Questions About Auction Houses

I am a new member on the forum and come to it with some questions. I have been a collector for lo these many years, but now wish to begin disposing of much of my collection. I have had little experience in selling and have not followed the market for a long while. I would therefore welcome the opinions of others.
My stamps are USA, used. The catalog value for the 1847-1900 stamps is about $14,000. That value is, of course, for stamps in VF condition. Although many of my stamps are "Very Fine", a good number are also "Average": I would conservatively grade the majority of the stamps as "Fine". I hope to put all the stamps that catalog for more than $50 each on consignment with an auction house. I have two main questions:

1) First and foremost, what auction houses would you recommend I contact?. Ease of working with their staff is a high priority for me.

2) Secondly, what would be a realistic expectation for auction-house selling prices, bearing in mind the generally "F" condition for most of the stamps? 20% CV? 30 %? More? Less?

Thanks for your help.

I don't think an auction house will be interested in selling stamps with CV of $50 individualy. They most likely would want to group them into lots and then they probably wouldn't even show a picture. Stamps of say CV $200 in VF condition may be worth their time to sell singley.

You also don't mention if higher value stamps in the $14000 are certified. That would be a must for auction houses.

You way want to consider selling somewhere like ebay. Much better market for single stamps and small lots.

I would agree with KCARAMAT ,he gave you the correct advise . Your whole collection sounds like a one lot listing. It should realize between $2500.00 and $3,000 then deduct the fees .Your better off selling thru APS services and if necessary then ebay.

You don't mention if you have any high value stamps (eg. $500+)
For classic stamps in VF condition, the market can give you CV or more.

In general, I agree with advice already given. If you're not in a big hurry, however, you may want to check out a local stamp club and talk with some of the members. It's tough to give really good advice without seeing the stamps. You could take a sample of your stamps in with you. Also, if you're lucky enough to live near one of the philatelic libraries, those are other good places to visit and talk with member volunteers. As an example, I live in the Denver area, with the Rocky Mountain Philatelic Library located here.

Most auction houses post prices realized for their public auctions, on their web sites. Couple that I've bought from in the recent past (last 12 months) are Daniel Kelleher (Connecticut) and Michael Rogers (Florida). I like both, but read their conditions of sale and commission rates. Same advice for any other auction house. There are others that advertise in the American Philatelist and Linn's Stamp News. AP advertisers have to be members and Linn's has a code of conduct that advertisers must adhere to.