Leland Little

I had a vintage ring that they appraised and said top value would be $ 2000.
I then had it appraised by a GIA gemologist and took it to another auction house. They valued it at around $ 6500 and it sold for $ 3200.

While I’ve gotten a good deal here in the past, I was very disappointed with the last auction item for which I placed an absentee bid for and won. The estimate was in retrospect and in my opinion VERY HIGH (in comparison to when I picked up the piece of JUNK, VERY DISAPPOINTING JUNK). Also, with all the nice well-​lit photography that encouraged my bid, I was disappointed with the actual dark item and couldn’t get even 15% of what I paid.
Just buyer beware as you can’t trust auction estimates nor photographs like seeing the item in person. BE SELECTIVE. This place is likely better for sellers (and certainly Leland! as he sure got too much of my money for this item) than for buyers/​collectors. I plan to delete future LL auction emails, burned once but won’t be burned twice!

Leland Little Auctions is not for everyone. And I’m ok with that.
I’m familiar with a number of local auctioneers, consignment shops, antique shops, and other local sales venues. Leland consistently has more quality items for sale because he has built his business and reputation up over a number of years and simply doesn’t accept a lot of «junk» to sell anymore. If you want Nordstrom quality, then Leland’s is your place. If bargains are your primary mission and you’re ok with Walmart quality, there are plenty of other places around town to spend your money.
As for the two negative reviews posted earlier, if you’re a real stickler for a bargain, they’re more readily available at Leland’s Saturday Estate Treasure sales vs the quarterly catalog sales (particularly if the weather is bad, as less people usually turn out).
Additionally, if you’re going to be bidding on items online, you should absolutely have to provide your payment info upfront. Otherwise, what’s to keep you from bidding on something you can’t afford and/​or not paying for the item after winning it? All reputable auction houses should require some sort of payment info upfront, as do most online auction sites. I don’t get the impression that «L.X.» does much bidding online.

I’m something of a veteran of antiques buying and selling, and of auctions. I probably attend at least a couple of sales every week, so I’ve got a broad array of experiences from which to contextualize.
Leland Little is a great spot. This isn’t Christie’s or Sotheby’s, but I’m not sure we’d have a market for that in this part of North Carolina. But there *is* a lot of money here, and a surprising abundance of really high quality second hand goods, and I can see why Leland Little gets his fair share of them through his auction house.
The catalogues are very well produced, with top-​notch photography. The auction house itself has comfortable chairs and plenty of space in which to walk around and peruse the goods. The free hors d’oeuvres and cupcakes were a nice touch. Perhaps the biggest problem I had was the poor cellular reception I got inside the building … but that’s hardly their fault.
The staff were friendly and professional and set me up with a bidding number as quickly as one could hope for. When I wanted to examine something in a case, it wasn’t hard to find a staffer to offer a lending hand. Absolutely no complaints there.
Another reviewer bemoaned the cost of the goods being auctioned. If your basis of comparison is Etsy and eBay, then you’re probably in the wrong place. The clientele at Leland Little appeared to me to be a little more discerning, and i can entirely understand why these policies exist. Absentee bids cost a company money to process, and it’s entirely normal to have minimum bid amounts. If you don’t like that, then you’re not going to like a lot of the higher end auction houses out there.

I really want to say nice things about this auction house, but I have had too many bad experiences now to do that. They have pretty things, to be sure, but things don’t sell here for auction prices, that is also certain. If you are looking to drop some dough on some really fancy antiques, then this is the place for you. The vibe is a little snobby though, and the staff only pay attention to people they seem to know. Plus, you can spend all day waiting for something to be put up, even if you express interest in it. I’ve wasted too many Saturdays now only to be outbid on things that you could get for less on Ebay, Etsy, or maybe even at a local antique shop. And I recently tried to place an absentee bid for a vintage robe, but was told that my minimum bid had to be $ 50. $ 50 for a starting bid on a vintage robe at auction? I’ve seen whole clothing lots go for that at other auction houses. Maybe there are some situations where you should re-​think your rules? Anyways, I’m not going to be going back here, and suggest you only go if you have a lot of time and money to spend.

This really is a North Carolina gem! Truly a special place and person. The only auction house for premier art, antiques, and collectibles.