How to turn your furniture into an investment
Friday, August 16th
What’s the difference between a Birkin and a Beamer?
The Beamer loses a quarter of its value the minute you drive it, while some Birkin bags can be flipped a decade later on a luxury marketplace for 3 times your purchase price.
Furniture is the ultimate in-between: as artistic objects, a carefully picked Eames chair can go for tens of thousands at auction. A teak MCM sideboard from a lesser known designer can lose most of its value instantly. A couple smart furnishing decisions can be the difference between a money pit and an investment.
So, how can you play moneyball with your home?
Building rastro.sh, we’ve learned a thing or two about this.
Avoid predicting style trends
First, brand and quality over style. Predicting the antique boom of the 90s, or the mid-century wave we are in now, requires Warren Buffet-esque feats of forward thinking. A standing Burlwood roll top secretary desk from the late 1800s was worth 10,000$ in the 1980s, and goes for 500$ today. Designers, and build quality from known brands, however, have endured through these waves.
Picking designer furniture
These are your classics, typically from a modern era: the Eames chair, the Barcelona bench, the LC4 or the egg chair. These designs are protected by 14 year patents: most are expired, and can be found white-labeled, but rarely with the quality of build or materials, thus their enduring value.
Occasionally, these were manufactured under a limited production run, with each piece numbered and signed by the designer. More common was an exclusive collaboration or licensing agreement with one or multiple manufacturers. Think Herman Miller for Eames.
Avoiding wear is important here, but these supply-limited pieces generally conserve (or even increase in) value. We recommend choosing a piece, and learning about its market pricing. Generic advice is difficult here, but do read a primer on finding an Eames chair if you’re interested.
Ikea or West Elm: particle boards or oak wood?
This is everything else, from IKEA to Restoration Hardware. Surprisingly, their resale value can vary by an order of magnitude.
A simple proxy for quality is the brand. A higher end brand typically fetches 60-80% resale value, including West Elm, Pottery Barn, Crate & Barrel, Restoration Hardware and Room & Board. More entry-level pieces will have a hard time fetching over 40% of the original price, a similar market to second-hand apparel, think IKEA, Wayfair, Sauder and Target. This has most weight for larger, established brands.
If you’re weighing the reputation of an upcoming brand, here are a couple heuristics to gauge the quality of a piece:
Materials: Opt for solid wood, real leather, and durable fabrics.
Joinery: Look for dovetail, mortise-and-tenon, or doweled joints.
Finish: The wood finish should be smooth, even, and well-applied.
Weight: High-quality furniture is usually heavier, indicating solid construction.