Record Gold Prices Not the Reason for Selling Rush

Gold prices are at an all-time high, but it is not a top reason Barnstable residents are cashing in - for them it is a mix of the economy, fashion and drugs. 

In the mix of reasons, the down economy is the most common for unloading gold. Local jewelers said most people in a bind for cash sold their gold when the market hit the huge $1,000 per ounce milestone and again when it hit $1,200 per ounce.

The real increase in people selling gold has not been in the last month or so, but during the last two and a half years at , said AJ Marks Manager Chris Bergeron, which has been in the business for nearly 20 years.

owner Michel Mangalo echoed this theme and said there has not been a dramatic increase in people selling gold during the last couple of months.

However, with the market at about $1,505 per ounce, people selling gold are looking to take advantage of the market. They are not necessarily in a bind for money, but instead cashing in on things that are outdated, broken or old. 

The majority of the jewelry people are cashing in on, refining or remaking is yellow gold simply because it is out of style. People who do not need the cash are taking the opportunity to make money to put toward white pieces or into their pockets, Mangalo said. 

With the price of gold skyrocketing, jewelry is gaining serious value. For example, a typical men's wedding band has nearly doubled in price in the last three years, Mangalo said. 

High prices paid for gold are appealing to customers and to thieves looking to cash in stolen gold for drug money.

In a town where break-ins are commonplace, this past weekend there were three break-ins and two attempts - not to mention in mid-March Barnstable Police busted a trio in a rash of break-ins where more than $30,000 in gold and silver was stolen, drugs are a key driver of jewelry thefts, not the price of gold.

"The nitwits stealing the gold don't really follow the commodities market and find out what the price of gold and stocks are doing," Barnstable Police Sargent Sean Sweeney said.

Jewelry theft is a problem the town has addressed by putting in place strict regulatory laws that require buyers to photograph and document every person and every piece of jewelry purchased. The collected information goes into a log sent to the town and all gold must be held for 21 days by the buyer.

"There is much more jewelry being sold and gone forever than we recover, mostly because people are going off Cape to Boston, New Bedford, etc. to sell the stuff," Barnstable Police Detective John York.