Pledging Gold- To Do or Not to Do (That’s the Question) from jewels planet's blog

Gold is considered pious in India. It has been associated with the likeliness of Goddess Lakshmi, the deity of prosperity and wealth. Buying gold commemorates auspicious functions and celebrations. No doubt, pledging gold does not go too well with Indian community.

Gold is also a prized heirloom which is passed from one generation to another as a mark of family legacy.

Also, the skyrocketing prices of this metal make it a safe bet against odd times. Be it a medical emergency, financial crisis, business requirement, one can pledge gold to bail out of a perilous situation.

With changing times, the concepts of people have also changed. Pledging gold is no longer considered unacceptable. However, whether one should pledge gold or not is still a debatable topic.

People realise that gold can be used as a security to meet their urgent cash requirements. There is no doubt that gold loan market is soaring today. Most banks as well as NBFC’s provide a loan against gold. But, the heavy amount of interest levied on pledged gold is a major deterrent. One may even lose their gold if the interest amount is not paid on time. For this reason, it is recommended that one opts for getting cash against gold after getting a proper evaluation of their gold.

Modern Outlook

With more and more people becoming educated and modern in their outlook, the inhibitions associated with selling gold for instant cash are being shunned. In urban dwellings, people prefer getting instant payment against their gold items. The idea of mortgaging their gold assets with banks or local jewellers does not go too well with their mindsets; they do not want to get entangled in the web of surmounting interest.

Hard Earned Saving/Investment

Many of us buy gold as an investment against a potential financial crunch. No wonder, we put our hard-earned income into it. Pledging gold at the times of need is an option but not really recommended as the process entails lot of complications. As a customer, even if you are being offered lucrative interest rates by the creditor, it is not in your interest to get trapped in the web of accumulating interest of pledged-gold. Moreover, credibility of the creditor is a concern too. Many a times, one may get cheated at the hands of creditor and end up paying huge interest against the pledged gold.

Financial Literacy

As a customer, one must understand the concept of gold-pledging clearly. The poor segment can be easily lured into the concept without actually understanding the underlying clauses of the process.

Sound financial literacy is required to be able to understand the technicalities involved in the process. Otherwise, it may pose a serious risk to the customer as it would be difficult to regain the pledged gold in case of a default. There are hidden charges, late-payment charges and many intricate obstacles that can torment you with a life long stress.

To summarize, it is suggested that in today’s scenario, you should not burden yourself under the load of ever-increasing interest of pledged gold. You should rather take a pledge to come out of a financial crisis by getting instant payment against gold by evaluating your gold for highest price.