Jon Englund
Downsizing? Determined to get rid of stuff you no longer need? Cleaning out a home or an estate? Stop! Know Before You Throw.
Summer is just around the corner, and, for many, this means a well-deserved family vacation is in order. Oftentimes, however, the challenge is financing the venture.
Last month, I related the story of a family settling the estate of their grandmother. A shoebox full of junk jewelry almost ended up as a donation to the local thrift store. Fortunately, the executor called and I was able to turn that box into a substantial sum of money for the family. So, what does this have to do with my summer vacation, you might ask?
While we’re still on this earth and have our wits about us, we are all executors of our own estates. The point being, you probably have things you no longer use that may have value to someone else. Why not liquidate them and help finance your vacation.
We all seem to have sporting goods, electronics or miscellaneous stuff we just no longer use. We’ve gotten our use out of them, and can now move them along at a yard sale or through an online ad to help defray our vacation cost. But that’s just the start.
You might be surprised to learn you could have a small fortune gathering dust at the bottom of your dresser drawers, which just might fund most of your vacation. Like the family in last month’s story, you might also have an assortment of old jewelry. They might be items that are out-of-style, broken, or a collection of orphan earrings missing their mates. In any case, these items may be worth much more now than when they were purchased or received years ago, regardless of condition.
When it comes to questions about value, or concerns about getting a fair price for items such as your estate jewelry, have a trained eye determine if there’s value before you sell, toss or donate! Call me today to help you.
Jon Englund has more than 25 years of experience in appraising and liquidating personal property, jewelry, art, collectibles, antiques, furniture, printed items and more. A Midwest transplant, he trained at New York University, in appraisal studies. For more information, call (480) 699-1567, or send an email to Jon@KnowBeforeYouThrow.INFO.