Fees
Published, so you know before you call
Most appraisers quote only after a conversation. These rates are published in full, so you can decide whether to make the call.
| Service | Rate |
|---|---|
| Standard appraisal General personal property; insurance schedules are priced by the item, below | $225 / hr |
| Estate, gift and charitable donation appraisals Reports prepared for tax filing | $275 / hr |
| Litigation support and expert witness Including deposition and testimony | $350 / hr |
| Provenance research Undertaken remotely, no travel | $175 / hr |
| Travel beyond fifty miles of Rochester Plus expenses at cost | $95 / hr |
No project minimum. Fifty percent due on execution of the engagement letter, balance on delivery. Re-appraisals for existing clients are billed at a reduced rate, since the descriptive work is already done and only the market research needs refreshing.
Insurance appraisals, by the item
Insurance work is the one assignment where the scope is known before it starts, so it is priced by the object rather than the hour. The figures below are the fee; nothing is added for travel within fifty miles of Rochester.
| Insurance schedule | Fee |
|---|---|
| Single item, full report | $350 |
| Items two through ten | $125 each |
| Eleven and above Furniture, silver and decorative arts on an inventory basis | $75 each |
| Update of an existing Parsons Fine Art Advisory report Within five years of the original | Half the original per-item fee |
Objects that raise an attribution or provenance question, or that have no ready market, are quoted in advance at the hourly rate. A ten-item schedule of paintings, silver and furniture comes to about $1,475. Carriers generally ask for schedules to be refreshed every three to five years; the update rate exists so that keeping a policy current costs less than starting over.
The ethics rule that matters most
The fee is never based on the value of your property. Contingent and percentage-of-value fees are prohibited under USPAP and are not accepted in any form. The fee is the same whether the picture proves to be worth two thousand dollars or two hundred thousand.
Reducing it
How to lower the cost
Supply your invoices, prior appraisals, provenance files, exhibition records and correspondence. Every document you provide is an hour not billed for finding it; on a documented collection that can cut the bill by a quarter.
Give the deadline early. Rush work costs more because it displaces other assignments, and most deadlines are known weeks before anyone calls an appraiser.
Be candid about scope. An appraisal of “the good things” that expands to the whole house mid-assignment costs more than one scoped correctly at the start.