Pawned designer jewelry up for auction
NEW YORK (FOX 5 NEWS) - A diamond sparkler is one of more than 1,400 items up for bidding Tuesday in the Provident Loan Society's auction at Doyle at prices far below market rate.
This preowned turn-a-graph Rolex, which appraiser Anthony Lore says would sell for at least $5,000 retail, will be up for bids starting about $2,500. A classic Bulgari snake bracelet watch would sell new for around $20,000, but the bidding will start at $3,000 or $4,000.
And there are many lower priced items, too. A Tiffany heart tag bracelet starts at $125. Tiffany sells it for $375.
The auction is open to the public and the pieces are all items that have been put up as collateral for loans with the provident loan society. The jewelry in the auction makes up the estimated 5 percent of items on loans that aren't paid despite repeated attempts. Provident loan auctions them to cover the cost of the loan and fees but then pays anything extra back to the client who took the loan.
The live auction starts at 10 a.m. Tuesday. You can also enter bids ahead of time online, up until 8 a.m.