Sell Gold for Fast Cash?  Think Carefully & Act Wisely!

Times are tough.  Many gold owners out there are contemplating selling everything from family heirlooms to gold coins for cash.  Before you do, here are a few tips from a Rich Sage to help you make a sound decision or get the best price.

Pure Australian Gold

First of all there are several types of gold.  Most gold jewelry is made with 14 carat or even 10 carat gold, which is less valuable than 24 carat, for example.  Gold is actually a “soft” (malleable) metal that does not stand up to the wear and tear, thus other metals are added to help your jewelry survive daily use.

Pure gold can be made into sheets so thin that you can see through the resulting film!   Although we often see images of gold in yellow or ‘golden’ colors, there are white gold metals that are even more pure than typical jewelry by carats.  Keep in mind that your jewelry can be made of white gold.

About selling your gold…

Be Careful When You Establish a Price:

When you read about the money paid for your gold, it is often the most expensive type of gold that is quoted by the ounce.  When you send it your gold it is tested with magnets and solutions to determine the purity and only then is a weight noted, and a price determined.

If you want to learn about gold, I highly recommend this Wikipedia page.

Learning about the type of gold you have will help determine if you want to sell it or try to amass your fast cash another legal way.

If you are planning to sell it, read up on what you have first because you’ll be able to better negotiate a price.  Often knowing what you have will even double what you can get in cash with some quick negotiating skills.

Keep in mind that coins you may have inherited are worth a lot more than the stamped coin value, or in some cases even the gold value by weight.  It may have an altogether higher value based on a collectors appraisal.  In that case, you may want to find a local gold or coin dealer who will evaluate your treasure.

If you have an item like a Rolex Watch, it may be far more valuable as a family heirloom than for it’s gold content.  It may be far better to find out if you can use the watch to get a loan in the local community than sending away to someone for just it’s gold content on the wrist band.  Often these watches are highly valued collectors items, and you may want to check places like eBay to see what typical collector watches sell for before losing your shirt in a deal.

My quick search turned up GoldKit.Com, a company that’s been in business

Cash for Gold

since 1997.  Note the image and statement that they are in good standing with the local better business bureau?  (See Red Check Mark)  These are the type of “clues” you should look for with the merchant you are trying to sell your gold.

Then make sure to ask a standard set of questions from each dealer you try to sell to:

• When will I get my money?
• What fees are involved in getting my money quickly?
• What happens IF I change my mind?
• How can I get a refund?
• What happens IF the gold price goes up (or goes down) between today and when you pay me?
• Have you had any complaints at the State’s Attorney General?
• As I said before –don’t just rely on a Google search –also check for credentials like a “BBB” symbol.

I am not sure if they are going to answer all of the above questions, but keep in mind the more answers you get before you send your precious gold, the better experience you’ll have when you get your cash.

Note to Americans: My experience is that many of you don’t question when you are given a price.  We are most often used to “fixed” prices everywhere we go in the States.  However, keep in mind that anyone giving you a quote for gold is trying to by something from you that is even more valuable than cash!  The gold price often fluctuates and lastly, keep in mind that you can “haggle a bit” and try to get more cash for your gold. Don’t just accept the “low price” you were first quoted –try to point out some of the valuable items you are passing along (based on purity) and ask for more cash.

Your gold buyers are not going to care too much about the value of a family heirloom, but they will listen based on the type of gold that you are selling.

Keep in mind that since the Bretton-Woods Act, your US Dollars are not back by gold.  If you take your gold and exchanging it for dollars, you should consider doing it only for an “exchange” or benefit that is nearly priceless — a benefit with value “as good as gold”.  Otherwise, you need to re-think your objectives parting with precious gold.

Be wise,
Rich Sage.