you hire them, but then listen to them with an open mind. We know the items in the majority of our estates, and if we don’t, we can research them. Have faith that we handle these possessions every day and can advise you correctly and honestly.

Julie Hall, The Estate Lady®, is the foremost national expert on personal property in estates, including liquidating, advising, and appraising. http://www.TheEstateLady.com She is also the Director of American Society of Estate Liquidators®, the national educational and resource organization for estate liquidation. http://www.aselonline.com.

No part of The Estate Lady® blogs, whole or partial, may be used without Julie Hall’s written consent. Email her at Julie@TheEstateLady.com.

Where, O Where, Have All the Experts Gone?

September 4, 2014 | Julie Hall

Experts in antique books, stamps, silversmith, woven rugs, Persian rugs, clocks, estate jewelry, advertising, coins, etc. are getting harder to find for several reasons:

They have died.
They are up in years and no longer practice.
They have gone out of business due to lack of interest and sales.
The younger generations aren’t interested in learning the craft of their elders.

Now we are left with a shortage of rich-with-experience “old-timers” in these specialty areas.

How will we be able to identify historic items and other pieces of significance after they are gone?
How will we ever know the stories behind such items?
Without these elders and their expertise, what will we have to teach our children and grandchildren?

This wealth of information has fallen on the deaf ears of the younger generations; now they have no trade to fall back on in life. It’s really sad, but it’s their decision to make.

I was in Arizona a couple of years back and talked with some of the Native Americans. They instantly saw how I lit up holding their silver jewelry, wondering how they achieved a certain shape, scroll, or color. This conversation led to another, when I asked the elder silversmith if he had taught his son and grandson his wonderful skills.

“Neither wanted to learn,” he said. “Now they have their fancy phones and games, but they have no way to make a living. They don’t know much.”

Spotting a weaver, I went over and talked with her as well. You’d be amazed how well a huge smile opens doors. Hers was the same story. All of these middle-aged and older people learned their skills from their parents and grandparents, but very few of their children were interested.

As someone who loves the estate industry, you could say that I study the possessions of those already passed. I wonder how appraisers in the future will be able to do their job, as experts die off.

This Estate Lady is collecting unusual books about all of the topics I mentioned at the top. At the rate everything is being read online, the real books containing rare information will be considered trash one day. I can see some of these books being dumped.

I know what is inside those books is more valuable than the things I appraise. They contain knowledge, and you can’t put a price on that!

No part of The Estate Lady® blogs, whole or partial, may be used without Julie Hall’s written consent. Email her at Julie@TheEstateLady.com.

The Ring

August 21, 2014 | Julie Hall

Go ahead and get your tissue box now; I have mine on my lap as I write this. Let me tell you a beautiful story.

An 80-year-old mother knew her health was failing, but she didn’t tell her children how bad it was really getting. Her 82-year-old husband was afflicted with dementia; the disease was just starting to rear its ugly head and become too much for her to handle, seeing her beloved husband of 58 years slip away.

This mom and dad lived far away from their two children and grandchildren by choice. All of their dearest friends were in Florida, and that is where they wanted to spend their golden years together. The only problem was as the years passed, they watched all their friends get sick and pass away one by one, visiting each of them in the nursing homes and hospitals, saying their goodbyes.

Their family loved each other dearly and always remained close in heart through daily phone calls and emails, reminiscing and sending each other “remember whens.” But it was time to call in help and the children intervened, trying to get them closer geographically. Finally, mom agreed. When the middle-aged daughter went for a visit to discuss options and make decisions, the mom again showed the daughter where all their trust and other legal papers were located, to make sure the kids knew where everything could be found. How heartbreaking for the daughter to see her parents decline and become fragile, and equally hard for the mom to discuss her final wishes and personal thoughts with the daughter.

Bury me in this dress, call these people when I die, don’t spend a lot on flowers, etc…

It was a difficult day for mother and daughter; the deed was done and the day dragged long.

