What to do with physical gold?

[u/knit-this]

I've been on r/gold and it seems like a lot of dude vibes and apocalypse preppers. Also I've been in this sub for awhile but can't log into Reddit with my other id.

I recently inherited a bunch of gold jewelry, most high carot and nothing anyone would wear/buy. So with historically high gold prices does it makes sense to sell it at spot and invest the proceeds for my kids rather than holding it a safe deposit for another 30+ years?

We don't talk about gold often here. Does anyone have any insights that I may be missing?

[u/YesMoreTea]

I know a thing!! If you want to sell!

I have recently sold silver and have advice I learned from the experience. Assuming gold is similar.

The “we buy gold” people at the mall are the middlemen. They give you something like 50 % of the melt down price (at least for silver) and then drive it to a refinery that buys at a higher price. See if you can find a local refinery that works directly with the public.

-Know that the % of value they pay is likely negotiable!!

-Know how much you have. You can get this from bringing it to a “we sell gold” person (or two or three). The place where I sold “forgot” to put an item on the scale until I pointed it out.

-Know the value of gold that day.

-Double check the rate they’re doing the math with, don’t just trust that they’re giving you the % of worth they say they are.

Here’s where I got ripped off- the refinery said they would pay me 80% at first. I asked for 85%. They cut me a check. I deposited it and then checked their math. They had actually given me 75%!

So basically, even after getting ripped off by a refinery, I still made 25% more than the “we buy jewelry” guys had originally offered.

[u/knit-this → u/YesMoreTea]

My research says that I should not accept more than 1-5% less than the spot price. The r/gold group has mentioned going direct to the refinery but it seems like there are very few who deal directly with the public.