Prices of antique lamps

Any good references out there for antique lamp and fixture prices? Attempting to sell off some of my parents collection and have looked at sold prices on Ebay, other sites as well as visiting some antique stores. People ask for prices, I respond with a price and say prices are negotiable, explain that shipping and insurance is included in the price, and never hear from them again. The antique market, as a seller, is new to me and just trying to figure it out. Thanks for any insight, Dean.

 

If you get more specific you’ll get better answers, I suggest you post here any photos you have to get things started. A lot has to do with condition when selling to collectors. Is the glass original or repro? Brass polished or nicely patinated? Any chips, cracks? Dents? Why not turn them over to an auctioneer? When you get the antiques market figured out, please share that info. : )

 

I've posted quite a few pics in previous threads here as well as in the gallery. I'll assemble some more pics and get them posted. If the glass isn't original, I ID it as a repo but just about all their collection is original and in excellent condition.

 

If you live in a large metropolitan area, there may be some up-scale consignment shops that you may want to consider, maybe a trial run with a couple of the mid-range value lamps. It seems the going rate the consignee charges are anywhere from 25-50%.
By having someone else do the selling for you, it removes you from the emotions that may arise when parting with your parents carefully assembled collection.
Another avenue you may want to pursue would be a specialty auction house that could stage a sale dedicated to your collection.

 

Well, I'm in the Chicagoland area, a large metropolitan area. Believe me, there's no emotional attachment here. Growing up around this collection was only a source of trouble for me, lol! Don't mind the work, I have the time, just trying to access a fair value. Fair for both parties.

 

Here are some the lamps from an old post:

https://www.antiquers.com/threads/help-needed-in-the-chicagoland-area.29617/

Nice, well made lamps with beautiful glass, but this kind of thing is a hard sell. Trends come and go. Not really what current decorators are looking for, especially in a metropolitan area like Chicago. Some exceptions of course. Also people who used to collect these lamps back in the day may be downsizing themselves. If you want to take the time to sell, try Craigslist or some kind of Nextdoor site or Facebook Marketplace, to save the anguish/cost of packing and shipping, plus you can save the buyer that fee. It will take you a while to sell these, though. (I think why a specialized auction was suggested.)

Ebay "Sold" is really a valuable tool, you must be sure you are comparing apples with apples. Don't forget that on Ebay, buyers get a guarantee -- a buyer can always return an item, even if it says no returns. So there is some comfort as a buyer that the seller really needs to disclose everything --tiny chip, replaced hardware. If the piece arrives and there is something not disclosed, a buyer has the right to return. In a CL sale you don't get any of that, so I would probably take the Ebay sold amount and cut it in half at a minimum for a person to person sale of a hard to ship item like this. No fees, no shipping, and no returns, so you aren't really selling for half. If it was me, I'd be open to selling for less than half even.

If people who contact you aren't replying back, could be you are asking too much $, however these online marketplaces are known for people not replying, etc. It isn't a perfect system, but if you are determined to sell these one at a time, it may be your best bet.