More people are taking advantage of a bump in the price of gold to turn their old jewelry into cash.
“I hear people saying times are hard and there’s bills to be paid,” said Richard DeBord, owner of the Santa Cruz Coin Exchange and a jeweler since 1975.
The price of gold hit $1,000 an ounce last February and March, then dropped to the mid-$900s and then to the $700-range. Now it’s back above $900 an ounce, sparking a gold rush.
Television ads invite people to mail in unwanted gold jewelry in exchange for cash. In New York, Long Islanders have been hosting gold-buying parties, bringing in a local dealer to weigh and pay for worn trinkets.
Capitola Mall has booked Gold Buyers, based in Appleton, Wis., for a three-day visit from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday through Sunday to do much the same.
“You walk away with a check,” said Lisa Porter, specialty leasing manager at Capitola Mall, which is owned by Macerich. “It gives customers an opportunity to shop around. Our sister properties did it, and it generates a lot of traffic.”
Gold Buyers owner Lyssa King, whose husband Benjamin is one of the appraisers, said the company’s business model gives customers a higher payback.
“We are not open to the public other than in our mall venues around the country as we are strictly commodities brokers and refiners,” she said. “There is low overhead and no middle man.”
For those who want to compare prices, locally owned jewelry stores and pawn shops offer the same service.
Santa Cruz Pawn, the only licensed and bonded pawn shop in the city of Santa Cruz, has been in business for more than 10 years, paying cash on the spot for jewelry that might be damaged, missing pieces or just not your style.
“Most people don’t realize you can come to a pawn shop and they’ll buy gold jewelry,” said Bruce Pedersen, owner of Watsonville Pawn, which opened on Main Street last year. “People don’t know we’re here.”
He called the “cash for gold” phone number advertised on television, got referred to another phone number, where he found the voice mail was full and no longer taking messages.
He said the $900 per ounce price quote is misleading because it applies only to pure 24-karat gold. Most jewelry is 10 karat or 14 karat, so it is worth less, he said. For example, 12 karat is 50 percent gold so the price could be $450 an ounce, half the rate for 24 karat gold.
“If it’s gold over silver, it’s worth less,” said Michael Craig, owner of Monterey Bay Estate Jewelry and Antiques, explaining that silver has been going for $12 an ounce.
Prices can be volatile.
Craig, who has had his shop on Soquel Drive in Aptos for more than 16 years, saw gold jump $30 in 20 minutes Wednesday morning. He suggests customers follow the ticker on TV or online.
“If someone beats my price, fine — just call me before you sell,” he said.
“We see people wanting to sell their scrap jewelry, not their good jewelry,” Craig said, although he noted two expensive watches brought in by a man whose $43.2 million portfolio was tied up in the Bernard Madoff scandal.
DeBord, whose Coin Exchange has been at Branciforte Plaza since 1992, pointed out that local businesses pay local taxes and keep paperwork so stolen goods can be traced.
“When we buy something we are required to fill out a police report and hold it for 30 days,” he said. “If you go to a local merchant and you want to talk to us, we’re here.”
Source: www.santacruzsentinel.com