The mom got up and went into her bedroom and called the daughter in after her. She presented her daughter with a ring, placing it in her hand and clasping her frail, weathered hand around her daughter’s, she spoke from her failing heart:

It’s yours now. It’s time for you to keep this. I remember when you were a little girl, no more than 5 or 6, you would sneak into our bedroom, open my jewelry box, and try this ring on when you thought no one was watching. You would put it on your index finger, and it was so big for your tiny finger. I was there watching. Mothers always watch and know what’s going on with their children. You loved this bauble then, and I hope you will remember this moment after I’m gone, because I want you to have this. It isn’t worth much, but I always cherish the memory of how you would tiptoe into our room just to try it on, careful to put it back where you found it. Wear it in good health, and may God bless you always for who you are, for the woman you have become, and for what you mean to me. I love you very much and I’m so proud of you.

The daughter was speechless and choked up all at once, trying very hard to be brave, but it didn’t work. She collapsed in front of her mother, knowing the message she was giving her: that she was dying and she had made peace with it.

This story is about my mother, Anne, who died not long after that day, and I was the little girl who adored the big, purple, shiny ring. I will always cherish the ring because of the story behind it, because mom gave it to me in person, and because of the special words that went with it. Mostly, it made me realize I carry her courage inside me; I hope one day I can pass that to my daughter (the ring and the courage).

I wear this ring any time I wear purple. Each time I slip it on my finger, I think of mom handing it to me and how it fits perfectly on my finger now.

No part of The Estate Lady® blogs, whole or partial, may be used without Julie Hall’s written consent. Email her at Julie@TheEstateLady.com

Caveat Venditor

June 19, 2014 | Julie Hall

“Let the Seller Beware” When It Comes to Selling Gold

Pick an industry – any industry – and there will be good and bad people in it. The estate industry is no different. You find dedicated souls who are simply outstanding and go the distance to help their clients, and then you have those who are in it for a quick buck and could care less. You must heed my advice:

SELLER BEWARE!

Sadly, people do get ripped off every day, and more people get taken advantage of when selling gold jewelry than the sale of anything else.

Most people take their jewelry to jewelers, thinking this is the logical place to sell it. While that’s not a bad choice, there are other options. You owe it to yourself and the estate to shop around. Some go to coin shops, antique stores, or private collectors. Try locating places closest to the refinery; you are likely to make more money.

Here are some tips to help you get your fair share:

Have sterling and gold identified as genuine. Do not sell it at this time; just get help in identifying it. Do not sell it in a rush, unless you have to.
Find a local place that is close to a refinery, get a quote, then take it to jewelers. Do research online to see if you can find a local resource. Most jewelers sell to refiners, so you may want to go straight to the source. Have your facts together first. It is worth taking jewelry to multiple places to get the most $$ you can.
Pay attention to daily spot price of gold and silver, http://www.kitco.com. Prices fluctuate throughout the day every day. This site will give you a per ounce price. You need to understand that the per ounce they are referring to is pure bullion, pure gold, pure silver, NOT 14K, 10K, etc. These are not pure, so the spot price will not apply to a handful of 14K jewelry.
The troy ounce is used in the weighing and pricing of precious metals: gold, platinum, and silver. The troy ounce is different from an ounce you would weigh on your kitchen scale. If you get into weighing metals, you will need a jewelers scale that includes troy ounces or “ozt.” You can buy an inexpensive jeweler’s scale online.
Let’s say that gold is $1,300 per ounce. You will not get $1,300 per ounce for your 10K or 14K because it is not pure gold.
Divide today’s gold price from Kitco.com in dollars per ounce by 31.1 to get today’s gold price per gram. There are 31.1 grams in an ounce of gold or silver. If today’s price was $1,300 per ounce, then: 1300 divided by 31.1 = $41.80/gram. Then, multiply by the fineness of the gold:

10K = .4167
14K = .5833
18K = .7500
22K = .9167
24K = 100% gold

So if you have 10K and the price of gold is $1,300 per ounce or $41.80 per gram, then the price of your jewelry is $41.80 x .4167 = $17.41/gram. If you have 10 grams of 10K at $17.41/gram, your scrap gold is worth $174.10.

Remember, this is for illustrative purposes. The gold still has to be tested/assayed to determine the true percentage of gold.

