The hammer has gone down and the adrenaline is pumping -- you have bought your first work of art. But when the excitement wears off, and the costs stack up, many inexperienced buyers can regret being over-zealous with the paddle.

The cost of managing an art collection can vary widely but could add up to between 1% and 5% of the value of the works annually -- depending on whether you are talking about a single work of art or an entire collection, according to Annelien Bruins, founder of London-based Bruins Private Collections Consultancy. If you are making regular purchases and therefore have to take into account transaction costs and taxes, then costs can rise to 15% of the value of the collection, says Ms. Bruins.

In February this year, Lawrence Graff, multi-millionaire owner of London-based jewellers Graff Diamonds, reportedly bought Picasso's 1963 painting Tete de Femme (Jacqueline) at Christie's auction house for GBP 8.1 million, double the highest estimate. This figure includes the buyer's premium.

It can conservatively be estimated that Mr. Graff will incur costs of over GBP 1 million in his first year of owning the painting, including transactions and taxes. As a seasoned collector, he will have been expecting this, but it can come as a nasty surprise to first-time buyers, according to Suzanne Gyorgy, head of art advisory at Citi Private Bank in New York.

She says: 'Many people don't understand the intricacies involved with collecting art. The auction house premiums, the framing, the storage, the upkeep. First-time buyers are often shocked.'

If you are buying at auction, the first thing to consider is the buyer's premium. This is worked out on a sliding scale from between 12% to 25% of the hammer price depending on the value of the work.

The pricier the artwork, the smaller the fee as a portion" target="_blank" title="n.比率 vt.使成比例">proportion of the overall cost. At Christie's or Sotheby's in New York you can expect to pay an extra 25% on the value of purchases up to $50,000. Between $50,000 and $1 million, a 20% fee is charged, and there is a 12% charge on the portion of the price over $1 million.

Buyers in the U.S. and UK must also pay a sales tax on the premium. In the U.S. this is set at 8.375% and in the UK there is a VAT rate of 17.5%. Collectors in the European Union pay no sales tax but must pay an Artists' Resale Right for up to 70 years after the artist's death. This varies between 0.25% and 4% of the value of the work with a 12,500 euros cap.

Insurance costs can be less than 1% of the price of the art work, according to Nick Brett, underwriting director at AXA Art Insurance. AXA insures collections of up to GBP 200 million. He says: 'If you haven't got specialist fine art insurance you could be unprotected from the moment you buy the work.'

The premiumpercentage depends on many factors, including the size of the collection, its security and location, says Mr. Brett. Premiums also depend on the nature of the art. Porcelain might cost twice as much to insure as oil on canvas.

A good frame can easily cost GBP 10,000, according to Ms. Gyorgy. She says: 'A period frame from the same time as the artwork could be a valuableantique itself.'

If a work of art is damaged -- Mr. Brett says he has a client whose maid put the handle of the vacuumcleaner through a canvas -- restorations must be made. A complicated tear in the canvas could cost up to GBP 30,000 to be restored with museum quality micro-weave, says Mr. Brett.

But it is not just human beings that are hazardous to art collections. Humidity and temperature fluctuations might ruin an ink work or render cracks in a sculpture.

The installation of environmental monitoring equipment might cost up to GBP 1,000 a month for a large collection stretching over 30 square meters, says Chris Kneale, managing director of Martinspeed, a fine art services group in London.

The most common corner cut by new art owners is shipping and packing, according to Ms. Gyorgy. 'I've heard of people who decided to quickly move a painting or sculpture in the back of a car and are surprised when the work gets damaged,' she says.

Professional packing prices depend on the work's dimensions, but for a piece the size of Mr. Graff's Picasso, which measured 90cm by 50cm, one can expect to pay GBP 650 for a double case, a fully alarmed air-ride van and two men, according to Duncan Walker, fine art manager at Hedley's Humpers, a London-based art transport provider.

For those in need of extra security on a door-to-door journey, a security car can be sent to follow the van. Fees run to GBP 350 a day for a top asset protector like G7-Securitas Group.

If you are not sending a courier with the work, who would charge anything from GBP 200 up, airport supervision is a good idea, says Ms. Bruins.

'For the transport company to gain supervisory access to the plane on your behalf, you could be looking at another GBP 500,' she said.

If you buy abroad, import taxes must be paid on the journey home. In the UK, import tax is 5%, in France it is 5.5%. In Switzerland the tax jumps to 7.6% of the value of the work. In the U.S. there is no import tax but there is a processing fee.

For the really passionatecollector there is a host of collectionmanagement software. 'For a starting collector a couple of Excel sheets and photos would suffice,' says Ms Bruins. She adds that a photographer might charge GBP 700 a day.

But for collections with over 10,000 pieces across a number of locations, you'll need a way to keep track of what you own.

Collection management systems are available that can store historical information, purchase prices, valuation amounts as well as link to documents and photos.

When it comes to reselling art, the standard rate for an art valuer varies between GBP 750 and GBP 1,500 a day, although discounts apply for a large collection. Auction houses may do it for free if the work is going to be sold through them. Catalogue illustrations can cost as much as GBP 500 for a full cover page, according to Christie's.

