Tips For First-Time Jewelry Pawning

Have you found yourself in need of some quick cash? Whether you need to get out of town for an impromptu weekend getaway or need some money to pay the electricity bill, one option that you may not have yet considered is pawning some jewelry. Here, you'll find a bit of information that can help you make the best choices when working with a pawn shop.

Know the Plan

Do you hope to buy the jewelry back, or do you want to sell the jewelry to the pawn broker? If you want the jewelry back, you must know that in most cases, you'll have 90 to 120 days to pay the broker back for the loan – you see, the jewelry will work as collateral and you'll be required to pay interest and fees set by the broker.

If you plan to sell the jewelry outright, you won't have to worry about repayment. You'll discuss the fees and the value, if you accept the offer, you'll walk away with the cash you need and won't need to worry about returning to make payments or retrieve your items.

Do some Research for the Right Shop

Spend some time online researching the pawn shops on your area. Read customer reviews to find the shops that take care of their customers – some will have great reputations while others aren't exactly what you're looking for.

Get an Appraisal on the Jewelry

If you don't know the true value of the jewelry that you're considering pawning, you should have the pieces appraised by a professional. If this isn't an option for you, at least consider taking the pieces that are potentially more valuable for appraisal to protect yourself from taking a loss on an item.

The appraisal will help you at the pawn shop. If you can prove authenticity and quality, you'll be several steps ahead in the game – you'll know roughly how much to expect to get paid. You won't get the actual value of the item, but instead, you'll get a percentage of the value.

Negotiate the Price

Know that you will have some wiggle room to negotiate. Don't take the first offer that you're given. If you don't like it, negotiate or leave and go to another shop. If you aren't going to get what you need from the item, what's the point of pawning it?

Your jewelry can help you make things possible that otherwise would have been out of reach. Hopefully, the tips above will help you reach your goals at this time. Contact a business, like Morningstar's Jewelers & Pawnbrokers, for more information.