TIPS:

Keep gold coins separated, because they have numismatic value, as well as metal value.
You can purchase your own gold testing kit, but it will be tested again when you go to sell it.
Weigh your items by grouping together (10K, 14K, etc.). Use a loupe to look inside the piece to find a mark. Not all pieces are marked; this is why they should be tested.
Scrap gold dealers in store fronts (“We Buy Gold”) will likely buy from you at 30-60% LESS than the gold’s worth. A jeweler will usually pay more than this.
Be aware that often gemstones set in jewelry are not included in the offer. Those seem to just go along with the gold, which doesn’t seem fair to me. IF it is a large stone, you may want to have it removed from the setting BEFORE you scrap the gold. Please have the stone identified!
Private collectors may offer a very fair price, if you can find them. Know the worth before you sell.
Gold refiners pay 90% and sometimes more, but they may have a minimum weight requirement.
Old dental gold is usually between 8K and 18K; it must be tested as well.

If you dislike math, this helpful website for gold scrap weight conversion and melt value calculator will do the figuring for you: http://www.silverrecyclers.com/calculators/gold_calculator.aspx.

For a list of reputable dealers in the U.S., see US Mint page on recommended coin and gold buyers: http://www.usmint.gov/mint_programs/american_eagles/index.cfm?action=lookup.

No part of The Estate Lady® blogs, whole or partial, may be used without Julie Hall’s written consent. Email her at Julie@TheEstateLady.com

The Downside of Online Auction Sites

June 12, 2014 | Julie Hall

Aside from the ever-increasing fees that have hurt the “little guy” trying to make a decent living or extra income, there is nothing wrong with online auction sites. In fact, they have opened our eyes to a whole new world we never knew existed just a few short years ago. We can easily shop globally from the confines of our desk to find comparable items, best prices, and unique finds. Our online reach can take us anywhere. That’s the good news.

Anyone can post anything online, often without knowing what the gismo is, what it’s called, with little accountability for errors or condition issues, and certainly without understanding the values. That’s the bad news.

From the perspective of an appraiser, online auctions bring income to millions who ordinarily would not have that income, but there are pros and cons to consider.

Back in the day before these sites, an item could legitimately be called “rare and unusual” and might sell for $1,000. Today when you search for the same item online, suddenly there are 2,193 of them across the world, ranging in price from $5.99 to $5,000.

You are witnessing the flooding of the market. In addition, prices that are either too low or too high are hurting the market.

Because we are all connected online now, there is very little rarity, not many surprise “finds,” and no uniformity, as prices are all over the board. It is up to the buyer to beware and purchase carefully.

With so many of the same or similar gismos being listed, we must:

Give thought to what that has done to values (and it isn’t good).
Recognize that as elderly collectors pass away and someone attempts to sell the entire collection online (or even at a local auction house), they will inadvertently be flooding the market. When selling a large collection, a handful of hard-to-find pieces will sell well, but the remainder will sell far lower than expected.

Too much of the same/similar items being dumped on the market and listed online (supply), and not enough people to buy them (demand), drives prices and values downward.

Are we shooting ourselves in the foot? Yes, but we’re in too deep to make any serious changes now. We’ve become accustomed to the lure of sales and discounts.

With online auction fees climbing, one has to ask if it is actually worth it, between the soft economy and the fees that eat your profit. Yet, to many people, it is a source of income they need, to make ends meet. A Catch-22 situation, indeed.

Other challenges with online auctions are:

It takes the fun out of being at a physical auction where buyers get caught up in bidding wars, and items may actually sell for more in person than an online auction.
Online auctions take the “social” out of attending local auctions. When you stop and think about it, online auctions are “anti-social.”
Tangible experience. With an online auction, you can’t personally examine the item(s) you would like to bid on. You just look at photos and bid accordingly. With a local auction, you can preview, handle, examine, test, etc. to be sure your bid is where it should be.

As a result, many items from online auctions end up being returned because:

The seller did not properly describe the item, or,
The pictures did not represent the item accurately, or,
The buyer is fickle.

Online auctions are neither positive or negative. They certainly do boost viewers and more people are shopping from their homes. But as an appraiser, I wanted to offer some unique thoughts into the world of online auctions.

