Pawning Guidelines For Top Dollar

Need Cash in a Pinch?

We’ve all been there. Pet gets sick and you receive a bigger than expected vet bill; or last month you were the one sick, so the pay cheque is smaller than usual for the end of the month.

The way the economy has been, people have had to find ways to get quick cash on the fly to cover their monthly or unexpected expenses.

One way is to borrow from a friend, family member (but that can get complicated quickly if your situation doesn’t improve soon), or try to sell items they own on online classifieds or virtual garage sales. But, that can take time which doesn’t work when you need cash like yesterday’s news.

Another alternative is taking items you own to a local pawn shop to either loan or sell.

Now, ‘what kind of items do pawn shops take’ you may ask, well each shop has different guidelines, but here is a list of the top items that most pawn shops will take:

1. Diamonds and Gold!

These are usually top sellers in the pawn industry.

Yes, most pawn shops will consider or look at the value of all jewellery, but if you have gold (14K or higher) or diamond (a half carat or higher) jewels, you can receive some decent cash in return.

The value for gold jewellery is determined by the carat, the weight of the piece, and what the stability of the gold market is at the time. This will give the pawnbroker a good idea of the approximate value of your item at the time of the transaction. You could be offered anywhere from 40-60 percent of the value of your jewellery, so you can also inquire at other pawn shops to get your best offer.

2. Everyday Electronics!

This category is huge and changing every day as new merchandise hits box store shelves quarterly.

Your best-valued items would be the: televisions (OLED with HDR technology, Smart TV, QLED, 4K HD, etc), laptops and tablets (especially Apple products), gaming systems (PlayStation 4, XBox, Wii U, etc), cameras (particularly digital SLRs), and power/gas tools (drills, saw, etc).

The value of these items will vary on the condition, the year, and if all parts are with the item at the time of the transaction.

If you are going to pawn or sell an electronic item, make sure it is fully charged for the pawnbroker to test at the time of the transaction. If you have any of the original packagings the item came in, that can sometimes help to upsell your item to the pawnbroker.

If you are going to pawn or sell your power tools, remember! If they are ten years old, they won’t bring in as much value as a power tool from two years ago, no matter how great it has been for you. If they have been working tools, make sure you clean them up a bit as it will make it easier for the pawnbroker to sell them if needed and bring more value to your pocket.

3. ‘Big Boy’ Toys!

This would be your bicycles, motorcycles, scooters, 4x4’s and ATVs.

Some pawn shops will loan or purchase these items, but in all pawning negations it will come down to how presentable and functional an item is, make sure the item is cleaned up and fuelled for testing at the time of the transaction.

If the item has damage to it, have flat tires, wiring issues, or other problems with it, the pawnbroker may just turn down the item. Or if the item (like a bike) was purchased from a box store (Canadian Tire) they may not take it because of how inexpensive it was at the time of purchase (in retail standards, not personal standards).

What About Smaller Items?

You can still try pawning other items like musical instruments (guitars, keyboards), games for gaming systems (PS4, XBox), sports memorabilia, but check with your local pawn shops to see what they might offer and go from there with that information.

The items listed above are taken in for loans and or purchased, but at a lower price than the first three categories. Best of luck in your pawning!