What is the best way to sell jewelry to get the best price for it?
Written by Jewelry on April 23, 2010I have an old pair of diamond earrings that I took to a locally owned jewelry store. They said they would be worth about 00-00. Would that be the most I could get? How or where do I go?
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5:22 am on April 23rd, 2010
It is going to depend on so many factors.
When the jewelry store told you that the earrings would be worth $1000-$1200, were they talking about the price that they would sell them for, or the price that they would pay, or a replacement price or an insurance valuation price?
Generally speaking, unless the earrings are antique or Tiffany, Cartier or other very well known and respected brand and are marked as such, you will likely get between 20% and 35% of the retail price for your earrings.
Your choices:
Sell to a jewelry dealer – You’ll get wholesale price less their profit margin.
Sell to a pawn shop – They’ll pay you about 40% of the gold weight and often nothing for the diamonds.
Sell at an auction house – Normally you’ll get around the wholesale price and perhaps a bit more, unless around Christmas tme, less their commission.
Sell at an online auction – It will depend on your seller’s reputation. Anywhere from 20% to 50% (sometimes more) of retail value.
Classified add in the newspaper – Might get lucky. Don’t let them meet at your home. Meet in a bank’s lobby so that the person will be photographed by the bank’s cameras and then you can deposit the cash immediately.
Consignment store – This can work well sometimes. Make certain to read the contract carefully so that you can take your earrings back at any time and that they’re not allowed to sell them under a specific price, regardless of how long they have to hold them.
Good Luck!
5:22 am on April 23rd, 2010
Christya, it is good that you got your jewelry assessed before selling it. To sell your diamond earring, you have a number of options like ebay, craigslist, diamond buyers, pawn shops etc. But for getting better payouts, I feel you should approach diamond buyers because they are better assesers of diamond jewelry. You can approach Fabrikant Fine Diamonds Inc in Diamond District of New York. They asses jewelry on craftsmanship, aesthetics and market value of diamond. Hope you crack a great deal