Depreciation from Repairs
Although it is impossible to put an exact dollar value on the effect of a given repair, some repairs are minor and may reduce the value of a piece by 10 percent, while major changes may cause a piece to lose as much as 75 percent.
Minor Repairs:
Any changes that are reversible.
Replaced hardware on European furniture.
Hardware added for embellishment.
New feet on any European furniture.
Replaced mirror.
New gilding.
Missing castings on chair legs of French furniture.
Small alterations to the cornice of a bookshelf.
Major Repairs:
Replaced hardware on American furniture.
New feet on any piece of American furniture.
A damaged or stripped patina on American furniture.
A new top on a chest.
Marriage of pieces that donīt belong together, such as a bookshelf on top of a slant front desk.
Reduction in the depth of a chest.
Replaced chair rails.
Spliced or repaired chair legs using all of the original parts.
Even worse-legs with newly carved sections.
