Sell Gold Without Getting Ripped Off

If you’ve been thinking about the money you can make if you sell gold jewelry and coins you no longer want or need, you aren’t alone. With the price of gold at year record levels, selling gold to make some extra money has become quite popular.

The problem is that most individuals don’t really know a lot about gold or how to sell it so they may end up getting ripped off when they sell. Do not go to a pawnshop or a gold buyer to sell gold without first learning how gold is bought and sold, how to estimate the value of your gold and how to determine what the current price of gold is. It’s easy to do the conversion: 1 pennyweight equals .05 troy ounces.

Gold is measured by troy ounce for pure, unalloyed gold. This is the 24K gold you often hear about but seldom see because pure gold is too soft to use for jewelry or coins. Most gold in the United States contains some other metals such as silver, nickel and other alloys. To determine the value of your gold, you’ll first have to determine if it is 10K, 14K or 18K. Most jewelry is made with 14K gold, although many class rings and inexpensive pieces of jewelry are made with 10K gold. Jewelry that was purchased in Europe is usually 18K; it will be slightly softer and have a brighter, more yellow appearance.

Next you will need to check the gold index to find out what gold is currently selling for. You can do an Internet search to find the current price of gold or check with the many investment Web sites now available. Keep in mind that the price listed for gold is for pure gold so when you sell gold you won’t get that price per troy ounce for a few reasons.

First, the person or company who buys your gold will either resell it to make a profit, or invest in melting it down and reusing it. Second, unless you have 24K gold bars or bullion, your gold isn’t worth the current price. 10K gold is worth 41 percent or less than half the price of pure gold. 14K gold is worth 58.3 percent and 18K is worth 75 percent. To get the current market value of your gold, simply multiply the current price by the percentage given. If the current price of gold is $900 per troy ounce, the actual value of your 14k gold is about $525 per troy ounce.

Most people who sell gold or buy gold, however, will give you a price by pennyweight. Don’t ever let anyone give you a price for your gold without telling you the total pennyweight of your gold as well as the price per pennyweight. You can then do some comparison shopping. For instance, if one gold buyer offers you more per pennyweight, but tells you your jewelry only weights 11 pennyweight, and another dealer offers you slightly less per pennyweight but says your pieces total 15 pennyweight, it’s obvious that one of them is slighting you on the weight of your gold in order to artificially inflate the price they tell you they are willing to pay. If you get two different weights, go to a jewelry store and ask them to weigh your jewelry or gold and give you the total weight in pennyweight so that you can check any offerings against the actual weight and current gold price.

Your best bet when you are ready to sell gold is to use an established company that is exclusively in the gold business. There are several reputable online companies that will provide you a mailing package for your gold. When they call you with a quote be sure they tell you their current price for 10K, 14K and 18K gold, how much your gold weighed in at, and what they are willing to pay. Before accepting, take the time to figure out how their offer compares to the current gold market prices. They should offer you at least 65 percent of the fair market value for your gold. If you decide their offer is a good one, you can sell gold to them in the future with confidence in their integrity.