Frequently Asked Questions
General
- How can I find out the value of my item?
- How long will it take for me to hear back after submitting images?
- Are you available for walk-in appraisals?
- Do you provide written appraisals?
- How do I know if you can sell my items?
- What types of items do you sell?
- Do you have consignment minimums?
If you are interested to know what you have and what its value might be, feel free to email images to [email protected].
It can take three to five business days to hear back from a specialist.
No. Our specialists are not always in the gallery. Please call the gallery to make an appointment directly with a specialist before bringing your items to us. Virtual appraisals are available upon request.
We can provide formal written appraisals for insurance or estate purposes. The fee is $250 for the first hour and $150 for each additional hour. Please call the gallery for more information.
Our specialists need to see and approve for auction all items we sell. You can email photos to [email protected]. For larger quantities of items, such as an entire estate, please call the gallery to see if a courtesy visit might be available.
We have five departments: Fine Art, Furniture & Decorative Arts, Jewelry, Fine & Rare Wines, and Asian Art. Our specialists are here to determine if we can sell your items for you.
Yes. We cannot accommodate all consignment requests we receive. Our minimums fluctuate depending on department needs. Please email images of your items to [email protected] for us to determine if we can handle them for you.
In-Person Auctions
- Can I view the item in person before the auction?
- Can I bid in person?
- What if I cannot attend or I’m interested in an item that isn’t selling for several hours?
- Is my Clars Live bidder number the same as an in-house bidder number?
- What is a Buyer’s Premium?
Yes. We are open for public preview the Thursday before the auction from 1–5PM. You are welcome to view the items in person during this time, and our specialists are available to answer your questions.
Yes. In person bidding is open to the public and free of charge. Our doors open at 9AM each auction day, and the auction begins at approximately 9:30AM. You will register for a bidder paddle upon your arrival, and your number is good for both days.
You may leave an absentee bid with the front office. The auctioneer will execute your bid for you as if you were here bidding competitively.
No. Clars live will assign you a four digit bidder number generally in the 1000 number range. This bidder number does not transfer to bidding in person. You will need to register for an in-house paddle number to bid in person.
A Buyer’s Premium is a service fee charged by all auction galleries. Our in-house premium is currently 26%. This percentage will be charged on top of the hammer price of each individual item.
Online Auctions
- How do I bid online?
- Is there a fee for bidding online?
- Do I have to register for each sale individually?
- How do I know if I am approved to bid?
- Can I bid against myself?
- How do I know if I won?
- The item sold for the same amount that I bid for it, but I am not the winner. Why didn’t I win?
- How long do I have to pay and pick up?
- Do you provide shipping and packaging services?
- What types of payments do you accept?
Our catalogs are available online for viewing and bidding via
Yes. The Buyer’s Premium will be higher if you bid online instead of directly with the gallery. The Buyer’s Premium on
Yes. We require that you register for each sale individually to verify that you agree to our Conditions of Sale, Terms of Use, and Privacy Policy.
Once you have been approved to bid, you will receive an email from us letting you know that you are all set to participate freely in the auction.
If you are only bidding on one bidding platform, then you will not be bidding against yourself. The only way you could bid against yourself is if you placed a bid on the same item(s) in the same auction on multiple bidding platforms (
Invoices are emailed for Live Auctioneers and Invaluable at the conclusion of each auction day. Invoices for
There are a few reasons why this could have happened. The most common reason is that more than one bid came in at the same amount, resulting in a tie. Bids are accepted at the auctioneer’s discretion. Therefore, even if you have made an absentee bid online or in-house, this does not guarantee that you will win the item.
For all auctions, you have three business days after the auction to pay for any items you purchased. After 10 business days, if the items have not been picked up, we may begin to charge storage fees at a rate of $10 per lot per day.
We do not provide in-house packing or shipping services. Packing and shipping is at buyer’s cost, and you must coordinate this with a third party. A list of third party shippers other Clars customers have used is located on the shipping page of our website.
We accept cash, cashier’s check, wire transfer, personal check (items may be held until the check clears), and PayPal. For payments made within the US and Canada, we also accept Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express.
Timed Auctions
- What is a timed online auction?
- How do timed online auctions work?
- How are bids accepted in a timed online auction?
- How do I know if I have the current highest bids?
- Can I request condition reports?
- What happens at the end of a timed online auction?
- Can I retract my bids?
Timed online auctions are auctions conducted solely online. There is no auctioneer.
The auction runs for a defined amount of time, typically a few days or weeks. This allows bidders to register and place one or more bids on lots of interest until the last day listed. The lot will stay open if there are bids and will close 15 seconds after the last bid.
You must register on the assigned platform and place bids online only. NO telephone or absentee bids are accepted for timed online auctions.
Bidders are notified should their maximum online timed bid be outbid and are given the opportunity to raise their bid amount. The winner is determined on the date the auction closes.
Condition reports and photo requests are not available for timed only auctions. The absence of a condition statement does not imply that the lot is in perfect condition or completely free from wear and tear, imperfections, or the effects of aging.
Once the auction has ended, the winning bidder is responsible for organizing any item to be shipped or picked up. See our Shipping & Pickup page for more information.
You can only retract 3 bids per registered auction.