The market for Victorian style antiques

[debodun]

Does anyone have a "take" on the current antique furniture market? I inherited a house full of Victorian period furniture (see photos for a few examples) and have had a tough time trying to sell it even at what I consider "giveaway" prices. On the rare occasion that someone responds to one of my ads, they expect I will sell the item from 1/4 to 1/5 the asking price. I also called a few antique dealers and they said they aren't taking furniture right now because they aren't selling. Items they paid $200 for even 5 years ago they can't even sell fro $50! What's going on?

[RebekahK]

Let me get a furniture expert to take a crack at this. Stay tuned!

[lovejoy]

Victoriania was all the rage until the early 1990's, then the market dumped as decorating trends changed. The values for some of the smaller decorator pieces like desks, pedestal tables and coat racks are still good, but every thing else has tanked.