I had my diamond ring appraised at $5,000, but when I tried to sell it, a number of different jewelers only offered me $500-$900! Are they trying to rip me off?

As much as diamonds  have a reputation for high value, unfortunately, diamond jewelry is not really a very good investment. That's because consumers almost always buy diamonds at retail prices, but when you go to sell them, you sell them for wholesale price at best, minus wear and tear - and diamonds do chip, scratch and crack, despite their reputation for being "forever". Diamond appraisers generally appraise the diamond at its retail price, and since jewelers mark up diamonds by 100% or more, you can expect to get at most half the price quoted by your diamond appraiser. Also, jewelry shops usually get their diamond jewelry  from suppliers with no obligation to buy, so they aren't risking any losses on the inventory – and, they get to pay their suppliers in multiple payments. When a jeweler buys your diamond ring second-hand though, he's out $900 in one fell swoop, until he manages to sell your diamond ring to the next customer. Since he's buying at-risk, the jeweler knocks down a bit more off his offering price. If you want to get a higher price, you can try selling your diamond ring without a middleman – on places like Craigslist, through the classifieds, or on eBay. At online jewelry auction sites you can set a minimum value below which you refuse to sell your diamond ring. Everyone benefits - you get more for your diamond ring and your buyer pays less than he would at a jewelry store. You can also try selling your diamond ring to a friend, relative or acquaintance. Unless you really need the cash, consider keeping the diamond ring and passing it down as an heirloom, because diamonds often have greater sentimental value than retail value.

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I don't know, that sounds extremely low to me. I know that when selling diamond jewelry such as diamond rings and diamond earrings, the buyers generally offer about half of the jewelry's value because of course they need to sell it at a profit, and unlike other investments, diamonds don't really increase in value over time. But all the same, half of $5000 is $2500, so even $900 sounds way too low, and $500 is off the charts. The jewelers could definitely be trying to rip you off. My recommendation would be to take your diamond ring elsewhere and ask a few more jewelers for offers. If you find that you keep getting the same responses over and over again, maybe your diamond ring was mis-appraised, and it is actually worth less than the $5000 that your diamond appraiser told you. It seems a shame to sell such an expensive diamond ring for chump change. There are other ways of selling diamond jewelry that might fetch you a higher price. Selling jewelry on ebay, for example, bypasses the middle man so you can ask for a much higher price. Craig's list and other second-hand websites could get you in touch with potential buyers too. You probably won't get the full $5000 for your diamond ring, but even $3000 is a heck of a lot better than a measly 500 dollars. You can also try selling the diamond ring through any other online community because that's another good way of bypassing the middle man and attaining a higher sum for your jewelry. In my opinion, unless you really need the cash, it isn't worth your while to give up a valuable diamond ring for just 500 clams, especially if it has any sort of sentimental value.

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