Selling Inherited Gold Bullion in Ontario: A Practical Walkthrough

Bullion is often the part of an estate nobody expects. It arrives as a shoebox, a safety deposit envelope, or a sock at the back of a wardrobe, and it usually comes with no paperwork and no explanation. The instinct is either to sell it all immediately or to leave it untouched for years. Neither is necessary.

Step 1: Inventory before you value

Lay everything out and write down what you can see: number of items, any stamps, weights printed on bars, coin dates, and whether packaging is sealed. Photograph the lot. This protects everyone involved and gives you a document to work from when family members ask what was there.

Step 2: Separate the categories

• Recognised bullion: Maple Leafs, Krugerrands, Eagles, RCM, PAMP, Johnson Matthey and TD-packaged bars
• Older coinage: sovereigns, ducats, 20 franc coins, pre-1968 Canadian silver — these may be worth more than metal
• Unmarked bars and jeweller's buttons, which need full testing
• Jewellery, which is priced by tested karat and weight rather than at bullion rates

The second category matters most. Dates and mint marks on old coins occasionally carry collector value well above the gold inside, and a buyer who weighs them straight into a scrap lot is quietly taking that difference.

Step 3: Get it identified for free

Bring the whole lot in without committing to anything. We identify each item, verify the bullion, flag anything that should be valued as a collectable, and give you a figure — free, with no obligation. Many people take that number away, discuss it with family, and come back weeks later. The evaluation does not expire.

Step 4: Splitting between beneficiaries

Physical metal divides badly. Two common approaches work well: sell everything and split the cash, or have the lot valued item by item so beneficiaries can take equivalent value in kind. A written itemised valuation makes the second option far less contentious, and we will provide one on request.

What you need to sell

Ontario's second-hand dealer rules require government photo ID from the person selling. Where an estate is involved, the executor should be the one transacting, and bringing estate documentation avoids any ambiguity later. We do not require probate paperwork for ordinary personal holdings.

Do not rush, and do not clean anything

Polishing an old sovereign can remove collector value permanently. Cutting a sealed assay card makes a bar slower to verify. Leave everything exactly as you found it and let the identification happen first.

Bring an inherited lot to 1646 Victoria Park Avenue in North York any opening hour, or call (416) 551-6400 first if it is large and you would like the time set aside.