If you have jewelry lying around your house that you don’t wear anymore, why not trade it in for money that you can use?
Most people are hesitant to trade their jewelry for money because they aren’t sure how the process works. They spend time searching for where to sell jewelry. How does jewelry appraisal work? What items can you bring into Crown Gold Exchange, and how does the process work?
We’re here to provide you with the answers you need. Read on to learn more about how we can help you!
What You Need To Know About Jewelry Appraisal
There are several reasons you should bring your jewelry to Crown Gold Exchange for an appraisal. Of course, getting money that you can use however you want is a major reason, but there are other things to consider as well. Before we get into what we look for when checking your jewelry, let’s talk about why you should come to us.
The Process Is Easy And Fast
If you’ve ever searched for “jewelry exchange near me,” you’ve probably noticed that many companies aren’t too upfront about their process. When they do talk about their process, they make it sound more complicated than it should be. Here at Crown Gold Exchange, we take the opposite approach.
We’ve done everything possible to make the process easy. The first thing you’ll need to do is get all of your jewelry together and bring it to one of our nine locations. One of our friendly employees will greet you the minute you walk in the door.
From there, you just have to place your jewelry on a table and we’ll take over from there. We’ll run our test in full view of you so that you can see exactly what we’re doing and ask any questions you may have. You don’t have to worry about us taking your jewelry somewhere else, and we can check most jewelry in a manner of minutes.
From there, we’ll tell you what we’re willing to pay. If you accept, you’ll sign a few forms and we’ll cut you a check that day. You’ll have the money you need in hand within minutes of coming to our store.
Transparency And No Pressure
Unlike some other companies that want you to drop your jewelry off and come back, or even mail it in, we do everything right in front of you. We want you to understand what we’re doing and why we’re doing it.
As such, we’ll take the time to answer any questions you have so that you understand why we’re offering the amount we do. Once you get your jewelry appraised, you can choose whether you want to accept our offer. We’ll never pressure you to accept an offer, as we understand that you may need to think it over.
It’s your jewelry until you sign the paperwork and take the check. We don’t do anything that you don’t want us to do to your jewelry.
Convenience
We have nine locations in Southern California to serve your needs. Wherever you are, there’s a Gold Crown Exchange near you. We’re also set up to handle large amounts of jewelry, so you can bring it all in and see what we’re able to offer you. The more you bring in, the more money you’ll leave with!
Since we do everything in front of you, we’re also able to get you the money you need right away. You’ve probably seen commercials or visited websites where other companies want you to mail them your jewelry, but why would you do that?
Not only is that inconvenient, but there could be fine print buried at the bottom of a long document. For example, did you know that some companies make you sign your jewelry away to them?
These companies want you to send your jewelry to them and hope for the best. Many of their contracts require you to agree that the company gets to keep your jewelry regardless of whether they offer you money. They also contain language that makes you agree to accept whatever they offer, no questions asked!
That doesn’t seem like a straightforward and honest process to us. When you visit Crown Gold Exchange, you’ll know exactly what you’re getting and why. It’s more than convenience, it’s honesty and integrity.
Never take your jewelry somewhere that doesn’t do everything right in front of you.
Trustworthy
When you take your jewelry somewhere for an appraisal, you need to know that the person doing the evaluation is an expert. They need to know what to look for because that’s how you get more money!
Generalists, like those you’ll find at pawn stores, tend to evaluate dozens of types of items, from televisions and computers to jewelry. If they aren’t experts, they could miss something that could cost you money.
Each of our employees goes through extensive training. They’re also certified through GIA, one of the world’s preeminent diamond jewelry certifiers.
What We Look For When Evaluating Jewelry
There are several ways to determine the value of your jewelry. Some of these ways are obvious, while others require an expert eye. Some of the things we look for include:
Hallmarks
One of the first things we look for is hallmarks. These tell us the metal content and manufacturer or designer or a piece. You can normally find these markings on a necklace’s clasp, earring’s post, or the inside of a bracelet or ring.
If you can’t find the hallmark, it’s because the jewelry is either over 100 years old or that it’s worn off. Different types of material have different hallmarks. For example, gold will have something similar to 18k or 585. Platinum will have PLAT, PLATINUM, or 950. Silver will show 925, silver, sterling, and others. This isn’t a complete list, so if yours shows something else, it’s okay! In fact, having any type of hallmark is a good sign.