Sellers may be surprised to get stung for vendors fees, a few years after having stumped up a buyers premium. Sellers' commissions at Christie's ranges from 15% on the first GBP 3,000 to a negligible fee on anything higher than GBP 3m.

Tara Loader-Wilkinson

• hammer [´hæmə] n.锤子 v.重击 (初中英语单词)
• excitement [ik´saitmənt] n.兴奋；骚动；煽动 (初中英语单词)
• collection [kə´lekʃən] n.收集；征收；募捐 (初中英语单词)
• therefore [´ðeəfɔ:] ad.&conj.因此；所以 (初中英语单词)
• account [ə´kaunt] vi.说明 vt.认为 n.帐目 (初中英语单词)
• painting [´peintiŋ] n.绘画；(油)画；着色 (初中英语单词)
• estimate [´estimət, ´estimeit] n.估计；评价 vt.估价 (初中英语单词)
• proportion [prə´pɔ:ʃən] n.比率 vt.使成比例 (初中英语单词)
• charge [tʃɑ:dʒ] v.收费；冲锋 n.费用 (初中英语单词)
• portion [´pɔ:ʃən] n.嫁妆；命运 vt.分配 (初中英语单词)
• european [juərə´pi:ən] a.欧洲的 n.欧洲人 (初中英语单词)
• director [di´rektə] n.指导者；....长；导演 (初中英语单词)
• percentage [pə´sentidʒ] n.百分数；比例；部分 (初中英语单词)
• security [si´kjuəriti] n.安全；证券；抵押品 (初中英语单词)
• valuable [´væljuəbəl, -jubəl] a.有价值的，贵重的 (初中英语单词)
• canvas [´kænvəs] n.帆布；油画(布) (初中英语单词)
• complicated [´kɔmplikeitid] a.结构复杂的；难懂的 (初中英语单词)
• equipment [i´kwipmənt] n.装备，设备 (初中英语单词)
• shipping [´ʃipiŋ] n.船运业；船舶(总数) (初中英语单词)
• manager [´mænidʒə] n.经理；管理人；干事 (初中英语单词)
• transport [træn´spɔ:t] n.运输；流放 (初中英语单词)
• abroad [ə´brɔ:d] ad.海外；到处；广泛 (初中英语单词)
• import [im´pɔ:t, ´impɔ:t] vt.&n.进口；输入 (初中英语单词)
• management [´mænidʒmənt] n.管理；处理；经营 (初中英语单词)
• available [ə´veiləbəl] a.可用的；有效的 (初中英语单词)
• annually [´ænjuəli] ad.每年；按年计算 (高中英语单词)
• founder [´faundə] n.奠基者 v.陷落 (高中英语单词)
• storage [´stɔ:ridʒ] n.贮存；存储器 (高中英语单词)
• location [ləu´keiʃən] n.定位；位置；地方 (高中英语单词)
• insure [in´ʃuə] vt.给...保险 (高中英语单词)
• client [´klaiənt] n.委托人；顾客 (高中英语单词)
• decided [di´saidid] a.明显的；决定的 (高中英语单词)
• sculpture [´skʌlptʃə] n.雕塑(品)；雕刻(术) (高中英语单词)
• supervision [,su:pə´viʒən, ,sju:-] n.管理；监督 (高中英语单词)
• access [´ækses] n.接近；通路；进入 (高中英语单词)
• behalf [bi´hɑ:f] n.利益 (高中英语单词)
• switzerland [´switsələnd] n.瑞士 (高中英语单词)
• passionate [´pæʃənit] a.易动情的；易怒的 (高中英语单词)
• historical [his´tɔrikəl] a.历史(上)的 (高中英语单词)
• catalogue [´kætəlɔg] n.一览表 v.编目，归类 (高中英语单词)
• auction [´ɔ:kʃən] n.&vt.拍卖 (英语四级单词)
• collector [kə´lektə] n.收款(税)员；收藏家 (英语四级单词)
• premium [´pri:miəm] n.奖励；奖金；保险费 (英语四级单词)
• specialist [´speʃəlist] n.专家 (英语四级单词)
• porcelain [´pɔ:slin] n.瓷 a.瓷的；精美的 (英语四级单词)
• antique [æn´ti:k] a.古代的 n.古物(董) (英语四级单词)
• cleaner [´kli:nə] n.清洁工人；干洗商 (英语四级单词)
• protector [prə´tektə] n.保护者；防御者 (英语四级单词)
• inexperienced [,iniks´piəriənst] a.缺乏经验的 (英语六级单词)
• vacuum [´vækjuəm] n.真空；空间 (英语六级单词)
• hazardous [´hæzədəs] a.危险的 (英语六级单词)
• humidity [hju:´miditi] n.湿气；湿度 (英语六级单词)
• installation [,instə´leiʃən] n.就职；安装；装置 (英语六级单词)
• courier [´kuriə] n.送急件的人；信使 (英语六级单词)
• valuation [,vælju´eiʃən] n.估价；价值；重要性 (英语六级单词)