Should You Buy Used Jewelry?

Should You Buy Used Jewelry?

From pawn shops to fine jewelry specialty stores, more and more places are buying and selling used jewelry at a discounted price. These discounts can reach up to 50% off, and it’s hard to turn down a half off gold ring. But should you?

Like everything, buying used jewelry comes with pros and cons that need to be carefully assessed. To make this decision easier, here is a guide to help you decide whether or not you should buy that discount necklace that has caught your eye. 

Pros

Discounted

This is the most obvious pro to buying used jewelry. Jewelry is an amazing accessory that can add a sense of personality and individualism to any look, especially if you have it personalized. But, it can be a bit pricey. In fact, there have been pieces of jewelry that have sold for billions of dollars, and recent studies show that the average American couple can spend up to $5000 on an engagement ring. Even if an engagement ring is something you’re willing to splurge on, you may not want to spend a few hundred on a necklace you’re only going to wear once or twice. Buying used jewelry helps ease the financial burden of buying jewelry without causing you to sacrifice a new bracelet. 

Unique

Used jewelry is a pretty broad term, and it doesn’t just include jewelry that was purchased from a jewelry store and then sold. Oftentimes, jewelry from estate sales ends up being sold to pawn and jewelry shops to be resold. Here, you can find priceless heirlooms or unique jewelry pieces that you can’t find anywhere else. You may even be lucky enough to stumble upon handcrafted jewelry that is one of a kind. When you shop used jewelry, you can truly indulge in your individualism – at a fraction of the cost, too.  

Cons

May be a scam

While jewelry scams are few and far between, they do exist, and they are more prominent with used jewelry. The last thing you want is to splurge on a beautiful diamond ring that, even discounted, is still pricey just to find out later that it’s not a real diamond and is instead cubic zirconia. While there is no way to fully prevent this from happening, whether you shop new or used, you can help prevent it by trying to buy primarily from a jewelry shop where licensed professionals who can correctly identify the materials and worth of your jewelry are available. 

Unknown history

This is the biggest issue with used jewelry. Jewelry, especially fine jewelry, requires special care and cleaning, and, if damage occurs, it needs to be repaired as soon as possible. When you buy used jewelry, you have no way of knowing the history behind the piece. You don’t know when the last time it was professionally cleaned was; you don’t know if it’s had any prior damage, and you aren’t sure of the conditions it was kept in. This means that, while at the time of purchase the piece of jewelry make look okay, it can quickly tarnish or become damaged. 

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