How much should my jewelry be worth in order to need an appraisal?

At AIGR, we will tell you if we think an item would be valued at less than $500.00 retail.  We normally recommend that such an item not be appraised.  Some insurance agents tell their customers that they don’t need to appraise anything under $1500.00, $2000.00, or even $5000.00.  Sometimes this is not good advice.  You may have coverage for up to $5000.00 for jewelry included in contents of your home, but if you have multiple rings and chains that are each worth hundreds of dollars, they can easily add up to more than $5000.00.  It never hurts to have more documentation.  It is tempting to save money on appraisal fees, but the cost of an appraisal is probably less than the sales tax that you paid for the piece of jewelry.  Sometimes with estates, every item of jewelry needs to be documented and valued, no matter how insignificant it may seem.