![]() Someone bought a 1970s Rolex - a really beat-up one, for $700 or $800. ![]() And I got burned on that one, so it won't happen again. Fifteen years ago, someone spent probably three- or four-thousand dollars to make a fake Rolex. If everything checks out, everything's fine. "There's a list of things that are right on a Rolex watch that's not right on a fake. On determining whether a Rolex is real or fake 1 form of customer credit in the United States." A lot of people don't realize that up until the 1950s, pawn shops were the No. ![]() They don't have anything like that for when some small emergency pops up. "I think it's 20 percent of the adult population in the United States that does not have a bank account. And I'm sure works, because that woman will be worth her weight in advertising because she will tell everybody for the rest of her life what I did for her." If I did give her $2,000 for that, she would have eventually found out that I ripped her off, and she would have told everybody for the rest of her life, 'Don't go to that store. I really do believe in six degrees of separation. And I just explained to her, 'You know what? I can't do it to you.' I ended up giving her $15,000. "I actually had a lady come into my pawn shop with a Faberge brooch. Your Money Pawn Shops See Brisk Business In Economic Crunch When people are selling something, it's a financial transaction and it's just perceived differently."Īnd his advice for would-be negotiators? Stay friendly, never stay in love with anything, and never set the first price. "And the reason behind that is because when people are pawning something, they're getting a loan and have to admit they're broke. "The people pawning goods never want to be on the show," he says. But the people on his TV show, he says, are generally those trying to sell - not pawn - their goods. I will loan them half of what they paid for it - and that's their bail money."īut pimps aren't Harrison's only customers - he has a series of regulars, including gamblers, billionaires and men trying to impress their dates. So, when they get arrested, they will always have someone bring their jewelry down to me. "And a pimp knows that if he buys jewelry in a pawn shop, if brings it back to a pawn shop and gets a loan against it, always get half of what you paid for it - as opposed to buying it in a jewelry store, when don't know what going to get. "When you get arrested for pandering, they take your cash - because the cash was obtained illegally - but they don't take away your jewelry," Harrison explains. Sometimes after fights, he says, fans line up down the block around his store waiting to trade in their jewelry for cash.Īnd who buys the jewelry from Harrison? Pimps - and there's a good reason why. They always bet more than they can afford to lose." ![]() "I don't know what it is about fight fans. The best nights for business, Harrison says, are fight nights, when hundreds of thousands of fans flood Las Vegas to bet on boxing. It's part of the Patriot Act, and that goes to a central database online across the United States that checks for stolen items." I turn that into the local police department, and then I also turn it into Homeland Security. I take their driver's license number, their height, their weight, their eye color, their build. "When I take something in pawn or I buy something, I just don't take ID. "Most people don't realize how regulated the pawn industry is, especially where I'm at in Nevada," he says. And making sure goods aren't stolen is always an issue. He has become an expert at assessing the value of Gibson guitars, Rolex watches, diamonds - as well as regular household items like drills, cameras and home electronics. "It's a lot less money than if you go to one of these payday loan places, or if you bounce a check, for that matter."īut Harrison must be careful - balancing his loans with how much the merchandise is actually worth, and how much he can receive if the merchandise is then resold. "So if you get a $50 loan, it's going to cost you $7.50 for the first month and $5 after that," he says. And most pawn shops also charge a service fee and then tack on interest - which can vary between 10 percent and 20 percent a month. The average loan for a piece of personal property, Harrison says, is around $50. You just simply have lost your merchandise. No one chases you down to break any legs or anything like that. Now, if you don't pay me back," he says, "I end up keeping the merchandise and I put it in my showcase for sale. I hand you the ring back and everything's good in the world. "If you come back in 30 days, you give me $115.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |