"Many of our clients are serious, serious collectors of some bizarre things. They are very passionate about their collections."
The firm has appraisers who are experts in dozens of different areas, from American furniture to sports memorabilia. She recently evaluated a man's lifelong comic book collection.
Appraisals also are necessary to cover several different tax issues-an item handed down to heirs or sold as part of an estate, or donated to a museum for a charitable tax deduction.
Sleeman, whose firm is an independent art appraisal and advisory firm, told the story of another client who had spent $500,000 buying a piece of art in the retail sector. Later, at a cocktail party, a museum curator persueded her to donate the art to the museum. She claimed the gift as a charitable deduction on her taxes. But the fair market value of the piece was established at only $250,000, so that is all the IRS would allow.
"From a tax standpoint, that gift was gloriously inefficient," Sleeman says. "It points to the importance of the appraisal. Had she known it was only worth $250,000, she might have done something else for a gift. It's really important: Before you do anything else, an appraisal is the first step."
Any appraiser at least should be accredited by the American Society of Appraisers and follow the standards of the Appraisal Foundation. It's also good to use an established firm with a good reputation.
Sleeman stresses that using an independent firm ensures getting an unbiased appraisal. The appraiser has no vested interest in skewing the value of an item because he is also looking to make a commission off its purchase or sale.
"Some people spend relatively large sums of money to get advice only from the person from whom they are acquiring something. That's fine, if they have a good reputation. But if you spend a lot of money, it behooves you to get a second opinion from someone who is independent with expertise in the area," he says. "The advice is not as expensive as you might think."
Art advisory firms like Winston also help clients in a relatively new area of art management-collateralization.
"It's a growing area, of clients looking to leverage their art collections," says Sleeman. "Clients who are hedge fund managers or in real estate understand if they have a $30 million painting on the wall, they want it working for them."
Winston acts like an asset manager, helping arrange for a loan using a collection as collateral to finance new acquisitions, fund investments or manage short-term cash needs.
The firm also provides advice on the proper maintenance of art and when and how is the best time to buy or sell.
Some collectors stay abreast of their valuables and know almost exactly what they are worth. Others have as much knowledge as they have gained from PBS' popular Antiques Roadshow. Some have no idea what treasure lies in their home.