A vehicle file starts at the VIN and a jewelry file starts at the grading report. Each class keeps the fields and paperwork its trade runs on, and your license turns on the classes you appraise. A jewelry firm gets a jewelry product, front door to final report.
Vehicles
Cars, trucks, and SUVs, motorcycles, RVs and travel trailers, ATVs and powersports.
The 17-character VIN identifies the vehicle, and mileage measures its wear.
Veblen decodes the VIN into year, make, model, trim, engine, and drivetrain, then adds government safety ratings, open recalls, and complaint history. You price against book values, live retail listings, and sold collector-car auction results. Which of those you lean on depends on where the vehicle trades.
Source documents. Titles, registrations, bills of sale, window stickers, service and modification receipts, inspection reports, vehicle history reports, prior appraisals.
Vehicles appraisalsJewelry, art, and collectibles
Diamonds and gemstones, watches, gold and silver, paintings and sculpture, coins, memorabilia, antiques.
Provenance is the identity here, so the certification or catalog number does the identifying.
You record metal, purity, and carat weight for jewelry, artist, medium, dimensions, and edition for art, and provenance for everything, since ownership history is often the largest driver of value. You attach grading reports and certificates of authenticity to the facts they support, which is what an insurer or estate attorney asks about first.
Source documents. Grading and certification reports, provenance and ownership records, purchase receipts, prior appraisals, insurance schedules.
Jewelry, art, and collectibles appraisalsEquipment and machinery
Construction, agricultural, and industrial equipment, from excavators and tractors to CNC machines.
The serial number identifies the machine, and the hour meter measures its wear.
Condition and maintenance history drive equipment value, so you record hours, attachments, and the service trail. A loader with documented maintenance appraises differently from an identical machine without it, and the report shows why.
Source documents. Titles where they exist, logbooks and hour records, maintenance and service receipts, purchase documents, inspection reports.
Equipment and machinery appraisalsMarine vessels
Powerboats, sailboats, personal watercraft, pontoons.
The hull identification number identifies the vessel, and engine hours measure its wear.
Marine values swing with season, region, and water history, so you record hull material, engine configuration, length and beam, and whether the vessel ran in salt or fresh water. You attach the marine survey as evidence in its own right, the way the trade already works.
Source documents. Titles and registrations, marine survey reports, engine logbooks, service receipts, bills of sale.
Marine vessels appraisalsAircraft
Piston singles and twins, turboprops, light jets, helicopters.
The tail number identifies the aircraft, and airframe, engine, and propeller each run on their own clock.
Logbooks decide aircraft value. You record airframe time, time since engine overhaul, avionics, and damage history as separate facts, because a lender or buyer asks about each one on its own, and an appraisal that cannot answer is not an appraisal.
Source documents. Registrations, airframe and engine logbooks, avionics invoices, maintenance records, prior appraisals.
Aircraft appraisalsReal estate
Residential property, commercial buildings, land.
The parcel number identifies the property, and square footage gives the size.
You record year built, beds and baths, lot size, and property type, and attach the deeds and tax records that source them. Real estate is the most regulated class in the practice, so you also state the intended use, the intended users, the definition of value, and the scope of work.
Source documents. Deeds, property tax records, prior appraisals, inspection reports, insurance documents.
Real estate appraisals