No part of The Estate Lady® blogs, whole or partial, may be used without Julie Hall’s written consent. Email her at Julie@TheEstateLady.com

What is “Weighted” Silver?

May 23, 2014 | Julie Hall

For many years, I have been appraising and advising on all kinds of residential contents, but one item has always eluded my imagination. So, I thought I would share it with you in the form of a little “Show and Tell” now that I have a good example.

When people think of sterling silver, they think it has value. They would be correct, but in some cases, the value is not necessarily as great as one might think. Because the spot price of silver is currently down, many people are collecting scrap silver or scrapping family silver pieces for quick cash. This is done by weight only, so families may think that mom’s candlesticks are very heavy and therefore must be worth a fortune!

What most people don’t realize is that many pieces that mom or grandma have are “weighted” sterling. If you look at the base of the sterling candlesticks, footed bowls, or candelabra, you will see a base that is actually filled with cement, a composite of some sort. The sterling silver over that base is actually foil thin. If you turn over the piece, you will see it says “weighted silver.”

This piece was broken and found in the trash.

This is what the weight looks like with top layer of silver removed.

The bottom of the piece, which will often say "Weighted Silver" or in this case, "Reinforced with Cement" — The bottom of the piece, which will often say “Weighted Silver” or in this case, “Reinforced with Cement”

The end product ... Nothing but foil thin pieces of actual sterling silver — The end product … Nothing but foil thin pieces of actual sterling silver

I peeled the actual foil-thin silver off, so you could see the “weight” was not silver at all, but just a lump of resin/cement. By the time you peel off the good silver, it weighs about a third of an ounce (if that), or approximately $6.60 in scrap silver, because the weight was removed from this broken base. If the piece had the top portion, it would have been worth more. I wanted to demonstrate that scrap silver is not that easy to accumulate; you have to know what can be scrapped and what can’t.

I hope you enjoyed this. I never knew what the inside of one of these candlesticks actually looked like!

No part of The Estate Lady® blogs, whole or partial, may be used without Julie Hall’s written consent. Email her at Julie@TheEstateLady.com

Know When to Hold ’em BEFORE You’ve Sold ’em

April 18, 2014 | Julie Hall

It is not unusual to meet with families sorting through an estate on their own and making serious mistakes. Through no fault of their own, they are following their logic. Since they don’t have the benefit of knowing the correct process and sequence of things, knowing the industry, collectibles, antiques, and the overall market, they soon find themselves “guessing” and that is a very bad thing to do.

Families, executors, and attorneys hire estate professionals so we can guide the family in knowing what has value, what doesn’t, what is sellable, what is not, options for selling, resources for selling, what to throw away, and what to keep. This is what we Estate Consultants do to maximize proceeds and offer peace of mind to our clients, knowing they are making the right decisions.

Let me tell you a story about what just happened.

I love sterling silver rings. Besides wearing them, they are a good investment as a precious metal. I had been watching a large lot of rings on eBay and won it at a very fair price. When the rings arrived, I looked at them and found a huge surprise. One ring stood out; I knew instantly it was Imperial jade, and one of the largest pieces of Imperial jade I had ever seen. Even a small slab of this jade is very expensive and sought after. The setting was platinum and not sterling. It was, at the very least, a $1,500 ring thrown in with $5 sterling rings.

Someone did not do their homework or did not take the time to do enough homework.

I attempted to contact the seller on eBay, but they never replied.

Moral to the story:

Haste makes waste. It is worth hiring an expert to avoid hasty, and costly, mistakes. No one can possibly know everything. Bringing in professional help is an inexpensive insurance policy that you are making the right decisions for the distribution and dissolution of a loved one’s personal property.

No part of The Estate Lady® blogs, whole or partial, may be used without Julie Hall’s written consent. Email her at Julie@TheEstateLady.com

Franklin Got the Mint – Susie Got the Shaft

April 3, 2014 | Julie Hall

Meeting with a mid-age female client this week was an eye-opening experience. Her mother was still living and in a facility, and the daughter was in the midst of starting her life over again in her 50s. The daughter was struggling because her mother was financially strapped; the daughter now supports the mother and the heavy costs of her ongoing care. Facing unemployment herself, she is carrying a burden of monumental proportions.

