Appraisal and Valuation of Personal Property Editing and Proofreading Services

A valuation is a number attached to a set of assumptions, and the assumptions do the work. The same painting is worth one figure for insurance, another for probate, another if it must be sold in six weeks, and another again if it can wait for the right auction. Clients who receive a report showing one number and a signature will use it for whatever purpose they had in mind, which is frequently not the purpose it was prepared for — and the appraiser finds out when an insurer, a tax authority or an opposing solicitor reads it.

We edit what appraisers, valuers and personal property specialists produce — valuation reports and their certificates, basis of value and definition sections, scope of work and inspection limitation statements, condition reports and their terminology, provenance and attribution statements, comparable evidence and market analysis sections, insurance schedules and replacement value documentation, probate and estate valuation reports, division of assets and matrimonial valuations, expert reports for litigation, engagement letters and terms of business, conflict of interest and independence statements, and client-facing explanations of what a valuation is and is not. Our editors work on the framing that determines how a number is used.

The basis of value is the sentence the whole report depends on and it is routinely reduced to a heading. A report that names a basis without defining it, or defines it in the appraiser's own words, invites the reader to substitute their own understanding — and market value, fair market value, replacement value, forced sale value and insurance value produce materially different figures for the same object. We write these so the basis is named and defined in the recognised terms, with the assumed circumstances of sale stated: who the parties are, how long the marketing period is, what condition is assumed, and what the figure does not include. We make the limitations specific rather than generic — that the work was not examined out of its frame, that attribution rests on a signature not verified against a catalogue raisonné, that no scientific analysis was undertaken; and we state the purpose the report was prepared for and that it should not be relied on for another. That paragraph is what protects the appraiser and what tells the client the truth.

Everything you send is treated in confidence, including client instructions, valuations and property details. We are editors rather than valuers or appraisers, and we offer no view on value, attribution, authenticity, condition or any professional judgement — those remain entirely yours. What we can do is make the basis, the assumptions and the limitations unmistakable.