Cash For Gold – Is It A Good Deal? Or A Scam?

Updated 3/24/2009. Since originally posted, there have been many concerns expressed about this company. Please proceed with caution. Obtain multiple quotes in advance of making a sale. Also monitor the “spot price” of gold before selling. The facts about HOW the worth of your gold is estimated are valid . Please check ALL your options before selling your gold!

Right now people are being bombarded by offers to get cash for their unused jewelry. That’s because Gold’s price per pound is skyrocketing! (It always does when people see the stock market tumble and governments plan to print money galore!)

That’s why as I write this, Gold is over $900 per ounce! (For some perspective in July of 2000, it was between $250 and $300 per ounce!)

So if you need cash right now turning your unused jewelry and long forgotten bling into cash might be a good idea.

Here’s how to check your options.

1. Check out an online buyer like Cash4Gold.

Here’s their link: Cash4gold: America’s Number One Gold Buyer

They are a nationally competitive group who advertises nationally. Check out the deal you will get there. Remember, they are melting down your gold jewelry to get the $900 per ounce.

From what I’ve heard, many of their customers are happy. Which ones? The ones who want the simplicity of contacting a refiner, putting a bunch of junk jewelry in a bag, and getting a check in the mail and using the newly cleared space.

But sometimes customers assumed they would get more money than what they actually received. Here’s why your gold jewelry may not be as valuable as you might wish!

You see we “hear” $900 per ounce for gold. But that’s NOT what you’re going to get. Here’s why.

From the “spot” price for gold when they sell it, they (any buyer really) have to

1. Pay for overhead
2. Pay all the shipping
3. Pay the advertising cost
4. Make a profit
5. Pay you!

Another factor is that any gold jewelry you send Cash4gold likely isn’t pure. Pure gold is too “bendable” and not firm enough. Most jewelry, as a result, is slightly impure and nobody’s paying $900 per ounce for that!

What makes things trickier is that the price may vary between the day you send your used jewelry in and the day it’s processed. Hopefully the price has gone up… but it may have gone down!

But as you can see from all the expenses that have to be covered, if gold is selling for $900 bucks per ounce, that’s not what you’re going to get.

Now there are other options besides a national company like Cash4gold.

The most common option is a local jeweler.

Though they deal in gold, these folks are reselling your gold to someone like Cash4gold. Usually local jewelers don’t have the ability to process scrap themselves.

If you use a local jeweler as an option – and it may be the best one for you – their costs will be something like this.

1. They will determine the amount of gold in ounces
2. They will call the company buying gold from them to see what they are paying
3. They will determine the acceptable amount of money they wish to earn per ounce to cover their overhead and profits

They will pay you the balance.

Even dealing locally, there are going to be expenses to be paid so you won’t be getting the full “spot value” of gold from a local source.

The closer you can get to a Gold Refiner like Cash4Gold the more likely you are to get the best deal.

Gathered up your scrap jewelry?

Now you know how to start finding out how much cash you can reasonably obtain for your unused bling!