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Personal property appraisals in Michigan for donations, estate tax, divorce, and probate, prepared in accordance with USPAP and IRS requirements. AppraiseItNow appraises antiques, jewelry, collectibles, fine art, and household contents across Michigan, including Detroit, Grand Rapids, and Ann Arbor.
DEFENSIBLE, USPAP-COMPLIANT PERSONAL PROPERTY APPRAISAL REPORTS — QUALIFIED FOR THE IRS, MICHIGAN COURTS, LENDERS, INSURERS, AND MORE.
Michigan's industrial and cultural history means estates and collections here frequently include items tied to the automotive era, regional folk art, and Great Lakes maritime heritage. Two of the assets below link to a page written for Michigan; the rest link to the appraisers who cover them nationwide.
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Owner & CEO
Joe founded AppraiseItNow to make a certified, USPAP-compliant appraisal as simple to order as anything else online. A former Bain & Company strategy consultant, Joe leads the entire team and specializes in strategy, growth, and the firm's tech capabilities.
Personal Property Appraiser
ISA Accredited Member with 30 years in the trade, from running estate sales and an auction gallery to appraising luxury apparel, furniture, artwork, antiques, and business assets, primarily for IRS tax filings.
Machinery & Equipment Appraiser
Third-generation auctioneer and CAGA Certified Appraiser with more than 20 years valuing machinery, equipment, vehicles, business assets, and estates for banks, attorneys, and trustees across the Carolinas.
Personal Property Appraiser
ISA Accredited Member specializing in Asian art, with a Master's from SOAS and a Postgraduate Diploma in Asian Art. Ashley chairs the ISA's Antiques, Furnishings, and Decorative Arts committee and appraises for charitable donation, insurance, and equitable distribution.
Client Success Manager
Manages each engagement from the first enquiry to the delivered report, and keeps you posted at every step along the way.
International Society of AppraisersAccredited Member
Certified Appraisers Guild of AmericaCertified Appraiser
The Appraisal FoundationAuthorized by Congress as the source of appraisal standardsAppraiseItNow appraises household contents, antiques, clothing, and collections in Michigan for charitable deductions, probate, divorce, and insurance claims. The purpose picks the value standard, and completed sales supply the evidence behind every figure.
Charitable deductions
Clothing, furniture, appliances, and decor leave the house in volume, so we value them by category at fair market value, using resale prices that a donor can show an accountant preparing Form 8283. A garage of tools and a closet of coats do not each earn a line of their own: like pieces are grouped, and the group is priced on what that kind of property actually resells for in the state.
Probate and divorce
An estate or a property settlement needs one figure per item that both sides can read. We value the contents as of the date the court or the parties set, and we write the report so the personal representative can attach it to a filing without translating anything first. Where a single inherited cabinet or ring is the whole dispute, that is the whole assignment.
Coverage and claims
Jewelry, antiques, and instruments are scheduled at replacement value while they are intact, which is what a carrier wants on file before anything happens. After a fire or a theft, the exercise reverses: we work from photographs, receipts, and what the room actually held to reach actual cash value for the loss.
Three Michigan assignments, reduced to what each one was and why it needed a value. Owners, addresses, and the figures we reached stay in the file.
Charitable donation
Given to a medical relief charity and valued at fair market value, against what comparable beds resell for rather than what one costs new.
Charitable donation
The donor kept photographs of everything that left the house. We valued the clothing by category for the charitable deduction.
Household goods
Luggage, blankets, curtains, lamps, books, and seasonal decor, loaded into one truck and valued by category for the donor's deduction.
Two Michigan rules turn on what personal property is worth: the exempt property a spouse or the children may select, and the fee the probate court charges on the inventory value.
Threshold
$20,000
exempt property for a Michigan death in 2026
Michigan's Estates and Protected Individuals Code lets a surviving spouse, or the children when there is no spouse, take exempt property from the estate above any security interest in it. The statutory figure is adjusted every year for the cost of living, and the Treasury notice sets it at $20,000 for deaths in 2026. The selection is made property by property: the probate court's selection form asks for each item and the value put on it, which is where an appraisal does the work.
