People are melting their old jewelry for cash as gold prices soar
- Share via
With gold prices at record highs, jewelry collectors are in meltdown mode.
For weeks, they’ve been scouring their homes and cracking open their safes to retrieve vintage necklaces, family heirlooms and other expensive pieces containing the precious metal that can be melted for cash.
“It happens with every gold spike,” said Jeff Clark, a market analyst and founder of TheGoldAdvisor.com. “If you’ve got a lot of old gold jewelry, it’s basically free money.”
The price of gold hit an all-time high of $3,357 per ounce on Thursday and is up about 27% from the beginning of the year, driven by factors including geopolitical tensions, tariff turmoil and increased demand from central banks.
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday announced a lawsuit alleging that President Trump lacks the authority to enact the international tariffs without the support of Congress.
Gold has long been considered a safe-haven asset during times of economic uncertainty, viewed by investors as a hedge against inflation and stock market volatility. And, when demand is strong, items made with gold can be lucrative for owners to offload.
“Everyone’s like, ‘If I have some gold jewelry, if my grandparents or my mother or father left me something, maybe I can get some money for it since everything else is down and inflation is killing everyone’s purchasing power and consumption,’” said Alex Arakeloglu, a sales associate at Capri Jewelry in downtown Los Angeles. “I hear it all around the Jewelry District.”
The influx of customers looking to trade in or sell their gold pieces has been a boon for independent jewelers, who have been grappling with steep wholesale prices for new items amid the latest gold rush. Many are also worried that President Trump’s tariffs could further drive up costs for imported precious metals and diamonds.
On a recent Monday afternoon, Rosie Juda arrived at her longtime jeweler’s second-floor L.A. studio with plastic bags full of gold jewelry, some of which had been in her family for generations.
There’s still gold in them thar hills. As the price of the precious metal climbs to record highs, prospectors are buying up claims in the Mojave Desert to seek their fortune. But it’s the real estate agents who have the sure bet.
Spreading the glimmering pieces on a glass-topped table between them, Olivia Kazanjian, owner of Jewelry by Olivia K, examined each with a loupe: rings set with blue and red gemstones, an inscribed cigarette case, a chunky necklace with large shiny beads, sea urchin-shaped clip-on earrings from Tiffany & Co., a whimsical clown figurine with a wide grin.
“Well, it turns out you made some really good choices investing in gold,” Kazanjian said as she placed the items one by one on a scale. For pieces of unknown purity, she performed a quick scratch test using an acid kit to help determine the metal’s karat composition.
Lately, Kazanjian has seen “a revolving door” of clients eager to melt their jewelry collections. But she’s urging caution.
“Sometimes it’s very clear when you get jewelry in that’s like, ‘Nope. This is not to be melted, you’ve got to hold onto this,’” she said. “Antique pieces are not worth it — you’ll never, ever see that craftsmanship again.”
For Juda, 56, it’s about taking advantage while gold is a hot commodity. The timing is especially fortuitous, with two daughters in college and hefty tuitions to pay.
“Priorities in your life change. Do I want all this stuff sitting in the safety deposit box?” the retired set decorator said. “Let it go, it’s just time.”
Over the next two hours, jeweler and collector pored over nearly 40 pieces, separating them into neat piles. Kazanjian persuaded Juda to keep some of the rarer items as-is, and will redesign a few others to give them a fresh look.
The largest was the melt pile, a mound of discarded jewelry for which Kazanjian offered to pay Juda $9,500 — a figure she calculated by estimating the grams of pure gold in each piece and multiplying it by the current market price of the metal, before subtracting melting and processing fees. She’ll write Juda a check at the end of the session and take the items to a refinery in the Jewelry District.
There are dozens of businesses downtown that will melt gold. One of the largest precious metal refiners is Elemetal, which operates more than 45 locations around the country. A manager for the downtown L.A. branch said he wasn’t authorized to comment on the business, citing its high-value transactions and carefully vetted clients.
On its website, Elemetal says its specialized facilities melt gold sources such as scrap jewelry and impaired bullion to separate impurities and obtain refined gold. It works with jewelers, miners, pawnbrokers and dealers to “convert materials into marketable, high-purity gold products while ensuring transparency and competitive settlements.”
It happens with every gold spike. If you’ve got a lot of old gold jewelry, it’s basically free money.
— Jeff Clark, a gold market analyst and founder of TheGoldAdvisor.com
As the price of gold has surged, businesses in the Jewelry District have been taking extra security precautions.
This week, millions of dollars in gold and jewels were stolen from a downtown L.A. jeweler’s two safes after burglars tunneled into the shop through multiple reinforced walls. The FBI is working with Los Angeles police to investigate the heist at Love Jewels, where officials said the thieves cut through a room next to the gold merchant and made off with about $10 million worth of merchandise.
Despite the current mania, Clark, the gold market analyst, noted that jewelry owners bringing in old pieces “probably won’t get rich off of it.”
Many will try nonetheless. During a previous spike in gold prices, Clark said, people were asking morticians for permission to pull gold teeth from the mouths of dead family members.
“You can sell anything that has gold in it,” he said. “Some morgues will let you do it.”
Inside the business of entertainment
The Wide Shot brings you news, analysis and insights on everything from streaming wars to production — and what it all means for the future.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