You might also have jewelry with a hallmark that has the name of a company, such as Tiffany & Co. If you have jewelry that’s old and doesn’t have a hallmark, it could be more valuable because of its age. Newer jewelry without hallmarks tends to be costume jewelry.
If you’re unsure, bring it in! We’ll evaluate it and let you know what your jewelry is worth.
Weight
Weight is an important measurement for jewelry, such as gold or silver necklaces and bracelets. The value of this type of jewelry depends on the type and weight of the metal it consists of.
Each type of precious metal has a price determined by several factors. The price of an individual piece of jewelry depends in large part on how many ounces it is, unless the jewelry also has a gemstone. In that case, we’ll take the value of both and make an offer based on the combined price.
The weight also helps determine a piece of jewelry’s authenticity. An experienced evaluator can tell what a necklace or bracelet should feel like based on its size. That ability comes with years of practice. Since the people that work in our store have dealt with thousands of pieces of jewelry, they can typically tell a lot just by picking up a necklace, bracelet, or other items.
Rarity
Every piece of jewelry has a story. Newer pieces are easier to price because of the straightforward evaluation process, but older antique pieces could be worth more money.
Collectors value antique pieces of jewelry for several reasons. A necklace that was popular 100 years ago could be hard to find now. There could be a special hallmark that only certain pieces of jewelry have, or maybe you have a piece from a jeweler that created high-quality pieces. These factors can have an impact on the value of your particular piece.
Appraising Precious Metals
As mentioned earlier, each metal has a price that’s dependent on different factors. We accept gold, platinum, and silver jewelry, all with or without the diamond. That is up to you if you would like to sell the diamond or not. We can also remove your diamond for free whereas a jeweler will charge you $50-$100 for each stone. Wondering what goes into determining the value of jewelry and the metals it’s made out of? Precious metal markets are complicated. Let’s look at the factors that determine the value of each of these precious metals.
Supply And Demand
As with any item that you sell, supply and demand plays a major role in the price of gold, silver, and platinum. Central banks around the world use gold as a way to diversify holdings, and a weakening US dollar causes them to want more. This drives up demand, causing prices to rise.
The jewelry trade is another driving factor for precious metals. There are two ways to measure the jewelry trade. In general, a healthy global economy leads to more jewelry sales, meaning that the prices of these metals go up. However, even in times of economic uncertainty, certain countries could still help maintain the price of gold, silver, and platinum.
The United States, China, and India buy the most jewelry in the world. If Southeast Asia’s economy is weak, the United States could still prop up the market, and vice versa. In general, more demand equals higher prices, but as mentioned earlier, pricing precious metals is a complicated process.
The Strength of the US Dollar
In times of global recession when people aren’t buying much jewelry, it would seem that gold prices would tank, but this isn’t necessarily true. The strength of the US dollar plays a major role in precious metal pricing.
When the US dollar begins to weaken, gold prices tend to go up. People use gold as a way to protect their investments against the dollar and tend to buy more as a way to maintain their wealth during a recession. Silver is also a popular way for people to protect their wealth.
If the global economy is strong, people buy more jewelry, which would make you think that prices would go up, but this isn’t always the case either. When the dollar is strong, people trade in their metals for dollars, making gold and silver prices drop because there’s enough supply to meet demand.
Even if there is a worldwide recession, prices could remain stable or increase. On the other hand, a strong global economy could cause prices to remain stable or decrease. Analysts take all of these factors and weigh them against each other to determine the strength of the metals markets, which determines the value of your jewelry.
Global instability also causes the dollar to weaken, even in times of economic growth. This can make it almost impossible to predict the market’s long-term behavior.
With the unpredictability of the markets, the goal of any investor should be to sell their jewelry while the prices are high. This is why we say that now is the best time for people to sell their jewelry!
Appraising Diamonds
If your jewelry contains diamonds, there are two parts to the evaluation process. First, we’ll want to determine the worth of the precious metals, such as a gold or silver band or chain. For that, we’ll look at the weight, rarity, and hallmarks.
If you have a gemstone attached to a piece of jewelry, we’ll need to evaluate that separately. For diamonds, the process revolves around the 4 C’s: cut, color, carat weight, and clarity.
The cut is the dimension and proportion of the diamond. Each seller cuts diamonds into different cut types, like round or princess. The skill and level of detail of the cuts determine the value. Expert cuts reflect light better, which is what makes a diamond sparkle when held up to a light source.
