14 replies to this topic

[Chiminoul]

I am selling a diamond I had purchased for my wife. Now, we are getting divorced...

It is a beautiful 2.56 ct diamond with a great color E and good clarity VS1. I just had it GIA certified and it is sealed in its GIA blister. Certificate number or copy upon request.

I paid 70k for it. I am selling it for 60k. Fell free to call me if you have any question regarding this beautiful diamond 1-646-393-6349.

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Edited by Chiminoul, 04 May 2011 - 01:25 AM.

[LaurieH]

Why not dealers, if they've got the dough? (just sayin...)

[Chiminoul]

LaurieH, on 27 April 2011 - 07:54 PM, said:

Why not dealers, if they've got the dough? (just sayin...)

I have dealt with a few dealers who have "lowballed" me badly. I will rephrased and add Dealers ok

[denverappraiser]

Just out of curiosity, why block out the report number? The 'good' cut grade is likely to be a problem for your sale, and possibly also other things on the report that I can't read on the copy, but how does it help to make it difficult for a potential customer to get the information? It is what it is, and they will buy it or not based on that and on what they see their other alternatives for getting what they want. This is not an inexpensive item and any serious potential customer is GOING to shop you. Aren't you undermining your original purpose of paying to get it graded by GIA in the first place?

Edited by denverappraiser, 30 April 2011 - 02:40 PM.

[Chiminoul]

I have chosen to blocked out the report number, as I do not want this report number scattered all over the Internet. I am sure the buyer would feel the same way, there is no need for "personal" information to be openly displayed. These days, it is too easy to make up a report using existing factual information.

This is merely intended to protect privacy of both the seller (me) and the potential buyer.

However, I would be happy to provide the report number to any interested party

[davidelevi]

Since the report number and content can be quickly verified online on the GIA site for free by anyone, I don't see how it could be part of a "made up" set of info; as a buyer my question is "does the (genuine) report match the stone you are offering"? Not "what is the report number"?. Like Neil, I fail to see the point. Anyway - good luck!

[LaurieH]

Ok...can I just state my confusion at the fear of having "personal information displayed" re: GIA report number--which, to the best of my knowledge, can be looked up for information about the diamond, but not who sent it in to be graded--but you put your phone number as a means of contact, which CAN be searched online to find out way more about you...

[denverappraiser]

Chiminoul, on 02 May 2011 - 10:57 PM, said:

I have chosen to blocked out the report number, as I do not want this report number scattered all over the Internet. I am sure the buyer would feel the same way, there is no need for "personal" information to be openly displayed. These days, it is too easy to make up a report using existing factual information.

This is merely intended to protect privacy of both the seller (me) and the potential buyer.

However, I would be happy to provide the report number to any interested party

Um, ok. By all means don't include anything in your advertisement that you aren't comfortable with. The Internet is a global audience and there are definitely people out there who don't have your best interests at heart so it's prudent to be cautious. Concern over counterfeit and altered documents is an important worry, and any serious buyer is going to want to get it checked out regardless of what you do in order to protect themselves so really it's a matter of your comfort over the whole deal, not the buyer's. Not that it matters, your discomfort is important. I was just curious what your reasoning was.

I'm also curious why you chose to get the blister pack service. I gather by the phone number that you provided that you're in the US and this is generally seen as a negative here. Before you I've never even heard of a US consumer buying it (blister pack service). It seems to be moderately popular with clients who are retailing in the middle East but I gather this isn't your case. I must say, when I'm advising a client shopping for stones in this price point, I recommend AGAINST buying anything that comes in a blister pack whenever possible precicely because it's so difficult to inspect the purchase. I only recall facing this question twice in the last decade and I examine several stones a day. As I mentioned above, the blister pack is not a popular service here, and it is not looked upon favorably. Did GIA (or someone else) recommend this service to you? As an additional related question, why did you choose NOT to get the girdle inscription (which IS popular with shoppers here_?

Edited by denverappraiser, 03 May 2011 - 08:52 AM.

[Chiminoul]

denverappraiser, on 03 May 2011 - 08:51 AM, said:

Um, ok. By all means don't include anything in your advertisement that you aren't comfortable with. The Internet is a global audience and there are definitely people out there who don't have your best interests at heart so it's prudent to be cautious. Concern over counterfeit and altered documents is an important worry, and any serious buyer is going to want to get it checked out regardless of what you do in order to protect themselves so really it's a matter of your comfort over the whole deal, not the buyer's. Not that it matters, your discomfort is important. I was just curious what your reasoning was.

