It’s a story as old as money itself: the “flight to gold” in times of economic uncertainty. With the world facing as much economic uncertainty as it has since the onset of the Great Depression eight decades ago, you may have fallen upon hard times. And you might, quite naturally, be thinking about selling your gold for cash.
As certain as the flight to gold is, however, equally certain is that there will be plenty of unscrupulous buyers waiting to take advantage of the explosion in gold’s popularity. So if you are considering selling your gold, you need to do your homework. Don’t fall for those late-night TV or online ads by companies who promise to pay you “top dollar” for your gold simply because they make it very easy for you to execute the sale. With a little more time and effort, you may find that selling gold for cash can be far more lucrative if you decide to work with a reputable gold broker in your area.
Why is it that so many people have rushed into selling gold for cash from online entrepreneurs? Because those buyers have gone out of their way to make the selling of gold as hassle-free as possible, and because they have made it very appealing for people in an extreme cash crunch to collect the proceeds of their sales in next to no time. They simply provide you with a “sales kit,” which is simply a secure pre-paid mailing envelope into which you place the gold you want to sell, and ship it to them.
Once they receive your gold, they will use their “state-of the art x-ray technology” (or something similar) to examine your gold for purity, and will offer you a price based on their findings. This offer may come in the form of a check which you have up to 10 days to cash. If you don’t cash your check the gold will be returned to you. Just be aware that it can take as long as a month before your gold is returned, and you can’t sell it to someone else until it is!
Some of these sites also give you the option of having your proceeds deposited directly in your checking account for a small fee just 24 hours after they test your gold for “purity.”
For anyone who is being financially squeezed, however, sitting on a check for ten days can be very difficult. Even more difficult is the prospect of saying no to having cash deposited in a checking account in just 24 hours. There is a significant amount of psychological pressure at play here. If selling gold for cash is something you want to do, you deserve to know what your other alternatives are.
It won’t take long for you to approach a local gold dealer. Estate appraisers will usually be willing to give a few gold items a quick look at no charge. If you’re trying to sell gold jewelry, it might not be in good enough condition to get a premium offer, but could still earn you some money as scrap metal. Just be sure to remove any gemstones from it first, because there is also a market for them.
Don’t be embarrassed to turn down the first offer you get. Most gold dealers will lowball you with their first offer, and if the demand for gold continues to rise, they’re going to lose out if you take your business elsewhere.
Finally, if selling gold for cash is something you absolutely have to do, here are a few tips to help you weed out the shady buyers:
- Run a Google search with the name of the companies you’re looking at and add the word “complaint” or “scam.” It’s the quickest way to find the bad guys.