I was called over to her home to see if there was anything of value that could be sold to keep up with the costs of mom’s care. The daughter’s home was filled with Franklin Mint, Bradford Exchange, Hummel collectibles, Lenox collectibles, Fenton, and any other collectible you can think of that today has very little value. Never mind, these plates cost $39.95 each or more, at the time mom bought them all for her daughter. On Ebay, they sell for $3.99 if they sell at all these days. All of the companies mass-produced these items and mom thought that her daughter could retire on them one day, because she was certain they would be extremely valuable.

Mom spent all of her money on these things that are not only undesirable on the market to most, but they have also cluttered up the daughter’s home. You could see the anger and sadness on her face that “mom bought all of this #*&@# and now she’s broke.”

“Do you have any idea how much money she would have today if she didn’t buy this stuff? Now I can barely make ends meet with her expenses and mine, and I am worried I will get laid off.”

I am not blaming the companies, but it’s worth saying that I see this frequently. They were incredibly smart with their marketing and everyone in mom’s generation felt these collectibles could only go UP in value. But let’s look at it from this perspective … If it’s such a great deal, why would they let tens of millions in on it?

Mom had the best of intentions but she just kept buying against her daughter’s will. The daughter asked her to stop and she didn’t. She bought all of it thinking her daughter could retire on these items one day. Instead, her daughter is working very hard to keep her mother’s care afloat, and having to make grueling decisions on putting mom in a place that offers less care, less amenities, less enjoyment, less everything. This too weighs heavily on the child. The best of intentions went sour in this case.

Moral to the story: If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Stick to what you know; stick to time-tested sources of wealth preservation, such as jewelry, gold, silver, etc. Always use your gut instinct and stay away from the TV shopping channels. If you want to leave a powerful legacy for your children, make a plan for your future and set an example for them to follow, when they get to that point in their lives. The best gift a parent can ever give a child is a well-thought out plan for the final chapter in their lives.

No part of The Estate Lady® blogs, whole or partial, may be used without Julie Hall’s written consent. Email her at Julie@TheEstateLady.com

Things We Find Left Behind

February 25, 2014 | Julie Hall

Treasure is in the eye of the beholder. What one person holds dear, another wants nothing to do with. This is true between elderly parents and their middle-aged children, and even grandchildren. The Depression Era generation doesn’t let go of much. They take great pride in their possessions, especially the ladies with their ornate silver plate pieces, painted china, and etched crystal that they cherished in another time and place.

We find a ton of handwritten notes intended for those left behind. We find them tucked inside vases, taped to the back of china or paintings, taped under sculptures and figurines. We find loose notes in desk drawers. Sometimes, we even find the notes laying right where the author left them before being struck with infirmity or death.

These notes are meant to guide the loved ones after their death and they often include a myriad of information: the history behind the item, the name of the person they are leaving it to, and my personal favorite … what they think it is worth. Many of these notes have yellowed with age and some are barely decipherable. To complicate the matter, this particular generation has a tendency to change their minds frequently, often creating multiple notes with mixed messages (probably depending on who ticked them off most recently – according to the children who read the notes). It is also possible they may forget and start all over.

Here is an example of one I just found:

Dated 1977

“In my antique chest, with the items I intend to give to Susan and Ralph. Top shelf – “Boy and two goats” Royal Copenhagen figurine and female Hummel. – $2,000 value

Second shelf – Royal Doulton Toby mugs and Hummel plates – $1,800 value

Third shelf – Carlsbad, Austria dish and crystal duck and cat – $300 value

To Robert and Sylvia – In the hutch – the smaller Hummel figurines, Venetian glass fish, crystal candle holder and small Royal Doulton figurine. – $1,500 value”

The list is quite extensive and goes on for a long time. Here’s what we need to know from this story:

These items were never distributed.
They were never distributed because no one wanted them.
They ended up in my hands to sell for the family and they will split the proceeds.

