Planning to buy gold this Dhanteras? Check out these 10 rules you should adhere to while buying the yellow metal

It is that time of the year when people flock to jwelleries to buy gold. Dhanteras, considered an auspicious day to buy the yellow metal, falls tomorrow.

Indians have a penchant for gold. Though the precious metal is considered a hedge against inflation, in India it is bought more as jwellery than an investment option. It is only recently that the government started pushing various gold products like bonds in a bid to promote paper currency and reduce black money flow into the sector.

However, this year’s Dhanteras, comes after the government changed a key rule governing gold buying. As part of the push to revive consumer sentiment in the economy, the government recently allowed people to buy Rs 2 lakh worth gold without quoting the permanent account number.

So are you planning to buy gold? First and foremost, jewelers say, those who want to buy jewellery would have to set aside 60-70 percent of their monthly salary for this purpose.

The current price of gold ranges from Rs 29, 675 (Friday) to Rs 29,970 (Monday). Last Dhanteras, the price of gold was around Rs 30,000.

Before setting out to buy gold, keep in mind the following:

1) Buy gold from organised players. Find out the price of the gold and the making charge. All organised players will display these prices. Do your homework before setting out to buy gold. Know the price of gold by also checking with other shops.

2) Always buy gold hallmarked by Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). The gold is hallmarked by BIS-recognised Assaying and hallmarking centres.

3) Find out the carat of the gold, which denotes its purity in fractions. The higher the carat, the higher is the percentage of purity of gold. For instance, 24 carat gold is considered 99.99% pure.

4) After purchase, insist on a bill which tells you in detail about the price and value of gold and precious stones, if any, in the jewellery. The making charge will be indicated separately.

5) Ask the jeweller about the exchange policy in case you want to exchange the jewellery at a later date.

6) During festival seasons like Dhanteras and Diwali, people prefer to gift gold coins. Buy gold coins only from organised players. Do a few pricing checks before deciding to buy coins from a jeweler as they tend to overcharge.

7) If you want to invest in gold, buy gold coins. Or you could invest in gold ETFs or sovereign gold bond scheme.

8) Gold is largely bought for personal wear and is passed down through generations. You could buy studded ornaments as a sales invoice will tell you the weight of the stone and gold separately.

9) Some jewelers offer insurance for jewellery of Rs 50,000 and more. Ask the jeweler if he will give you insurance before buying large ticket items.

10) The young may find buying online easier. But be careful. Even so got only to trusted sites and organised players.