Judy
Gold Post Medal for All Time! 677 Posts October 3, 20180 found this helpful
These are mid-20th century tables. I would ask $275 for the set.
October 3, 20180 found this helpful
Wow...I'm shocked. I paid $40 at a yard sale. I was confused on the year by the the casters and the other metal trim. Thank you so much!
Pghgirl40
Bronze Feedback Medal for All Time! 196 Feedbacks October 3, 20180 found this helpful
Nice pieces! When I value items for people I go by actual sold prices either on eBay or other furniture websites.
The end tables look like they are from the 1940s. This was a very popular style back then. Technically they are pre mid century modern (mcm is mostly 1950-1960) but the "style" (clean lines, like Ikea furniture) still exists. That is why sometimes early 1970s pieces were called mcm. In that case it was more style than actual "birth" in the middle of the 1900s.
I found what appears to be your end tables that sold in 2014 with a coffee table (different than yours) for $30 at auction:
www.ebth.com/.../1536600-set-of-three-mersman-federal...
I am not able to find a current example of your round table to see what they are selling for. You may want to Google periodically and check eBay sold section to get a handle on it's current market value.
Value/current market value is what people pay. It can be regional based on supply and demand. High demand, liw supply equals higher prices and low demand, high supply equals low prices.
I don't see any more recent sales on eBay, but if you check back and see them going for more, perhaps the value has increased, although if anything furniture values have been stuck for several years now so the price (value) is probably just very slightly higher than 4 years ago.
Mersman pieces are some of my favorites. The company was around from the late 1800s through early 1980s. They built sturdy pieces that were functional and lasted! There are lots and lots of them out there so that has kept the value low. If I can find an example of a sold version of your round table I will post it!
Thanks for sharing!
October 6, 20180 found this helpful
It is very difficult to place a true value on vintage furniture as it is not easy to find even one identical piece to compare it with.
- Mersman furniture is still popular but any type of furniture is generally very slow to sell. Antique dealers will have their pieces listed "forever" as they are setting on their showroom floor and may sell on site faster than online. These dealers can also make arrangements to ship (at lower prices) and usually a casual seller will have to do their sale as "pick up only".
- This means the buyer will have to be in the seller's area and that limits the exposure as well as how many people are in the market for this type of furniture.
- One area may go for this type/style while another area (maybe yours?) would not pay much more than you did at the yard sale. Sale values are subjective to the area where items are found and that is one of the biggest reasons even an official appraisal could be off by several hundred dollars.
- Appraisals are usually given for insurance purposes and retail value may be 40-50% lower and actual selling price may be 20-30% lower than that. These figures are straight from the official appraiser's handbook (textbook for study course).
- So if you had something appraised at $300 (insurance value) 40% less = $180 (retail value) minus 20% (actual sale value) = $144 actual regular sale price (individual person).
- These figures are for sales like eBay and other sale sites but are not the same for a store that sells nice furniture.
- Does this always hold true? Of course not, I have sold things that I was almost ashamed to accept the amount of money it sold for. But - it may have meant something more to the buyer than it did to me as we have no way to figure in human reasons for doing what they do.
- Your tables look like they are in very good condition and that is unusual for leather topped tables. You may never be able to determine what year they were actually made as there is very little information available about the numbering system that Mersman used.
- Here is a site that gives a little information that may help. If you look at the full name on the markings of the numbers you may be able to go by the history of the company and determine an approximate date. Mersman did not always make furniture "true" to the style that was popular during a certain period. When you see a listing and someone states a date (without proof) such as "1940" they are just guessing because most of these tables are still just "mid-century" and the date will not really make the table more valuable.
- articles.mcall.com/.../3660941_1_occasional-tables-walter...
- It is easier to find end tables similar/like yours than to find the round table so if you decided to sell I would suggest you sell the round table by itself. This is usually called an occasional, lamp or accent table (with drawer) although some seem to be calling them "end tables" so I guess either way would be correct. Round table are not usually as popular as square or rectangular tables.
- I did find several pictures like your round table but no real information on a selling price.
- theiqcollective.com/.../
- If you decide to sell I would suggest you list on local sites like Craigslist and numerous other sites and definitely start your price at $300-$400 for the end tables and $250 for the round table.
- Your area may be one of the ones that will pay these prices; if not; lower the price after a few weeks if no one seems interested.
Here is a link to information about the Mersman Company:
www.antiquetrader.com/.../
I picked up a Mersman coffee table 8628 and 2 end tables 8624. I was wondering the approximate year and possible value of these. They are in great condition!
