Needless to say, we humans love having gold in our possession! Be it gold bars or bullions, our relationship with it dates back to the early Egyptian roots. However, even centuries later, the interesting thing about this is that we all still share the same love affair with this shiny, yellowish precious metal.
So, it’s pretty safe to assume that if you’ve inherited gold bullions, some expensive jewellery, or luckily stumbled upon a handful of gold items and belongings, then you might be sitting atop a considerable fortune!
Pawning Is One Clever Way To Make Instant Cash On Your Gold Possessions!
That said since the pawning world is filled with ruthless swindlers, crooks; you need to know exactly what you’re doing in order to get big bucks!
This post will serve as your gold pawning guide to educate you on matters that you should know and accordingly do.
So, continue reading!
5 Must-Dos Before You Pawn Your Gold Bars & Bullions
- Be Aware Of The Exact Market Value Of Your Gold Bars & Bullions
This is the first thing to do on your part. Regularly check the global gold trading market to get a precise reading on its value fluctuations. Fortunately for you, all this is easily obtainable from the web. And using the current gold price for that specific time, you can establish a baseline of your gold bar or bullion prior to pawning it!
- Pay Attention To The Gold Karats
Simply put, Gold Karats means its purity! Ideally, pure 24 karat gold is soft and can be easily bitten into. And every gold piece- be it in bullion, bars, or jewellery will have a market karat reading on it.
Now the test purity test which is done as per different strength acids for both impure and pure gold pieces- specifically 24-karat, 22-karat, and 18-karat gold! And as obvious, the purer the gold in karat, the more value it has.
Just so that you are not conned outwitted, it would be a wise choice to know the exact value of your gold in possession. If anything, it will keep your pawn broker on the up-and-up!
- Check The Gold Weight Scale
This is another crucial thing to do before pawning your gold bars and bullions. The reason being, many sneaky brokers will weigh your gold items in pennyweights rather than Troy (which is precisely 31.1 grams in weight).
Many may not know this, and their lack of knowledge is precisely what these sneaky pawn brokers take advantage of.
The smart option would be to weigh your gold items at home in Troy. This will prepare you for what you expect when the pawn broker does her/his appraisal of your gold bars or bullions!
- Do Research On The Offered Loan Amount & Its Monthly Fee Interest
Typically, pawn shops in Sydney and across Australia will happily provide you 35% rates every month for the offered loan amount. And while this is not half bad, you will be surprised to learn that many pawn shops charge interest rates which are much lesser- like 2-3% for Au$ 20,000 (or more) and 4% for Au$ 10,000 (or more).
All it takes is a little bit of diligent web search to find them out. Keeping this in mind, you should take your time in deciding your pawn shop before making a final call rather than making your decision in haste!
- Lastly, Thoroughly Check The Buyer’s Credentials & Make Good Use Of Your Leverage
Finally, before you pawn gold bars and bullions, make it a point to check the buyer’s credentials. Ask to see their legitimate trade license as well as their business license issued as per the state/local laws. Also, take notice whether the buyer requests for your govt-issued ID card or not.
Typically, the authentic pawn stores usually request for it as a means to avoid selling stolen gold bars, bullions, or similar items! So be on the look-out for this.
In addition to this, you should look to make proper use of your leverage. Remember that you are currently in possession of the precious metal. And so you should make use of this advantage by rummaging the web for other quality pawn stores in the region to compare their appraisals against one other. Doing so will eventually help you find the best deal providers near you.