Estate jewelry appraisals are based on the fair market value of items as of the decedent’s date of death or alternative date as determined by the esare and are used for the estate’s tax liability. These values are lower than the insurance replacement values. In cases where the items are kept rather than sold, the values are based on fair market value in the secondary retail level in the appropriate market.
See IRS definition:
Fair Market Value is defined as: “The fair market value is the price at which the property would change hands between a willing buyer and a willing seller, neither being under any compulsion to buy or to sell and both having reasonable knowledge of relevant facts. The fair market value of a particular item of property includible in the decedent’s gross estate is not to be determined by a forced sale price. Nor is the fair market value of an item of property to be determined by the sale price of the item in a market other than that in which such item is most commonly sold to the public, taking into account the location of the item wherever appropriate.” Regulation §20.2031-1.
Yantz Bradbury Associates
P.O. Box 10123
Rockville, Maryland 20850
Office: (301) 335-6687
Serving MD, VA and DC Metro Area