Valuables’ Worth Beyond Price: Advisors Guide Clients’ Treasures
Typically, a client’s net worth statement lists a home, savings, and investments. However, items such as original artwork on walls, family heirloom jewelry, or handbags intended as gifts for daughters may hold financial worth and carry stories beyond what any appraisal can measure.
A recent report using Rapaport data reveals the global benchmark price for a standard one-carat natural diamond dropped 51% between September 2021 and September 2026. Laboratory-grown diamonds, present in 42% of diamond jewelry sold in 2025, have also reshaped the market. While these figures provide context, they don’t determine the value of a specific diamond.
Art follows a similar pattern. Global art sales increased 4% in 2025, but this doesn’t mean every painting appreciated by 4% or could be sold promptly at its estimated value.
Advisors play a key role by asking: Do you want to insure this, sell it, or pass it on? Are you including it in your net worth, and what supports that estimate? Does your financial plan rely on selling it?
These questions are critical. The Canadian Jewellers Association emphasizes that appraisals are tailored to specific purposes and markets. For instance, an insurance replacement value doesn’t necessarily reflect resale potential.
If a client’s plan hinges on selling an item, a realistic, purpose-specific valuation and discussions about costs, timing, and taxes are vital. In Canada, jewelry and art fall under the CRA’s rules for listed personal property. If the plan doesn’t rely on selling them, these items can still be part of the conversation without being treated as liquid assets.
A writer who received jewelry as a gift and plans to pass a handbag to her daughters believes effective planning balances financial statements with the life built around possessions. The aim isn’t to turn every cherished item into an investment but to help clients understand their assets, their intentions, and the role these items play in their plans.
Sometimes, the greatest return comes from enjoying something now and knowing it may be cherished by someone else later.
