Buying antiques as investments.

Living with fine period antique furniture is undoubtedly a pleasure and somewhat of an honour bearing in mind each items rarity, age and quality.  The enjoyment gained from having and using wonderful antiques is quite unlike anything else.  If you have antiques you’ll fully understand and relate to this, if you don’t and you’ve never owned an antique, you’ll probably think I’m off my trolley!  But the big question is; can we put our hard earned cash and in some cases serious amounts of cash into antiques to furnish our homes elegantly and of course very individually.  Can we use these antiques, admire them, have them admired and have them turn into really great investments?  Or are they simply expensive whims for those of us who think we have plenty of style, sophistication and inevitably lots of money to burn?
Well, like anything else it all depends on what you buy, where you buy it and how much you pay.  The antique world is full of nasty and sometimes expensive surprises, but play the game sensibly, take advice and do a little research yourself, and you and your money should be in for a great future with antiques
I know some of you will be thinking “Oh I would only buy antiques because I like them, never as investments or to make money” Well that’s just great, in fact perfect.  The only way to buy antiques is to buy what you fall in love with, but is it such a bad thing for you to see them go up in value like your house?   We all seem delighted to lose money on our cars, it’s just expected; its what happens and we’ve grown to except it as part of our daily overheads.  I loose money on cars all the time and I think I must like it, and I know I’m very good at it, but you don’t have to suffer the same with your household furnishings, even though most of us do and do it happily.
Choose antiques well and buy from a good source and there is no reason why you shouldn’t see your beautiful Victorian sofa or 200 year old dining table increase in value by at least as much as your house. (Pound for pound)
This isn’t just me talking either; it’s a proven fact. 
In 1968 The Antique Collectors Club published its first price guide to antiques.  They looked at a range of good quality antique furniture from the period 1660 to 1880 all of which were generally available from dealer’s shops and other retail outlets.  Each year since then of course the information has been updated, and what it tells us seems just too good to be true.
The statistics speak for themselves.
 Lets say you had £300 to invest in 1968. You put £100 into antiques, £100 into stocks and shares and £100 into property.  At the end of the year 2000 your property investment would be worth around £2900, Stocks and shares not so good at £1900, but outdoing both of these and I may add doing so very quietly is your antique investment.  You would have to pay on average £3349 to buy back your £100 worth of antiques, which you bought in 1968.  Not bad hey.  So antiques have proven to be a very good long-term investment.  Do bear in mind that there has been a couple of blips in the last thirty odd years, with some years antiques taking a dive, but not as much as other investments and they bounced back even stronger.  And don’t think that this extraordinary rise in value is all down to antiques being much cheaper in 1968.  Antiques have always been thought of as being expensive, it’s just that everything looks cheaper looking back.  Even the Romans are documented as complaining at the rising cost of antiques in auction. I wonder how much the Roman antiques have risen since then?

Okay so buying antiques is not quite as easy as going into some big posh furniture store where everything is made to order, made to match, available and even made to size and then delivered within 6 to 8 weeks.  Antiques require time, effort, research, patience and lots of miles, but if you’re willing to put in the effort the outcome will be far more satisfying than buying new. 

How much do you need to spend?

You really can spend as much or as little as you like on antiques.  I know that I can furnish a house cheaper and more stylishly using genuine antiques (Or almost, say 1920’s furniture) than it would cost buying average quality new, and I bet you in doing so I would increase the value of the house!  I’ve done it and it works.  Of course money sticks to money, the more you spend the more you can make.
The best advice I can give for buying antiques is this; decide what period or style you like, try to learn as much about it as possible by talking to dealers, viewing the auctions, visiting antique fairs and museums, and devouring the antique price guide books and specialist publications.
Don’t get too carried away after reading a few books though.  A little knowledge can be exceedingly dangerous.  The antique world is full of pit falls just waiting for some new blood to fall into them. If you haven’t had much hands on experience, how can you be expected to notice the difference between a table with a later replaced top and one with its original.  It may not seem too serious, but consider that a Regency Dining table in original condition with all the leaves belonging might be worth £20,000, but a made up one from old parts only £2000.  Wouldn’t it be awful to pay £20,000 for the one worth only £2000?  I know people who have done exactly this, and they weren’t very happy when they were given the good news!
 One seriously good original piece is far better than a room full of cheaper, hacked around and re-coloured pieces.  Quality always counts, will always be in demand and will always carry a premium.  Buy the absolute best you can afford and from the most respectable source.  Love your antiques, polish them, care for them and don’t be afraid to use them.  An extra scratch or two isn’t going to bother its value, just add a bit more life and interest to the thing.  Scratch a new piece of furniture and the world has come to an end!

David Harper 1999

Please note this article was written in 1999 for a magazine print in 2000.  Reading it now seems quite strange because I mention 'blips' in the market...well, we've been having a blip for several years and antiques are now cheaper in real terms I think than they have ever been...but they are on the move again upwards in price, so now is a good time to invest - David Harper October 2010