Gold is used in many industries due to its anti-corrosion capability and generally outstanding luster. From jewelry to electrical circuits, gold has many uses and always holds value. Its ability to retain value regardless of how it is used or formed helps to make gold an enduring commodity in the modern world. That ability to retain value regardless of its shape or current function also makes it possible to buy gold jewelry for decorative purposes until needing a sudden infusion of cash. Then you can sell scrap gold to buyers who will pay cash or possibly send you money via an electronic transfer.
Current Gold Prices Affect Scrap Value
When you buy gold necklaces, rings, and other gold jewelry, they retain their market value based on the value of gold as set by current gold prices. Those gold prices fluctuate on a daily basis, but gold always holds value. Its current price of more than $1,900 per ounce helps to ensure you can get a good amount of money from quality scrap gold. If you are expecting to get the full market price, prepare to be disappointed.
When you sell scrap gold, you need to find a buyer for it, which usually is a relatively easy process. Most decently sized cities will have a variety of buyers for gold, silver, and other precious metals. They advertise so that people know who they are and where they can go to sell their scrap gold. That marketing costs money, and they have to pay staff to process the transactions. Those costs are deducted from the value of the scrap gold that they buy, but you still can get a good return on your gold jewelry and other scrap gold.
Not All Scrap Gold Is Alike
Another important factor in the value of scrap gold is the actual gold content. Most scrap gold is not 24 karat gold, which is pure gold. Instead, scrap gold often is made from much lesser quality gold, such as 10 karat, 14 karat, or 18 karat gold. The higher the number, the greater the gold content, which makes the actual gold more valuable.
You can get a good idea of the market value of scrap gold by determining its quality based on the karats and weight in grams. A 10 karat gold necklace is worth less than half of the value of pure gold of the same weight. A 14 karat gold necklace would be worth about 60 percent of the current price for pure gold, and an 18 karat piece would be worth about 75 percent of that value. So the per-gram value multiplied by the number of grams is the wholesale value – minus marketing costs for the buyer.
