Call a few auction houses in your area. Some do sales periodically that combine several sellers. Not everyone has enough for a full scale auction. They would be good at giving you an idea of what your stuff is worth. Taking photos and making the rounds at antique shops is an easy way to begin the process.

To be honest, it's a very bad time to be selling antiques (unless you live in the South). The MCM craze has made "brown furniture" nearly unsellable, unless it's super high-end. Is there any way you could hold onto your inheritance for a few years?

The pendulum will undoubtedly swing back. In the late 70s, people got sick sick sick of looking at plastic-and-plywood MCM furniture, and the same thing will undoubtedly happen again. If you look at the European design magazines, you'll see antiques starting to make a comeback. It would be a shame to sell at the bottom of the market, unless you simply can't hold onto all the furniture.

(The smaller things like hurricane lamps, though, have a lively market on eBay.)

Good reply, Lisa. I for one cannot wait for when the pendulum swings.

I agree with the first post; get an auction house to appraise the items. A friend of mine inherited a high boy and had it apraised with Brunk Auction House here in Asheville NC (I think they work with Christie's ... or Sotheby's- one of the two) They appraised the high boy for almost $80k!! When it went to auction- a bidding war ensued and it sold for $240K!
Long story short: get someone who is reputable and knows their business.

Lisa said the same exact thing I was going to. When is cheap furniture going to lose steam anyway? I'm over it!

What? Antiques are awesome! Not everyone likes "modern" home style. I'm partial to the 1930s colonial style stuff myself. Cheap AND quality.

As for the antiques, I would definitely get anything pre-1920 appraised. If the pianos are not grand pianos, not by a famous maker, and/or not in fantastic shape, they are unlikely to bring more than a few hundred dollars. I see pianos (including ones from the 1880s) on Craigslist for free all the time and there is generally a glut on the market of pianos because hardly anyone plays anymore or has room for them in their houses.

Antiques value will also depend on your local market. If you live in the Northeast, the '60s stuff may be more valuable than the stuff from the 18th century. If you live in the Midwest, it will probably be the other way around. Unless you have something (like MartieMartie's highboy) that has inherent value, no matter where you are.

Good luck and let us know how it goes!

Ooops! I meant 19th century, not 18th century. Stuff from the 1700s is almost always valuable. Stuff from the 1800s, especially later in the century, is hit or miss.

I'd strongly recommend holding onto the furniture for a few years if you can. The vintage/antique furniture market is horrific for sellers right now (but if you're buying, you can find the most amazing things for pennies on the dollar, smh). Furniture crashed with the housing market and the recession plus current design trends are keeping the prices artificially depressed to rock bottom prices.

The problem with pianos too is that no one wants to move them. Anymore you'll often have to pay someone to take it away.

Take photos of the items and bring it in to someone local and reputable to start getting an idea of what you have. If you do research online, be aware that anyone can list anything for any price, but that doesn't mean it's actually selling at that price. Many online sellers are still trying to get pre-recession prices for their pieces, but the demand really just isn't there.

since she already said she can't hold on to it we should quit telling her to hold on to it.

if you live in an area that has a good demand for antiques then an auction house or a respected dealer is great - if not you'll need to go to the nearest metro area - last week i had a local antique dealer look at a buffet he basically talked down to us after blowing us off 3 times, then rushed through the appointment. later i found out he's a sleaze and will jip you anyway - i was glad i had asked around but should have done it before the appointment.

we have friends that are collectors so they were able to point us in the right direction of who to talk to

Appraisal, for certain, then if it's nothing easy to sell outright or through an auction house consider approaching a reputable dealer who shows their merchandise at an annual antiques fair (for instance San Francisco's is in October) and ask if they're interested in a consignment deal or splitting their show booth... I sold two inherited pieces that way and they brought higher prices than I'd expected.