CALL ON LORNE BAIR RARE BOOKS
We are experienced appraisers of books, manuscripts and ephemera in all fields*, with a strong reference library and years of experience at our disposal. We have prepared or assisted in a number of high-profile appraisals in recent years, including the library of Holy Cross Abbey in Berryville, Virginia; the private papers of poet and critic Eugene Baro; and the Marvin Tatum Collection of Contemporary Literature at the University of Virginia. In addition we have handled dozens of smaller appraisals for insurance, probate, and tax purposes. We always offer a free consultation and estimate before beginning work, and we can offer good advice on donating or selling your collection.

INSURANCE
Most insurance companies will not insure valuable collections of rare books or other collectibles under a standard homeowner's policy. Some will not offer you a policy at all, forcing you to go with a specialty insurer such as Collectibles Insurance Agency; others will require a rider on your standard policy. In either case, to receive proper coverage you will generally need to provide an itemized appraisal of the replacement cost of your collection, prepared by a qualified third-party appraiser. Allen and Patricia Ahearn's Book Collecting 2000 (NY: Putnam, 2000) contains a valuable chapter on appraising and insuring book collections.

PROBATE
The IRS requires heirs of an estate to provide a documented inventory of goods included in all inherited property. They've gotten pretty savvy in recent years about sniffing out valuable collectibles, so it is always a good idea, if you have inherited a serious book collection, to enlist the services of a qualified appraiser. Bear in mind that undervaluing a book collection for probate purposes can become a serious liability if, later on, you decide to donate some or all of the collection (see below).

DONATIONS
Donating a book collection to a non-profit institution or library is not only an act of generosity benefiting everyone; it can also be an excellent way of defraying a portion of a burdensome estate or income tax bill. Institutions, as the recipients of a gift, are not in a position to put a value on your books, so again you'll need the services of a qualified third-party appraiser. As the market value of even fairly common books is not negligible (especially when multiplied by a factor of hundreds or thousands, depending on the size of your donation), the benefits of a detailed appraisal generally far outweigh the cost of the appraiser's time.

AN IMPORTANT NOTE
Never confuse an appraisal with an offer to buy your books! If you wish to sell, you should make that clear from the outset. Why? Because an appraiser enters into a serious legal conflict of interest if, after being paid to give you a "disinterested" appraisal of the value of your collection, he turns around and offers to buy some or all of it. You should report such unethical behavior to your local police and Better Business Bureau.

BUT: Just as it is unethical for a dealer to both appraise and buy your books, it is a reprehensible (though not, to our knowledge, felonious) act to ask a dealer to make an offer on your books simply in order to wangle a free appraisal out of him. Declining any offer is of course your prerogative; but dealers generally know when they've been had and almost all the dealers in a given city or region know each other–meaning you may find yourself getting the cold shoulder from more than just the dealer you've offended.