Do notes help? I think sometimes they do, especially when they offer personal history and IF you want to keep these items. Notes can also be removed or taken by unscrupulous heirs-to-be, and often we find more than one version of their notes, which claim different people can have the same item.

How do you handle that one? You write a formal addendum or document to place with your Will or Trust, and make sure there is only one copy, not multiples. Ask your attorney how to do this. Better yet, consider giving it away or selling these items, if the children don’t want them, before any of this takes place.

From my experience, many times the intentions of these notes are never carried out.

You can have the best intentions but if they are not carried through, it’s a moot point.

If you want someone to have somethings special of yours, give it to them while you are still able to do so.

Somewhere along the line, we have to break the habit of waiting until someone is “gone” to deal with all of this. Granted some people prefer it that way, but more and more, we are seeing a trend of people giving away or selling their items before they pass, to make it easier on their loved ones left behind.

Personally, I think the best notes we can leave behind are thoughts of joy and love, and not necessarily who gets what and how much items are worth. My favorite “possession” from my late mother is a letter she sent me stating how proud she is of me and how I have chosen to serve people, and may God bless me abundantly for doing so. It is a deeply personal note and one that I will always cherish. I would gladly let go of the material stuff I inherited from her, for this one note and memories of happy times. That’s the REAL inheritance!

No part of The Estate Lady® blogs, whole or partial, may be used without Julie Hall’s written consent. Email her at Julie@TheEstateLady.com

Surely, You Jest!

February 4, 2014 | Julie Hall

As you can imagine, I receive all kinds of emails searching for answers, needing guidance, and some which also center around “How much is my stuff worth?” But every once in a while, I get an email that just about knocks me off my chair. Here’s a sample:

“Everything I own is very expensive and worth a fortune. I know this because I pay a fortune for quality. I have unique and very expensive collections, including a large assortment of cut glass pieces. All of these currently sell on E-bay for high amounts and a lot of them could sell in the $1,000s. I also have a collection of collector plates that are worth several thousand dollars. I have a Hummel collection worth at least one thousand dollars. I have a shoe collection worth thousands of dollars. I have several other smaller collections that are worth thousands. Even my older furniture is worth thousands. Can you sell them for me?”

Surely, you jest! While I always do my best to assist and even educate my clients so they can empower themselves to make the right decisions, there are some people I just can’t help. They won’t or can’t accept the whole picture. This person is one of them.

Despite my best intentions, you just can’t squeeze blood from a turnip. The market will bear only what it will bear, and their cut glass or shoes or Hummels are really not that much different from the rest of ours. It is unfair to apply this kind of unreasonable thinking and pressure to a professional in the industry, who can only do their best in a very soft market. Often the blame and complaint lands on the estate professional, when in reality we have done our best, and our best just wasn’t good enough for the client. Some of this will fall back on how well we discussed “expectations” of what things will sell for.

Other reasons for the motivations behind selling are numerous. Perhaps this person needs immediate financial relief from the sale of those items. Perhaps the person is not well. Maybe they really do believe their things are worth a fortune because they paid so much for them. As you’ve heard me say before, what you paid for something means nothing now. If I invest several hundred dollars in designer shoes, in the end, they are USED SHOES, designer or not.

Perhaps she doesn’t want to see it, but I wouldn’t be The Estate Lady® if I didn’t reply with my usual flair. So, I gathered my senses, did some sales comparables online which I could share in the form of “SOLD” prices, in easy links they could click on. I wanted to show them ever so politely, that their things were not worth what they originally thought. They are not selling for thousands. They are selling for $25, maybe a little higher or lower. I get the feeling they didn’t like that.

It took me a lot of time to find and send that information to them; I never heard back from them. I guess they just weren’t ready to hear what I had to say. I silently lifted up a quick prayer that no matter what challenges they were experiencing, someone out there could be more help to them than myself.

Unfortunately, someone like that will never change their thinking no matter how much proof is offered. Many years and ample experience have taught me they would only be upset with me, even if I did my very best.

I wish them well.

No part of The Estate Lady® blogs, whole or partial, may be used without Julie Hall’s written consent. Email her at Julie@TheEstateLady.com