CS Investment Advice

[DanielDesai]

Hi everyone, new to the forum,
Just seeking some help, I have been approached by a vendor who sold me a Fancy intense yellow stone, certified by the IGI, after recieving it i had it valued and was very happy with the result. They have again contacted me and stated that their newest collection but its certified by the GIA. Would this affect the value of any collection im looking to build. Its a significant second investment level but im not sure if the Certification would make a differnce to any collection im trying to build.

Help!!
Daniel

 

[davi_el_mejor]

GIA is far more strict and conservative in their color grading. This lends itself to demanding a higher price for the more coveted grades (ie fancy vivid, fancy intense) The GIA cert'ed stone will only add to your collection. I'd even suggest sending the IGI stone to GIA for a more respected color grade.

 

[DanielDesai]

Hi,

Thanks, i didnt know i could do that. I suppose the fact that they have been dealing with both may suggest they actually have more than one source and when they tell me they scour the market for the best prices. Is it true that stones sell better as a collection though? and also is there anyone who has had a similar experience in london but compared the prices of stones and effectively played brokers off against eachother? i only know of mjy broker and although the first stone was valued above the price i paid i dont know if i could have paid less and had a larger immediate profit. Any ideas from experienced investors would be great.

Thanks

 

[Pandora II]

The stone may have been valued above the price you paid, but could you actually realise that price if you were to try and sell the stone?

We really advise people against looking at any gemstones or diamonds as an investment unless you are buying at below wholesale (and I mean really below, not what a vendor has told you) and have appropriate avenues to sell the stones.

If you look at what happened to diamond prices in the 1980's, you can see what even a long-term investment would look like now.

FCDs are a better bet than white diamonds, but I would still be extremely nervous of treating them as an investment.

 

[minousbijoux]

The stone may have been valued above the price you paid, but could you actually realise that price if you were to try and sell the stone?

As Pandora wisely states, unless you have a sure bet exit strategy (in which case please do share because there are many of us here who would be interested), it is highly likely that you, a private individual, will have to sell at lower prices than others. Or, you will have to pay commissions to those who sell on your behalf. Please don't confuse appraised value for insurance purposes with what you could actually sell it for in the market.

 

[LD]

Please search the forum for the words "investment" and you'll see that over and over again we will advise people that coloured gemstones are not investments. Sorry!

 

[Pandora II]

Just to add to what I said above, I'm live in London myself and I was talking to a friend who studied gemmology with me and who is starting up in the industry. He was bemoaning the fact that he's finding it hard to get a business bank account - one of the reasons they gave him was that there had been a lot of problems in the past with gem dealers running 'investment scams' and it had cost them money when they went bankrupt.

Please be very, very wary of these kinds of investment.

 

[davi_el_mejor]

GIA is far more strict and conservative in their color grading. This lends itself to demanding a higher price for the more coveted grades (ie fancy vivid, fancy intense) The GIA cert'ed stone will only add to your collection. I'd even suggest sending the IGI stone to GIA for a more respected color grade.

I'd like to clarify my previous statement and echo all the other comments about "investing" in stones. You will more than likely NOT see any/significant return if you intend to resell. But as for investing in your collection, a GIA stone will definitely add to it.

 

[VapidLapid]

The stone may have been valued above the price you paid, but could you actually realise that price if you were to try and sell the stone?

As Pandora wisely states, unless you have a sure bet exit strategy (in which case please do share because there are many of us here who would be interested), it is highly likely that you, a private individual, will have to sell at lower prices than others. Or, you will have to pay commissions to those who sell on your behalf. Please don't confuse appraised value for insurance purposes with what you could actually sell it for in the market[/b].

I've heard this said many times, but never so succinct.

 

[PrecisionGem]

When I lived in Buffalo I used to sell to a number of jewelers, and would stop in from time to time to their stores. One time while I was there, a customer came and had a diamond she had purchased the previous year from the same jeweler. She wanted to "upgrade" to a larger stone and figured she would trade in her stone. The jeweler very nicely told her he would give her $800 on a trade in. She gasped, and said it was just last year she bought it from him for $3300. He said, well.... well.. it's not the popular a size now...
She ended up taking his $800 and purchased another larger stone. So much for her investment. Now maybe she could have gone an eBay and gotten more, I don't know, she may have listed it for a $0.99 auction and ended up selling it for that amount too, who knows.