Cost
1/8 of 1%
of the inventory value above $100,000
The probate inventory fee is set by statute on a sliding scale tied to the value of the estate as reflected in the inventory: an estate inventoried between $100,000 and $500,000 pays $362.50 plus an eighth of one percent of the amount above $100,000. The fee cannot be waived, and the Court of Appeals has held it is charged on the value of the estate whether or not anything is sold. Under or over valuing the contents moves a real number.
What Michigan clients say we are known for
Across 23 published Michigan appraisal reviews, every one from a client who paid AppraiseItNow for an appraisal, the three things they raise most often are that they would hire us again, how much research is visible in the report, and how quickly we answer.
AppraiseItNow Inc. is the best company I was lucky to find by accident. I was looking for someone to appraise cabinets for a donation to charity. I asked for multiple referrals, called multiple appraisal services, etc., and no one could help me. I found AppraiseItNow and from the moment I started working with them, they were wonderful! Joe guided me on what I needed to send him, what needed to be done and stayed in touch with me the entire time. Their customer service is OUTSTANDING and a welcome surprise in today’s world where good customer service is an anomaly! They returned an appraisal in a timely manner, it was clear, concise, cost-effective and exactly what I needed. They followed up with me multiple times to ensure that I received it and everything was OK. My CPA is also thrilled to have them as an accredited appraisal service he can use for other clients. I rarely leave reviews, but I could not pass giving them 5 stars and I’d give 10 if possible! THANK YOU JOE AND ALL AT APPRAISEITNOW!!👊🏼
Personal Property Appraisal for Charitable Donation
I used AppraiseItNow for the first time last month and I was extremely pleased with the results. I needed an appraisal done for insurance purposes and the level of detail about each of my antique furniture pieces was thorough and very helpful in my being able to get the highest amount possible from my insurance company for the antique items that were damaged. I could see that they spent time making sure that the information she included was correct and current for my antique furniture items in the current market. The team responded to my emails timely to answer any questions I had. I would highly recommend Appraise It Now to get a thorough and professional appraisal done on antique items. I do intend to use them again for other antique furniture and jewelry that I have. Job well done! 😃🤗
Antique Furniture Appraisal for Insurance Claim
It is a pleasure to work with Joe and his team. They communicate every step along the way and made the process simple for us to have more than 35 firearms appraised. It was all done in a timely manner and the final report is easy to understand. I highly recommend their services.
Gun Appraisal for Probate
I was skeptical at first, but the company exceeded all of my expectations. The team responded quickly to every question, and the service was excellent. They’re now my go to source for my collection. I’ve used them twice already, and I plan to use them several more times.
Firearms Appraisal for Personal Use
Joe made the process to have my piece of furniture appraised extremely easy, efficient and quick. My experience was great and I'd recommend AppraiseItNow to anyone looking for an appraisal.
Furniture Appraisal for Insurance Coverage
I asked AppraiseItNow to value a piece of sports memorabilia for purposes of a charitable donation. The item is rarely sold. Their research unearthed an important recent sale of a similar item, which I had not found previously, and which the first appraiser I used had not found either. AppraiseItNow was a good deal more expensive than the first service, but they crafted a detailed report in which I have much more confidence. They also helped me make sure the correct tax forms are used. Thank you!
Sports Memorabilia Appraisal for Charitable Donation
Given the USPAP-compliant nature of AppraiseItNow’s appraisal reports, we prepare our deliverables for major legal, tax, and financial reporting purposes for individual and commercial clients.
Popular uses of our appraisal reports include:
By triangulating three data types: completed auction results, dealer and gallery offerings, and published price guides, with completed sales carrying the most weight. The appraiser documents dimensions, materials, maker's marks, production period, and condition so each comparable genuinely matches the piece being valued.
Fire policies in Michigan must include a statutory appraisal process under MCL 500.2833: if the insurer and policyholder cannot agree, each side selects a competent, independent appraiser, and those appraisers determine the actual cash value and amount of loss for each item. Documented pre-loss appraisals make that process far easier.
Often it does the opposite. Original patina, surface, and period-consistent wear are core authenticity evidence, and over-restoration can permanently reduce collector interest. Get an appraisal before restoration so the decision is grounded in what the market actually rewards.
No. Asking prices often sit unsold and routinely exceed what buyers pay, which is why professional practice bases antique values on documented completed transactions. We treat listings as context, not evidence, when concluding fair market value.