I'm also curious why you chose to get the blister pack service. I gather by the phone number that you provided that you're in the US and this is generally seen as a negative here. Before you I've never even heard of a US consumer buying it (blister pack service). It seems to be moderately popular with clients who are retailing in the middle East but I gather this isn't your case. I must say, when I'm advising a client shopping for stones in this price point, I recommend AGAINST buying anything that comes in a blister pack whenever possible precicely because it's so difficult to inspect the purchase. I only recall facing this question twice in the last decade and I examine several stones a day. As I mentioned above, the blister pack is not a popular service here, and it is not looked upon favorably. Did GIA (or someone else) recommend this service to you? As an additional related question, why did you choose NOT to get the girdle inscription (which IS popular with shoppers here_?

I told GIA that quite a few people were going to look/handle the stone and that I was worried someone might pull a "switch-a-roo".

GIA recommended the blister pack. In my view it's safer since the stone has not been tempered with since it left GIA's Lab. I was not aware I could have gotten the girdle inscription.

[Chiminoul]

davidelevi, on 03 May 2011 - 02:48 AM, said:

Since the report number and content can be quickly verified online on the GIA site for free by anyone, I don't see how it could be part of a "made up" set of info; as a buyer my question is "does the (genuine) report match the stone you are offering"? Not "what is the report number"?. Like Neil, I fail to see the point. Anyway - good luck!

...For free by someone who was given (by me) the report number, not just anyone on the Internet looking at the photos.

Sadly, in this time and era "better safe than sorry". David, thanks for your kind word.

[Chiminoul]

LaurieH, on 03 May 2011 - 05:19 AM, said:

Ok...can I just state my confusion at the fear of having "personal information displayed" re: GIA report number--which, to the best of my knowledge, can be looked up for information about the diamond, but not who sent it in to be graded--but you put your phone number as a means of contact, which CAN be searched online to find out way more about you...

Laurie, my work number is unpublished. No chance in finding any personal information.

[denverappraiser]

By the way, if you want to start a new advertisement that isn't cluttered up with our unrelated comments, feel free. I think this is an important and useful discussion and worth continuing but I'm pretty sure Laurie can arrange to move this one to a different heading that works better with the actual discussion. She's an admin for this site. If you're interested, ask.

That was bad advice from GIA. Your bids are going to go down because of the 'good' cut grade and there's no way for a potential buyer or their expert to examine the stone and figure out WHY. They have to assume the worst. An inscription is only $16 if it's done at the same time as the grading and is useful for this same objective. If you're worried about someone stealing your diamond (a valid worry by the way), you might want to take out an insurance policy if you don't already have one in for force. It doesn't eliminate the risk of thieves, but it does make it someone else's problem.

If you haven't already done so, shop the competition and see what you find. Have you talked with ANYONE with experience at this (other than possibly a potential buyer) about your marketing strategy?

[davidelevi]

Chiminoul, on 03 May 2011 - 09:50 AM, said:

...For free by someone who was given (by me) the report number, not just anyone on the Internet looking at the photos.

Sadly, in this time and era "better safe than sorry". David, thanks for your kind word.

Um, no, my point is that the report contains no confidential information at all, which is why all vendors have no issue in publishing them on their sites. There isn't your name, address or any type of identifying info, nor any way for anyone to trace you from the GIA report number.

What is the point in not disclosing up front to potential buyers everything they can expect to know about the diamond - in a rigorously anonymous fashion?

If what concerns you is the idea that someone may sell something else with a fake GIA report with the same number (not sure why, since there's plenty other numbers available from vendor sites more easily and quickly matching their "fake" stone), you can blank the number out, but still post a scan of the report itself with readable information.

For example, another poster here recently posted about another "Good" cut diamond. It had some characteristics of an older cut (high crown, small table) which could interest me to the point of disregarding the "good" cut grade. Had I been looking for something similar, without seeing the full report, I would simply have ignored the stone.

[Chiminoul]

Thank you for all your helpful comments. It has been sold.

Best regards to all of you.

[denverappraiser]

Congratulations.

Thanks for the update. Just for our own education as well as for future people who read this and who are trying to sell something of their own, can I ask you a few specific questions? (nothing even remotely personal or proprietary)

Did you sell it to a private party or a dealer?
What advertising venue was successful in finding your buyer (website, friend of a friend, broker, jeweler, storefront, booth on 47th, auction house, something else)?
Did you get your asking price or reasonably close to it?
Did your buyer have any problem with the blister pack? Did they count it as a feature, a problem or neutral?

Edited by denverappraiser, 14 May 2011 - 11:08 AM.