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Why look into art appraisals? The #1 reason why people look into getting their art appraised, is so that they can buy or sell for fair price in the marketplace. There's nothing worse than senselessly losing money or getting duped into paying thousands of dollars for something that's not worth the materials used to make it. Don't get caught up in private seller trickery! See how an art appraisal can protect your art investment today.

There are several steps in getting an art appraisal. First of all, note whether you have original artwork, and if it was directly created by the artist. If you are unsure, visit a frame shop or art gallery to help you figure out if you have a print or the original.

Next, find the artist signature to ascertain the artist. Some auction houses will accept works without a discernable signature, so long as you provide clear pictures. Thirdly, gauge the condition of the art you possess. Are there any rips, signs of over-painting or corrections? Has the color faded, are there watermarks or does it need cleaning? Never try to fix a painting up by yourself! There are professional restoration experts who can carefully, gently improve the overall appearance of the work, without making it obvious.

If this painting has been handed down from generation to generation, or owned by prominent figures, then the value of your piece could increase significantly, although it's rare to find paintings with complete ownership/artists records. You can check with the Fine Art Registry to see if your piece has ever been tagged and logged into the system.

After that, you can look up artist or auction result information on a site like AskArt.com or FindArtInfo.com. They are invaluable arts resources for such things as art appraisals, when it comes to researching a piece of artwork in your collection. You can view the highest auction prices, and subscribers can view all auction results for each individual artist on AskArt. On FindArtInfo, non-members can browse a particular artist's sold artwork and view a listing of the date sold, title, medium, size and price. To view the pieces and get full access to other information (like where it was sold, or where to find similar pieces, etc), you will need to pay for a $4/day or $15/month subscription.

You may find yourself strapped for time and gumption. Trying to guesstimate the price of your artwork may not be suitable, if you're looking to sell for top dollar, or if you know your piece is worth a lot of money. In this case, it's wise to check out the Art Dealers Association of America. They've been doing art appraisals for over 40 years and have seen more than 23,000 works, some with total values exceeding 2 billion. Additionally, one may find not-for-profit appraisals at the American Society of Appraisers, the International Society of Appraisers or the Appraisers Association of America. Be aware that the price for a fine art appraisal may be $250 or more.

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