14/09/2024 General News
The need to clear a house often coincides with times of acute stress in people’s lives, whether dealing with a bereavement or coping with the upheaval involved when a relative is moving from the family home into some kind of residential care, writes Tim Blyth.
The temptation is sometimes to take the path of least resistance, and accept the first offer of a house clearance without looking too closely into the level of expertise or experience of the person who will be carrying out the clearance.
But there is a real danger that in doing so items of real value can be overlooked, with the result that either those involved (or loved ones) may miss out or, potentially more seriously those responsible for executing probate fail in their duty of care to realise best value for the beneficiaries.
A few recent examples illustrate this point. Not so long ago we were carrying out a house clearance and found a large silver-coloured bowl in a cupboard. Recognising that this might not be all it seemed, we brought in our silver expert – and were very pleased we did.
It turned out to be a extremely fine late 19th century Indian two-handled rose or punch bowl made by legendary Indian silversmiths Oomersi Mawji & Sons. Elaborately chased, embossed and engraved, we immediately realised this would be of great interest to collectors, especially on the sub-continent. We offered the bowl in one of our thrice-yearly Fine Sales and marketed it digitally to the Indian market, not something your run-of-the-mill house clearer could do. It sold for £18,400.
We were asked to clear another house, this time for a lady who was going into a care home, and needed to raise some money to pay for the fees. Included in her belongings was what looked like a wooden biscuit tin with a dragon on the top. It was in fact a Chinese lacquered box, and following a fierce bidding war between several Chinese potential buyers, it was sold for £63,000 – a result which made the seller’s future in her care home much more secure.
Of course, not every consignment or property clearance will include such gems. But the point is, if you don’t allow genuine experts to take a look, you will never know, and the chances of missing out are that much higher.
I attended a small terraced property which was being cleared by non-local family members and where the first impressions were not promising. At first sight, the house looked to be literally full of rubbish; the untrained eye would be ordering a skip within minutes. And yet it soon became clear that there was more to it than the first impression suggested; in total, items found in that house made over £20,000 at auction.
For many people, commissioning a house clearance is about convenience, seen as a process which is first and foremost about resulting in an empty property which can be sold. Unfortunately too often this approach results in owners missing out on the true value of the property’s contents, not to mention items which may have been lovingly collected by the late owner being consigned to the skip rather than finding new, appreciative owners.
Spotting items of value requires a range of expertise and realising the full value of those items on the open market is (in my opinion) best undertaken by offering at auction with a professional auction house which can offer the items in the correct sale, to the right market.
Our specialist knowledge is always available, without obligation, at the end of a phone, an email, or via a home visit. It seems a shame to miss out.
Keys runs a regular programme of valuation days around Norfolk, and provides free, no-obligation valuations at its Aylsham salerooms. The firm also conducts house visits to appraise contents. For more details visit www.keysauctions.co.uk/services.