How to Find the Value of Old Books

Grading the physical condition of an old book is an extremely subjective process usually left to professional book appraisers. Professional appraisers have examined thousands of books and have the experience to weigh the dozens of subtle criteria that differentiate "fine" from "very good." But if you want to get a rough idea of your book's condition -- and its relative value on the rare book market -- here are the basics.

The highest grade for a book's physical condition is "as new." This is a book that hasn't even been opened. It's been stored in impeccable conditions and shows absolutely no signs of wear or use. Note that bibliophiles don't like to use the word "mint," since serious collectors reserve the term for grading money, not books [source: Pappas].

A book in "fine" condition is complete and shows little to no wear. For some booksellers, a grading of "fine" equals "handled, but flawless" [source: Gozdecki]. Be careful, though: The overuse of the term "fine" in online bookselling circles has caused some grumbling.

Many "fine" books would more accurately qualify as "very good," which means a complete book with very minor defects. "Good" describes the average condition of an older book -- some signs of wear and minor damage, perhaps to the dust jacket.

A book is deemed "fair" if it's complete, but the damage to the dust jacket or edges of the pages is more evident. The lowest grade for an old book is "poor" or "reading copy." This is a book with significant damage that would only be worth selling if it includes rare signatures, inscriptions or was owned by a famous person. Lacking any special circumstances, any book missing pages is worthless [source: RBMS].

Here are some common terms used to describe the condition of old books:

[source: ABAA]

If you think your old book is "fine," then it's time to seek out a professional opinion. In the next section, we'll discuss book appraisers.

Professional book appraisers earn their reputation and their credibility through years of experience. You don't just wake up one day and decide you want to appraise books for a living. Most appraisers spend years working their way up through the world of antiques and collectibles. They might start off as a shelver in a used and rare bookstore or a "picker" for an antique shop -- someone who drives around to estate sales and other antique stores looking for rare finds. Over the years, they gain enough expertise to start collections of their own and eventually open their own bookshops.

With enough experience, and close adherence to established standards of practice, the seemingly subjective art of book appraisal edges closer to a science. The most reliable appraisers are accredited by professional organizations like the American Society of Appraisers. Accredited members must take a test and vow to work in compliance with the "Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice," an annual publication put out by the Appraisal Foundation. In the U.S., there's no such thing as a "license" to conduct appraisal work on personal property, only real estate appraisals [source: Aimone].

It might seem strange that book appraisers would have to adhere to such strict standards, but that's because not all book valuations are done for the benefit of amateur collectors. In many cases, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) relies on accredited appraisers to determine an estate's value. Lawyers call in appraisers during divorce settlements and insurance companies rely on appraisers when determining the level of coverage for personal property [source: AbeBooks.com].

Book appraisal doesn't require any specialized formal education. People enter the field from diverse educational backgrounds. A few colleges have degree programs or specialized coursework in the "valuation sciences," but most appraisers are educated on the job in the "theory, history and law of art valuation" [source: Aimone].

If you're in the market for a professional book appraiser, a great place to start is with a professional appraisal association, of which there are plenty.

One of the best ways to locate a professional book appraiser near you is to consult one of the major professional appraisal trade associations.

The most well-known such organization in the U.S. is the Antiquarian Booksellers' Association of America. This 50-year-old organization includes 450 members located across the U.S., with significant concentrations in the Northeast and California. Great Britain boasts the oldest such organization with the Antiquarian Booksellers' Association, founded in 1906 [source: International League of Antiquarian Booksellers]. In France, it's the Syndicat National de la Librairie Ancienne et Moderne, which goes by the decidedly un-"ancienne" acronym of SLAM.

The umbrella organization for the 22 country-specific book appraisal and rare book collecting organizations around the world is the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers (ILAB). This organization holds an annual international book fair in a different global capital. In 2009, the ILAB International Antiquarian Book Fair was held in Vienna, Austria.

In the U.S., book appraisers may choose to become accredited by the American Society of Appraisers, an organization that represents a broad range of professional so-called "valuers" that include appraisers of businesses, real estate, jewelry and technology, as well as personal property appraisers that handle objects like art, books and other collectibles.

Since many book appraisers have day jobs as the owners and staff experts at the country's finest independent bookstores, you might also have luck consulting the American Booksellers Association, a trade group that represents the more than 1,200 large and small independent bookstores in the U.S.

If you don't have time to track down your nearby professional book appraiser, there are ample online resources for determining the value of your literary treasure. Go to the next page for the top book appraisal Web sites.

There are a number of popular Web sites that allow you to search by title, author or subject to find rare, first editions and even signed copies of some of the world's most valuable books. If you have your hands on what you believe to be a rare book, these Web sites can be a great resource for determining the approximate number of copies in circulation, as well as their selling prices.

The rare books section of AbeBooks.com is a great place to search for highly sought-after and expensive books. The advanced search option at AbeBooks.com not only lets you search by title, author, keyword, ISBN number and publisher, but also limits search results to certain price ranges, countries and special attributes like first editions and signed copies.

The "Search for Books" section of the Antiquarian Booksellers' Association of America Web site is another fine online resource for conducting a rare book search among the ABAA membership. To expand your search results to international booksellers, try the "Book Search" tab of the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers site.

The BiblioBot feature of the PBA Galleries Web site allows you to enter in all of the pertinent information about your book -- author, title, publishing year, condition, if it's a first edition or signed -- and receive an "instant appraisal." What the site really does is run a search on similar books for sale or auction and show you an estimated price range.

Of course, if you simply want to watch other people living out their "Antique Roadshow" fantasies, you can watch free, full-episode video clips at PBS.org.

For lots more information about books and fine art, see the links on the next page.