So, you have some jewellery or gold coins that you would like to sell because you need the cash? The first thing you want to do is to have the gold appraised. Then you need to shop around for the best quote you can find. This can be a long and tedious process but it is necessary. You can take certain steps to make sure that the process is more productive for you and the appraiser.
Produce your Papers
If you have gold coins or gold bars to sell make sure you bring any papers that attest to their quality and authenticity. Bringing papers along to an appraisal will make it more accurate. The risk will be reflected on the final quote. Having the right can get you a better quote than you can get when you don’t have papers.
Appraise Your gold dealer
When you need professional help you don’t choose someone because they claim that they do what you need help with. You need to research gold buyers in your area and see if the buyer has a good reputation, knowledge, experience and the integrity to assess your gold. Find out how long they have been in business, ask for certificates and any licenses they have and ask around to find customer experiences. Some gold dealers are really good at buying and selling gold coins but not as good at other gold products.
Ask the person who is doing the appraisal to explain the different steps in the process. You could make sure that throughout the proceeds you have your gold in sight. There are unscrupulous dealers who will swap you gold with something that looks similar but has very little value.
Leave Your Preconceived Ideas out
People often assume that if they sell something with sentimental value or history they can get a better price for your gold. If your gold dealer has a lot of collectors who buy items from him, they may be interest to know the story behind certain interesting pieces but for the most part, gold dealers aren’t interested in sentimentality. A gold dealer will offer you a price based on the market price of gold, there is no room for negotiation in this process.
Just because a coin is old doesn’t necessarily mean it will be worth thousands. However, if it is old and rare then it could be worth a lot. For instance, there were only 15, 1993 American double eagles ever made which makes theme very rare and extremely valuable.
Put some effort
You should take a look at your gold coins or jewellery before you take them for appraisal. Check for dings, scratches, chips or broken pieces. Can your gold items do with a bit of cleaning? If so, take the time to clean your gold pieces and if you can, get the broken jewellery pieces fixed. Gold dealers might say they buy old gold jewellery in any condition but it does not hurt to present jewellery that looks like it has been loved and taken care of. You never know maybe you can get more than the melt price for a few of your gold jewellery pieces.
If your sending gold in the mail make sure you bubble wrap it. You don’t want your jewellery to get damaged on its way in case you don’t sell it and want it back. Use bubble wrap or old newspaper to keep it from being banged around or potentially stolen by the mail staff. For added safety, make sure that you don’t specify that your package contains jewellery.
