There are tons of options to sell jewelry in the US but what is the best way if you want to sell it? I did some research work and visited some places where buying gold and jewelry is offered. Moreover I describe how selling online works and what the pros and cons of online auctions are. I found out that many lures and traps strive to exploit unknown consumers to make a fortune with the assets you would like to sell. I think I found out how you can avoid a rip-off. Enjoy my report and leave a comment when you have suggestions for our community.
Your options to sell jewelry
Americans hoard a lot of gold an jewelry. Break-ups, divorces and gifts flood the market for second hand jewelry. The first idea of almost every potential seller is to auction the stuff. Heavily motivated to sell, people begin to take pictures and start writing a description but there comes the first hassle. The pictures look bad and you don't know how to describe the facts of your jewelry - that's the reality of personal performed auctions. Was it made of 18k gold or 14k gold? What does all these hallmarks mean? And what about mounted gemstones? Clarity, carat, color grade and transparency brings you confusion. And even if you got unmarked gold jewelry, what about the quality of the articles? There are so many things to consider that people get tired of getting educated, and may decide to replace the jewelry to the place where it came from. Others are frustrated but still excited to cash out. They set out and visit gold buyers, pawn shops, jewelers and other places advertising to be the best gold buyers in town. But after you compared a fistful of buyers, you know that there is something wrong. How can it be that all buyers offered completely different amounts of money for your gold? This brings you more confusion and to the idea of a consignment program. Many people think about consigning. But after you underwent the experience of consigning the first time you know that it's a waste of time. You lost weeks or probably months but you still own you jewelry. Last but not least, selling online is an option. Some of the online companies are very competitive and strive to outbid all local competitors. I love to say that online gold buyers are the biggest predators of local gold and jewelry buying operations. But beware, even online buyers vie for customers, sometimes with very questionable selling lures. But let me explain your options in detail.
Your local gold buyer tend to offer little money
Gold buyers, pawn shop or jewelers tend to offer little money for valuable jewelry. Even officials release regular warnings about fraudulent gold buying operations. I wanted to know if all the published reports are more or less really true and I kicked off to compare some gold buyers in my community. What I've experienced is a shame for the whole industry. I met a guy who was not able to distinguish between a diamond and a zircon, I visited a store determining a heavy Tiffany & Co. silver necklace as scrap silver, I got a false 10k gold evaluation for jewelry made of 18k gold and what I got in almost all places was a bad purchase offer for my possessions. One of the most dangerous traps are the questions about the amount you expect. For me, this is the most unreliable question a buyer can ask. Imagine if you ask for 300 bucks and your jewelry is worth maybe a grand. Do you really think that your determination will escalate the buyer's offer. Certainly not! My experience was that almost all buyers offered between 40 percent and 60 percent of the fair market value. There was not one buyer in my community who offered a very decent price for my stuff. If I would have sold my jewelry to the investigated guys, I would have lost between $450 and $700. That's not change! That's a significant amount of cash, I think so!
More information about gold buying operations:
Department for Consumer Affairs New York: they tested some gold buyers and jewelers in New York and made the same experience like me. Read the full report on their website: http://www.nyc.gov/html/dca/html/pr2011/pr_122211.shtml
Gold Buyer Comparison: This website compares local gold buying operations. They provide a selection of many US cities and states. You have also the opportunity to support the website with comments about your selling experience in your hometown. Here is the website with the listed states: http://www.redollar.com/goldbuyers/us-overview.html
More information about gold buying operations:
Department for Consumer Affairs New York: they tested some gold buyers and jewelers in New York and made the same experience like me. Read the full report on their website: http://www.nyc.gov/html/dca/html/pr2011/pr_122211.shtml
Gold Buyer Comparison: This website compares local gold buying operations. They provide a selection of many US cities and states. You have also the opportunity to support the website with comments about your selling experience in your hometown. Here is the website with the listed states: http://www.redollar.com/goldbuyers/us-overview.html
Auction your jewelry
An online auction can be a lot of fun. But before it comes to fun an joy, hard work and efforts are involved. Many people fail to take good looking pictures and to provide an accurate article description. But a high selling price is just achievable if pictures are great and descriptions are written in detail. But if you are not educated in karat, carat, weight, color, designers, workmanship or period of production you'll have a hard time. Here is a list of things to consider when you ponder to auction your jewelry:
More information about auctions:
The State of California has a nice information article about the so-called modern goldmines. Visit the website for more information: https://oag.ca.gov/consumers/general/internet_auctions10
- Take excellent pictures: good pictures can increase the selling price significantly
- Provide a complete description: consider that you are responsible for the shared information
- Shipping and packaging: look for insurance and consider that shipping can be very expensive
- You are liable for the whole process: the auction, wrapping and shipping
- Funds could be pending in your account
- The whole process can cost you weeks plus nerves
More information about auctions:
The State of California has a nice information article about the so-called modern goldmines. Visit the website for more information: https://oag.ca.gov/consumers/general/internet_auctions10
Sell gold and jewelry online
This is my favorite option to cash out. Well, I live in the countryside and the next largest city is only home to 100,000 residents. Therefore the market is limited and I have only about 10 different places to sell my jewelry. What I did is some research. I compared scrap gold places and found some very interesting online gold buyers. The buyer with the best prices I found is called reDollar.com and offers a very reliable buying service. The prices I've compared are extremely competitive and the selling process is straight. They've offered me the most cash for scrap gold, scrap silver and even for my Tiffany jewelry. I also found some other less reliable places but an alert consumer can distinguish between an excellent and poor service. An important sign of transparency is something like a gold calculator. I would recommend reDollar.com to friends and family!
More information:
reDollar: an online buyer for gold, silver, watches, gemstones, jewelry and I think even for collectibles. These guys have a gold calculator on their website and information pages about the pricing of watches, gems or designer jewelry. It's worth a visit: www.redollar.com
More information:
reDollar: an online buyer for gold, silver, watches, gemstones, jewelry and I think even for collectibles. These guys have a gold calculator on their website and information pages about the pricing of watches, gems or designer jewelry. It's worth a visit: www.redollar.com