The color is, well, the color. The clearer a diamond, the more valuable it is. You’ve probably seen pictures of jewelers looking through an eyepiece into a diamond. One of the things they’re looking for is trace amounts of brown or yellow coloration inside of a diamond. Even diamonds that look perfect on the outside tend to have small amounts of discoloration insides.
Carat Weight is the weight of a diamond. 1 carat equals ⅕ of a gram, and they’re also broken up into hundredths, or points. A 1.10 diamond means that it’s 1 carat and 10 points. The more a diamond weighs, the higher it’s value.
Experts determine the clarity of a diamond by looking for blemishes or inclusions on the inside or exterior of the gem. Diamonds without any blemishes are very valuable because of their rarity. Almost all diamonds have blemishes, but the fewer the better. Smaller diamonds tend to have a higher clarity rating, but that isn’t always the case.
We use each of these values when determining the price of a diamond. Generally, diamonds have higher rankings in some of these factors at the expense of others, such as high clarity at the expense of size. It’s important to take your jewelry to a professional evaluator that can look at every detail to give you the most money for your jewels.
Our diamond appraisers are all certified by GIA, which runs one of the world’s preeminent certification programs. They’ve also seen hundreds, if not thousands, of diamonds and can evaluate your jewelry properly.
What If I Want To Sell The Gemstone But Not The Band Or Chain?
If you want to sell a gemstone and keep the band, that’s okay! However, the band will add more money to your offer.
The main thing to remember is that we’ll never pressure you to accept an offer you aren’t comfortable with. We can give you an offer for the gemstone only or the gemstone and band or chain so that you can make the best decision for you. We do everything possible to make the process easy for you.
What Type of Jewelry Do We Accept?
You can sell almost any type of jewelry to us. We often advise customers to gather up all their jewelry and bring it in at the same time so that they will receive the highest offer possible and because it’s easier to see what each piece is worth when making a decision.
Many of our customers sell jewelry because they’re looking for a specific amount of money to pay bills or fund a trip. If you bring everything in at once, you can determine what you want to sell and what you want to keep, or you can sell it all and keep the extra money!
We accept everything from class rings, necklaces, bracelets, watches, money clips, and more. Each piece is different, so we can’t say that one is more valuable than the other without seeing it in person.
Older pieces could be worth more money, but that’s not always a guarantee. Pieces with a gold, silver, or platinum chain or band along with a gemstone will get you more money than a piece without a gemstone in most cases, but again, it all depends on the individual piece.
Unfortunately, we won’t buy gold plating unless it’s an antique pocket watch. A stamp of R.G.F., G.F., H.G.E., or 1/20th signifies gold plating instead of actual gold. If you aren’t sure what you have, don’t worry about going through and looking through each piece. Bring your items in and we’ll check it out right in front of you so that we can explain each marking if you’d like.
Do You Accept Other Items?
Yes! We accept other items, such as coins, bullion, silverware, dental gold, and anything made of precious metals. If you have something that you’re unsure about, you can bring it to one of our locations and we’ll take a look at it.
The process is the same for any item you bring in. We’ll evaluate it right in front of you and give you an offer on the same day.
Do You Accept Jewelry In Bulk?
Absolutely! Many of our customers bring in jewelry from estate sales or from inheritances to see what their pieces are worth. We also get customers that bring in items they’ve found in storage sheds and yard sales.
We’re set up for larger evaluations and can get them done faster than most companies. We’ll accept any amount of jewelry, whether it’s an individual piece or a large collection, but remember: the more you bring in, the more money you’ll leave with!
Don’t worry about having to wait for your money either. No matter how much jewelry you bring in, we’ll still cut you a check so that you can have your money in your hand that day.
Come In For A Jewelry Appraisal Today!
Now that you know more about what happens during a jewelry appraisal, what are you waiting for? Gather up your jewelry and other valuables and come down to Crown Gold Exchange today. We’ll evaluate your jewelry right in front of you, answer any questions you may have, and get you the money you need today.
There’s a reason our customers come back to see us. We’re transparent, convenient, honest, and knowledgeable. Customers know that we’ll take care of them when they come to see us. Our goal is to treat every customer with the same respect we’d expect at another business.
We buy jewelry of all types and work hard to deliver world-class service to every customer that walks through our doors. Instead of going online and searching for “sell my jewelry”, visit one of our locations or contact us today. You’ll see why we’re the best jewelry exchange business in Southern California!