How does item buyback work during a house clearance in Brussels?

Which items are eligible for buyback?

A property occupied for several decades often contains pieces no one thinks to value any more: a writing desk tucked away in a spare room, a drawer full of jewellery, a collection of books or vinyl records never reassessed. These are precisely the categories we examine as a priority during a house clearance or removal.

• Antique and period furniture
• Jewellery, watches and fine jewellery pieces
• Silverware, porcelain and antique tableware
• Paintings, sculptures and art objects
• Books, vinyl records and various collections
• Clocks, mantel clocks and antique lighting

Other pieces may also have value depending on their condition and rarity. The full list of categories, with detailed examples, is available on our item buyback page. If in doubt about a specific item, it's best to show it to us rather than decide alone — see also our article on how to recognise an item worth buying back.

Buyback, step by step

1. 1

   First contact

   You describe the situation by phone or via the form, with photos if possible: they help prepare the visit but do not replace an on-site examination.

2. 2

   Examining the items

   During the quote visit, we identify what has real value at the same time as we assess the overall volume to be cleared.

3. 3

   Transparent appraisal

   We explain what is being offered for buyback and on what basis — condition, material, age, current demand — with no jargon or imposed figures.

4. 4

   Item-by-item agreement

   You decide what you agree to give up. Nothing is removed without your approval, even for an item already appraised.

5. 5

   Deduction from the quote

   The agreed amount is deducted directly from the price of the clearance or house clearance, and detailed in the written quote you receive.

Buyback in the context of an estate

It is often in this context that buyback makes the most sense. Clearing a loved one's home brings up furniture, jewellery or items accumulated over several decades, sometimes without the heirs knowing their real value. Rather than removing these pieces as a precaution, or conversely keeping them without knowing what to do with them, an appraisal makes it possible to look at the situation objectively before deciding.

This step can also make it easier to share items between heirs: a piece of furniture or item no one wants, but which has real value, can be bought back rather than remain a source of disagreement. Our article on sharing furniture between heirs covers this question, while our guide to house clearance for an estate in Brussels details the entire process, from sorting through to handing over the property.

How is the value of an item determined?

There is no fixed scale that applies to all pieces within the same category: two similar-looking pieces of furniture can receive very different appraisals. Several factors come into play during the examination.

• General condition: a damaged or incomplete item loses value, even if it is old
• Material: solid wood, silver, brass or crystal carry more weight than an ordinary material
• Marks and signatures: a hallmark, a maker's mark or an identifiable signature often changes the appraisal
• Current demand for this type of piece, which changes over time
• The set rather than the isolated piece: a complete collection is often more interesting than mismatched items

This is why we do not give a generic price range by item category before the visit: the appraisal is done case by case, based on the piece actually examined.

An honest appraisal, with its limits

We are not experts in art or numismatics: for an item whose potential value goes well beyond the usual scope of a house clearance, we may recommend a further opinion rather than offer a buyback on an uncertain basis. This is a rare situation, but we prefer to say so clearly rather than put forward a figure with no solid basis.

Conversely, we do not undervalue a piece to artificially lower the buyback amount either: the goal remains an appraisal that reflects reality at the time of the job, not a figure rounded in our favour. If an item ultimately finds no buyer, this is explained to you before anything is decided.

Buyback does not delay your house clearance

Examining items is not a separate step with its own organisation: it is built into the normal course of the visit and, on the day of the job, into the sorting that precedes removal. Items selected for buyback are simply set aside; the rest follows the usual clearance process.

This organisation avoids an extra visit to your home and means you get a complete view of the final cost from the quote stage onward — buyback deduction included. Our prices page details the other factors that influence the cost of a clearance in Brussels.

And the items that are not bought back?

A large part of a property's contents has no significant resale value — old appliances, flat-pack furniture, everyday tableware — without this meaning it automatically ends up as waste. These items are handled normally, sorted by material, reused or recycled depending on their condition. This process is detailed in our article on what happens to your furniture after a clearance. Buyback is therefore just one of several possible outcomes for a property's contents, not the only alternative to disposal.

Preparing your items before we arrive

No preparation is required: we adapt to the situation, even if nothing has been sorted beforehand. A few simple steps nonetheless make the examination easier on the day of the visit.

• Group potentially valuable items together in the same room, if possible
• Keep any certificates, invoices or original boxes if you still have them
• Avoid cleaning or restoring an antique item before the appraisal
• Provide clear access to the relevant rooms (cellar, attic, outbuildings) on the day of the visit

An examination adapted to Brussels' realities

A good part of Brussels' housing stock consists of townhouses or terraced houses with a cellar, several floors and sometimes an attic accessible via a hatch. A fragile item — antique tableware, a picture frame, a piece of silverware — is not handled the same way whether it is on the ground floor or right at the top of a narrow staircase. We take this into account during the examination, without it changing the appraisal method itself.

If the property is hard to access — no nearby parking, a cluttered staircase, several floors with no lift — let us know at first contact: this allows us to plan ahead, without calling the visit or the planned appraisal into question.

Frequently asked questions