While there are myriad reasons that people choose to sell their gold and jewelry, what unites them all is a less than complete understanding of the best way to go about it. Despite the fact that there are countless buyers of varying ethical standing shouting at you to sell your precious items, it is in your best interest to have a clear picture of what to look for in a jewelry buyer. To that end, here are 10 tips to selling your gold, silver, and platinum jewelry that will enable you to make the right choice.
1. Look for clear, ethical practices.
Honest gold buyers are required to use state certified scales for accuracy and transparency. They should be expected to weigh and examine items right in front of the customer. Pricing offers should be clearly posted for customers to see. In addition, they should require identification info of the seller as well as supplying a receipt of the transaction to them.
2. Seek out reputable buyers with a long track record of business as jewelers and gem specialists.
When the precious metal markets rose, there were tons of fly-by-night gold buyers popping up all over. They didn’t have the knowledge and expertise they needed and/ or they were dishonest and preyed on the public’s ignorance as to what they had and what was a fair price to sell their items. Unfortunately, it’s easy for a dishonest buyer to recognize naive sellers and take advantage of them.
Additionally these buyers bought everything by weight and paid little if anything for diamonds and gemstones, which had little relation to their additional resale value. Now the “fly by nighters” are disappearing. Earth Treasures has been here as the area’s estate (buying and selling) jewelry experts for 42 years and we continue to be the name people know and trust!
3. Check for proper licensing.
Every reputable gold buyer should have a current buying licenses posted to ensure that you are dealing with a licensed buyer.
4. Pricing should be transparent.
While many sellers have a number of items that they wish to sell, less than reputable buyers will make an offer on the total number of items without providing at least some breakdown of value. As highly experienced gemologists, jewelry designers, and jewelry retailers, Earth Treasures understands the value in making appraisals of important individual items and providing that transparency to our sellers.
5. Look for education, certification and a willingness to share knowledge.
The Earth Treasures’ buying team has many years of experience (well over 100 years combined experience). Most buyers don’t come close to having our diverse knowledge in buying a huge assortment of items.
6. Seek clear cash offers on the spot without pressure to sell.
An offer should not only be backed by cash on the spot; however, the buyer should never pressure you to sell in any way.
7. Look for Jewelers that buy for retail sales rather than buyers that sell in bulk.
Many buyers are merely bulk resellers without ties to the communities in which they reside, so they attempt to diminish the value of your items. Earth Treasures is a trusted member of the Monmouth NJ community where we’ve done business since 1974. Our A+ BBB rating for 20-plus years is a consistent reflection of the satisfaction of our thousands of customers. Our customers seek us out for the professionalism, experience, and fair pricing that has made us trusted by everyone with whom we do business.
8. Shipping, appraisal and verification of return process for offers you reject should be clear.
If you’re shipping your items to a buyer that is outside of your area, they should have clear protocols for shipping procedure as well as verification of all items received and their condition upon arrival. In the event that you choose not to accept their offer, they should have a clear process for return of items including date of return, tracking and verification of items sent.
9. Seek out the highest offer possible.
At Earth Treasures, we can pay you more because buying jewelry is not our only means of income. We are a full-service jewelry store seeking to earn your business and loyalty as our customer.
We pay promptly and we pay for antiquity and collector value. Our retail estate customers and wholesalers are always looking for interesting used jewelry and coin collections, so we can pay you more!
10. Buyer respect, patience, and professionalism are signs of well-placed trust.
Many less-than-reputable buyers are only seeking the highest return on the items that they buy. Consequently, they have little respect for the fact that your items are precious to you beyond their dollar value. This often becomes apparent from the first minute of contact where they clearly show impatience, indifference or lack of interest with a take-it-or-leave-it attitude.
At Earth Treasures, we always remember that these items were either precious to you or to someone that you care about deeply. Selling them, even if they are broken, always carries some emotion. We treat every item as special, and every seller with courtesy, patience and respect. We buy a wide variety of items such as paper money, coins, silverware, dental gold, broken items, period items, and much more (see complete detailed listing on our website). In addition to an almost endless list of jewelry gems and precious metal items, we even buy costume jewelry unlike many buyers.
When it comes to selling jewelry, an informed seller is one that makes wise decisions and high returns. When you’re ready to sell your precious jewelry items, seek out the professionals at Earth Treasures where we put a high value on ensuring that you’re well informed so that we can provide you with the assurance of getting the highest price for your items.