What Is a Buy Appraisal? The Only Number That Matters When You Sell Jewellery

What Is a Buy Appraisal?

A buy appraisal is an honest, expert assessment of what your jewellery, diamond, or gold is genuinely worth to a buyer in today's market.

Not what it cost to make. Not what insurance would replace it for. Not what a retailer might have sold it for ten years ago. What you can actually walk away with — in your pocket, today.

It's a term we introduced at Miller Hirsch because we found that nothing else in the industry's vocabulary said this plainly. Clients would arrive with insurance certificates, valuation reports, and certificates from grading laboratories — all legitimate documents, all produced by credible professionals — and none of them contained the number the client actually needed.

A buy appraisal fills that gap.

What a Buy Appraisal Is Not

Understanding what a buy appraisal is requires understanding what it isn't — because the confusion between valuation types is where many sellers lose money, not because anyone is being dishonest, but because they're using the wrong number as their benchmark.

It is not an insurance valuation. An insurance valuation reflects what it would cost to replace your piece at retail today — the metal, the stones, the craftsmanship, bought new from a jeweller. This figure is deliberately and legitimately high. It protects you in the event of loss or theft. But it bears almost no relationship to what a buyer will pay for a second-hand piece, and using it as a reference point when selling will leave you disappointed or, worse, suspicious of a fair offer.

It is not a fair market value assessment. Fair market value is a legal construct used in estate administration, divorce proceedings, and taxation. It describes what a hypothetical willing buyer and willing seller would agree on under no pressure. It's useful in a courtroom. It's less useful when you're sitting across from an actual buyer and need to know what an actual offer looks like.

It is not a gemological certificate. A GIA certificate, or any grading report, tells you precisely what a stone is. It grades the four Cs — cut, colour, clarity, and carat weight — with scientific accuracy. It does not tell you what that stone is worth in the current market, how liquid it is, or what a buyer will pay for it today.

A buy appraisal considers all of these inputs and translates them into the one figure that matters: your number.

What Goes Into a Buy Appraisal

At Miller Hirsch, a buy appraisal is built on four elements we think of as the four M's.

Metal

For gold, platinum, and silver pieces, we begin with the spot price — the current global market price for that metal — and work from there based on purity and weight. A 9ct gold chain and an 18ct gold chain of the same weight will yield very different figures, and understanding why requires both current market knowledge and the ability to accurately assess what you have in front of you.

Make

The craftsmanship, condition, and origin of a piece all affect what a buyer will pay. An unsigned mid-century piece in excellent condition may be worth considerably more than a damaged piece from a recognisable maker. A hand-engraved Victorian mourning ring has a different value proposition to a machine-made modern band. Make encompasses everything about the piece itself — its age, its integrity, its wearability, and its story.

Market

Current buyer demand is perhaps the most volatile element of the four, and the one most commonly overlooked in standard valuations. What collectors want changes. What wholesale buyers will pay changes. Certain diamond cuts that commanded premiums a decade ago now sit in less demand; others have risen. Gold prices shift with global events. A buy appraisal is grounded in what the market looks like right now, not at the time the piece was made or last insured.

Motive

The final element is the one most people don't expect to hear about — but honesty demands it be included. Why someone is selling, and when, can affect the most appropriate way to structure a transaction. There is no pressure applied and no exploitation of circumstance at Miller Hirsch. But understanding a client's situation allows us to ensure the entire process — not just the number — works for them.

Why "Buy Appraisal" Matters as a Term

Language shapes expectation. When a client arrives with an insurance certificate valuing their ring at $12,000 and receives a buy appraisal of $3,800, the gap is not dishonesty — it is the difference between two entirely different questions being answered. One asks what it would cost to replace the ring at a jewellery retailer today. The other asks what a qualified buyer will pay for it on the secondary market.

Without the concept of a buy appraisal as a distinct and legitimate form of assessment, that gap generates confusion, distrust, and an entirely avoidable sense that something unfair is happening. With it, clients understand exactly what they're receiving, why the number is what it is, and what it means for them.

That transparency is not just a professional courtesy. It is the foundation of every transaction we conduct.

Who Conducts a Buy Appraisal at Miller Hirsch?

Lonn Miller and Craig Miller bring a combined 55 years of experience in the diamond and jewellery industry to every buy appraisal we conduct. Both are qualified valuers. Both have worked across the full supply chain — from the diamond cutting floor to wholesale markets to retail — and that depth of knowledge is what makes a buy appraisal at Miller Hirsch meaningfully different from an offer you might receive elsewhere.

We have seen tens of thousands of pieces. We know what the market is paying. We know what is rare and what is common. And we know how to explain what we're seeing in plain language, without jargon, without pressure, and without any obligation on your part.

Every buy appraisal we provide is:

• Written — you receive a clear, documented breakdown of how we arrived at the figure

• Explained — we walk you through each element so you understand, not just receive, the number

• Yours to keep — regardless of whether you choose to sell, the buy appraisal belongs to you

• Obligation-free — there is no pressure to sell on the day, or at all

What Happens Next?

If you have jewellery, diamonds, gold, or gemstones you're considering selling, a buy appraisal is the single most useful thing you can do before making any decision.

It costs nothing. It takes less time than you might expect. And it gives you the one piece of information you actually need: the real number.se