How To Sell My Jewelry and Get the Most Money

Life happens. Sometimes you're a buyer, other times you're the seller. Even though you love beautiful jewelry, someday you may be more interested in selling your jewelry than buying.

Reasons why people want to sell their diamonds and fine jewelry.

There are a myriad of reasons folks sell their jewelry. Divorces, broken relationships are the biggest I see.

Do you really want the memories associated with your ex? Does your spouse or partner want to see the diamond your ex gave you on your finger, or anywhere else on your body? I sure wouldn't.

People inherit jewelry from grandma, mom or auntie Barbara. Maybe that amazing free from gold nugget ring she designed set with all her old diamonds set into it just doesn't rock your boat. You'd wouldn't be caught dead wearing that thing.

Also, many ladies end up with an accumulation of damaged gold jewelry. That old herringbone necklace that is all bent and kinked up. Can't fix them. The rope chain that is broken, the one earring that lost its match. You get the idea. You probably have some of that stuff in your jewelry box.

Another reason folks sell their jewelry is that their circumstances in life have changed. It happens to all of us. Maybe you don't work anymore, or go out as much and just don't wear your diamonds much. Maybe an unexpected financial emergency came up and you could use the cash.

So the question is what to do with it? Keep it forever - or sell it for cash?

You have several options to sell your jewelry. But where can you go to get the most money for it? Let's look at the most popular options below.

Places to sell your jewelry

• Friend
  Do you have a friend that has always said she wants that ring if you ever decide to get rid of it? Now's their chance!
  You two need to arrive at a price that is fair for both of you. We call this a "willing buyer-willing seller" price. It should be below what it sells for brand new, but more than what a jeweler would pay for it.
  
  Pro: You have the best opportunity to get the highest price for your jewelry by selling direct to a person who wants to wear it.
  
  Con: Sometimes doing business with friends isn't a good idea. One person may feel like they got taken advantage of. Be careful. Your friendship is worth more than a business deal.


• Pawn Shop
  Pro: It's quick cash. Pawn shops are in almost every city in America. Lots of choices here for you.
  
  Con: Typically, (but not always) pawn shops would rather "loan" you the money on the jewelry as opposed to buying it outright. The loan price is much less and the pawn customer doesn't always come back to redeem the jewelry. The shop then gets the piece for a very,very low price. This is not always the case. There are some very reputable pawn shops out there. But I think this is the minority.
  
  Also, some pawn shops tend to be a bit intimidating for some ladies.


• Ebay
  Pro: Huge international audience. Someone on Ebay is probably interested in your items.
  
  Con: Can take a while for the item to sell. Have to pay listing fees, paypal fees. Have to ship it. If you don't have a rating history on Ebay it is hard to get buyers to bid on your items. You also need to polish and clean the jewelry then take good macro images of your pieces, (this is more difficult than it sounds).


• Craigslist
  Pro: No seller fees like Ebay, don't have to worry about the buyer trying to return the jewelry. Get paid in cash, right now.
  
  Con: Severe bargain hunters on Craigslist. Usually, you will get less money than you would on Ebay. You will also have to deal with spam emails. When I listed an item on craigslist I got several emails from people asking me if the item was still available. After I emailed them back a reply, I never heard back from the person, but I got a massive amount of spam emails with subject lines like 'Hot Asian Girls', 'Sugar Daddy Wants To Meet You', 'Buy Your Male Meds for Less'. Some were much worse.
  
  A big thing to be careful about with selling on Craigslist is fraud and your personal security. There are a bunch of horror stories on the internet about bad experiences - for the buyer and also seller - of folks doing business on Craigslist. Here are a couple links:
  www.forum.freeadvice.com/i-sold-diamond-ring-on-craigslist-and-now-buyer-threatening-me
  www.fraudguides.com/craigslist
  
  Here are some tips to keep you and your jewelry safe.
  
• Never, ever, meet an unknown buyer in your home. You could be being set up for a robbery. Your safety is most important.
• Meet the buyer in a public place.
• Bring a friend with you. Have them stand at a safe distance away keeping an eye on the situation. Make sure they have a cell phone with them.
• Notify someone of the time and place of your meeting. And tell them you will call after meeting the buyer, just to check in.
• Be on the lookout for the buyer having someone lurking in the distances. Sometimes crooks work in teams.
• Don't take a check, or money orders or cashier's checks. Lots of fake money orders and cashier's checks out there. Take only cash.
• Make sure you aren't being followed home.
• Trust your instincts if they tell you something doesn't look right.
• Mail Your Gold In Places (like Cash-4-Gold.com)
  Pro: Can't think of why anyone would take their jewelry, put it in a box, give it to the UPS or the Post Office, and ship it across the country. To someone they have never met. All on blind faith. Unless, the jewelry isn't actually theirs to sell (like they stole it - but thieves usually want to get paid quickly).
  
  Con: The package could get lost or stolen in transit. How are you going to prove the value of the contents, and get paid by UPS or USPS? You're probably not gonna get paid if package doesn't arrive.
  
  They typically pay very low prices.
  
  When the jewelry is out of your hands you just lost your bargaining position. They have the jewelry now. I've heard many many stories of how these places hold on to your jewelry to "show it to a manager" to try to get you a better price. Basically, they are holding your jewelry hostage until you get so frustrated you call them back and tell them to just send you a check.
  
  Long wait to get paid. Some of the online reviews stated that it took several weeks to get paid for their jewelry.
  
  Check out what this former employee who spilled the beans on the crooked practices of Cash4Gold.


• Local Jeweler
  Yes, your local jeweler is a great option to sell your jewelry to. You probably know them and have a good relationship with them.
  
  5 reasons your jeweler is the best place to get the most money for your jewelry
  
  1. Jewelers know more. They know more about jewelry than the other options mentioned above. So there is less risk for them, they can pay more.
  2. They have more customers for your jewelry. More outlets to sell your jewelry means they can pay more.
  3. Trust. A jewelers livelihood is based principally on trust. The last thing a reputable jeweler wants to do is break your trust. So they have your best interests at heart.
  4. They have more options for you. You can sell it outright to the jeweler, you can consign it with them, the jeweler can send large or rare pieces to an industry auction, and can broker diamonds for you.
  5. The money stays local. When you do business with someone in your community the money stays in your community. Isn't this better for everyone?

  
  
  

Here's a short video that a friend of mine in the diamond business filmed. She sums it up perfectly.

Bottom Line

The bottom line is that it doesn't matter what your jewelry is appraised for. The only thing that matters is what you can get for it.
What it is worth is what someone is willing to pay for it. And most likely the person who is willing to pay the most is your local jeweler.

For more interesting jewelry insights check out our  jewelry blog.