First,
you'll get a portion of the scrap value, not the market value, for your
gold. Buyers melt the gold down, so they will not pay anything for the
artisanship or style of the jewelry. Second, dealers must pay a smelter,
someone who melts the gold, up to 30 percent of the value to refine the
precious metal. Then there's the buyer's profit.
Also, remember,
some gold items are purer -- and more valuable -- than others are. Pure
gold is considered 24 karat, or 24k. Think of it as a 24-slice pie --
each slice a single karat. Therefore, a necklace that has an ounce of
10k gold has less than half the gold of a necklace with an ounce of 24k
gold.
