The current price of gold as I type this post is about $4500 an ounce (~$145/gram). A typical gold wedding band has about 3 grams of gold so if you’re walking around with your wedding band, you are flashing a small portable easily steal-able $435 object. Add in earrings, gold necklace and/or bracelet and you’re a tempting $1000+ target for would be thieves.
I am actually quite surprised there haven’t been more muggings for gold items given the prices of the metal but I suspect we will be hearing more about this as unemployment rises and people get more desperate.
What are some steps to protect yourself?
First be prudent about where you wear gold jewelry and if you love wearing a wedding band maybe it’s time to have a fake backup on your finger and leave the real one at home.
Second, AI recently audited my insurance policies and it turns out I had some deficiencies so either get AI to review your policies and coverage around jewelry, gold and other valuables or do it yourself. This may also force you to take inventory of all your gold stuff. You may have to get some of it appraised.
Third, if you’re not wearing your gold jewelry, consider selling it to a gold dealer, prices are sky high right now and if you have a few bracelets, earrings, and necklaces made of gold, it can add up to thousands or tens of thousands of dollars.
Many years ago, I flew to Dubai on business and visited the gold souk and bought my wife a really nice gold necklace. At the time gold was trading at $1300 and I remember because I asked a co-worker traveling next to Dubai to buy me some gold coins after I had returned and forgotten to buy them myself. I hadn’t thought about it for a while as she keeps it in a safe but ran across it recently when de-cluttering the safe. It weighs quite a bit and now that gold is $4500+/oz it may be worth a whole lot more than I paid for it.
Share The Wealth
Are you taking inventory of your gold jewelry and taking precautions? Let me know in the comments below.