How to get the most money for your old gold in Kelowna
Before you sell, a few minutes of preparation can meaningfully change the number you walk out with. Here is what we tell every seller who visits our office.
Most people sell gold once or twice in their life, which means most people walk into a buyer's office with no idea what a fair number looks like. That knowledge gap is exactly where pawn shops make their margin. The good news is that protecting yourself takes minutes, not weeks.
1. Sort your pieces before you visit
Group your jewellery by karat if you can. Look for the tiny stamps inside rings and on clasps: 10k, 14k, 18k, or their European equivalents 417, 585 and 750. Mixed piles get estimated conservatively, sorted pieces get priced precisely. If you cannot find a stamp, do not worry. We test every piece in front of you anyway.
2. Do not clean or repair anything
This surprises people. Polishing, soldering or professionally cleaning old jewellery before selling it is money down the drain. We buy gold in Kelowna for its metal content, so a broken chain is worth the same as a fixed one. Save your repair budget.
3. Get more than one quote
We say this as buyers: shop around. A trustworthy buyer will put a number in writing and will not pressure you to sell on the spot. Then bring us your best quote, because we guarantee to match or beat any offer in Kelowna and the Okanagan Valley.
"Every middleman between you and the manufacturer takes a cut of your gold's value. We removed the middlemen."
4. Understand how the price is built
Any honest quote for scrap gold comes down to three things:
- The current market price of gold, which changes daily
- The purity of your pieces, measured in karats
- The weight in grams, measured on a scale you can see
If a buyer will not show you the scale, the math, or the daily price they are working from, walk out. At our office the whole calculation happens in front of you.
5. Bring your ID and take your time
As licensed buyers we record every purchase with government issued ID, which protects sellers and keeps stolen goods out of the market. And remember: a free gold estimate in Kelowna carries no obligation. If you want to sleep on the number, our door is open seven days a week.
6. What actually happens during a visit
Knowing the sequence in advance removes most of the nervousness people arrive with, and it makes it obvious when a buyer skips a step.
Your items go on the counter and get sorted by stamp: 10k in one group, 14k in another, 18k in a third, silver separately, plated items to one side. Each piece is then tested, either electronically or with acid on a touchstone, because a stamp is a claim rather than proof. Each karat group is weighed separately on a calibrated scale facing you. The market price being used that day is shown to you, and you are welcome to check it on your phone. Then the arithmetic is done in the open: weight, times purity, priced against the market, group by group, then totalled.
The whole thing takes about fifteen minutes for a typical jewellery box. Diamonds and watches take longer because they are assessed individually rather than weighed as a group. At the end you get a figure. What you do with it is entirely up to you, and nothing about the offer changes if you say you want to think about it.
7. Selling gold you inherited
Inherited jewellery is the most common reason people come in, and it carries a difficulty that scrap gold does not: the pieces mean something, and melting them can feel like discarding the person.
A few things worth knowing. You do not have to decide about everything at once, and there is no discount for bringing the whole estate in one visit, so you can sell what you are ready to sell and keep the rest. Get the whole lot valued anyway, including the pieces you intend to keep, because knowing what something is worth is useful whether you sell it or insure it. And ask about the third option: old gold can be remade into a piece you would actually wear through our jewellery manufacturing service, using the original metal and the original stones, which keeps what mattered about the piece and loses the setting style nobody chose.
If the estate needs a formal written valuation for probate, insurance or a legal matter, that is a certified independent appraisal rather than a buying estimate, and it is a different document produced by a different kind of professional. We will point you to the right people for it rather than pretending the two are the same thing.
Frequently asked questions
How many quotes should I get before selling my gold?
At least two, and three is better if you have the time. The difference between buyers is routinely larger than the difference the gold price makes over a month, so shopping around is the single most effective thing a seller can do. A trustworthy buyer will give you a number in writing and will not pressure you to accept it on the spot.
Can I sell gold I inherited?
Yes. Inherited jewellery is the most common category we see. You will need government-issued photo ID, as licensed buyers record every purchase against ID. If the estate requires a formal written valuation for probate, insurance or a legal matter, that is a certified independent appraisal rather than a buying estimate, and it is a separate document prepared by an independent appraiser.
What if I change my mind after getting a quote?
Nothing happens. An estimate carries no obligation, there is no fee, and nobody will follow up or pressure you. You can take the figure, compare it elsewhere, sleep on it for a month, or do nothing at all. The offer is recalculated on the day you come back, because the gold price will have moved in the meantime.