Value Broken Gold
With the price of gold having shot up over the last ten years, many ordinary people are wondering how they can cash in on the boom and make a profit from their own gold items.
One way to do so is to sell your broken gold. Broken gold is any gold item that isn't in its original condition. For jewellery, this could mean damaged chains, necklaces, earrings or rings, or gold parts that are no longer used such as a charm, a pendant without the chain or links from gold watches. Because of the increase in the gold price, items like these could have some real worth despite being broken.
The value of your gold will be determined by its weight and the carat of your gold. The condition and appearance of the item doesn't matter, just the quantity and quality of the gold itself.
How to Make a Valuation
To get a valuation, simply separate your gold according to carat and weigh it. Nine carat gold is used a lot in jewellery but if you have 22 carat gold, it is worth double, so the carat is important. If the items contain any gemstones, remove them first as their weight won't be included.
Once you know the weight and carat of your items, you can offer it for sale to gold scrap buyers. Make sure that if you use a postal service to send your gold that the items are sent using special delivery and are adequately insured. Always keep your receipts.
It's also worth getting a valuation from a local jeweller to give you a benchmark price and an idea of what you might be able to achieve by selling. Remember, though, that they will take into account the cosmetic look of jewellery.
A scrap gold seller is only interested in the gold content, so any damage or missing parts won't affect the price paid. That means items you may previously had thought of, as being worthless, will actually have some value.
Who to Sell To?
Shop around using online calculators to get quotes from different buyers before you send in your items. That way, you ensure you get a competitive price for your broken gold.
Look for buyers who will give you a definite quote once they have received the items, before you commit to sell to them and who will send you back your items (insured) if you decide not to go ahead with the sale. Make sure there is a cooling off period too so that if you change your mind within a certain timescale, say 14 days, you can return the payment and have your gold sent back to you.
When your gold is received, it will be tested to verify the purity before the price is confirmed. Don't get too carried away with what you might expect to receive for your gold. Whilst gold prices in 2011 crossed the $1,900 an ounce barrier, the price you will get is for the smelt, or scrap, value of the gold.
So, what happens to your scrap gold? It will be melted down along with other broken gold and made into gold bullion bars or coins.
