How to Sell Used or Unwanted Gold Jewelry for Maximum Profit

The gold price has been exciting. The last time there was do much excitement over gold was in 2008, during the global economic crisis. It would seem that crises are ideal for gold prices as everyone goes into a buying frenzy to hedge against the economic crisis or they go into a selling frenzy to get cash to get through tough financial times. 

The price of gold could go up or down, regardless of what the pundits say, unless you have a crystal ball, there is no telling where the gold price will go and where it will stagnate. However, the purpose of buying gold is to make some profit at some point. Whether you choose to sell now or hold on to your gold, the precious metal never actually loses its value. You always want to be on the right side when markets turn. 

Gold jewellery comes on handy when you need cash fast. It could be new or old, mangled or in good condition all that matter in the end is the purity and the weight of gold you actually have. 

How can you make a quick buck from the gold you don’t need? There are a few crucial steps: 

Determine the purity of your gold. Check the hallmark stamp that shows what the karat of the gold is. 24 karat gold is considered to be 100% purity. However, this is hardly ever the gold purity used in jewellery.  If you want to know what percentage gold is 18, 14 or 10 karats is you need to divide the karat number stamped on your jewellery by 24, so 18 karats is 18÷24×100=75%, 14÷24×100 =58.34% and so on. 

Weigh your gold 

To get the weight of pure gold in a piece of jewellery requires a simple calculation:

Take the percentage and multiply by weight. Let’s say you have an 18 karat gold chain weighing 20 grams this means 0.75 multiplied by 20 equals 15 grams. This means your gold necklace contains 15 grams of gold. 

Since the spot price of gold is expressed in troy ounce which is the equivalent of 31.131g, you have to convert the weight in grams to troy ounce which means 15÷31.131 = 0.48 troy ounces are contained in the gold necklace.

Finally, at a current spot price of $1,900/ troy ounce, you necklace should be worth $912.

Use this information to avoid being lowballed. Be weary of gold buyers who would want to offer prices that are based on less than 50% of the spot. Aim for a price that is close to $912. 

Let the dealer know that you took the time to look up what the current price of gold was and that you have a ballpark figure in mind. 

Find a reputable gold buyer either online on go to the ones located near you. Ideally, if you are new to the gold buying process you should try and find someone you can deal face to face with. A lot of brick-and- mortar types of gold dealers also have an online presence. You can make enquiries about them online and learn how they operate their businesses easier and quicker. 

Negotiate with your buyer using the information you have gathered about the process of selling gold jewellery for cash and the gold you have at hand. 

You might have to haggle your way to a good price. Do not accept the first offer you get bit rather try to get more than three offers for your gold jewellery. Take gold dealers who promise to “beat any offers you have” are the best. They have live up to those promises which is good for you. 

Tips:

Never sell gold jewellery to gold buyers located in other countries. There could be some international legalities you might have to face. 

There is no such thing as worthless gold. Some dealers may try to convince you that low purity gold like 10 karat gold is not worth the hassle. Remember that the gold jewellery will be melted down and refined to get rid of impurities. In the long run gold is worth exactly what the market dictates.