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Rise in pawn lending in wake of property stagnation and ballooning interest payments

ended 04. December 2025

A pawn broker says he is seeing a clear rise in clients bringing in luxury assets, fine watches, high-end jewellery and, increasingly, gold to release short-term liquidity. These aren’t people in crisis, many are seasoned investors and landlords caught between inflated mortgage payments and slow property sales.

The property market has stalled, and people are looking for ways to unlock cash quickly. Watches and jewellery have long been symbols of wealth, but they’re now being used as temporary lifelines – a way to buy breathing space until assets sell.

Investment values move in cycles. The watch market has softened, so selling now locks in a loss, while gold continues to rise at pace. For many, leveraging gold rather than selling it outright makes far more sense, it keeps the door open to future gains while easing short-term cash pressures.

  • Have you or a client used a pawn broker recently to bring in some extra cash? Is this a growing trend?
  • What are the pros and cons of using a pawn broker?
  • What does the presence of Rolexes and gold bars at the pawn broker mean for the economy in this country?

Responses by tomorrow morning.

2 responses from the Newspage community

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Editor
Rob Mansfield
Independent Financial Advisor at Rootes Wealth Management
It's as old as the hills to barter and exchange goods for money and so there will always be a demand for pawnbrokers. If you're going to borrow money make sure you know the terms and the overall cost to you. If you don't pay up, they may sell the item to recover their costs. If you want your assets back, keep on top of the payments.
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Jim Tannahill
Managing Director at Suttons and Robertsons
At Suttons and Robertsons were here to provide a fast, straightforward access to short-term finance without asking our clients to part with the assets they’ve worked hard to acquire.

Our service is designed for people experiencing temporary cashflow pressure who want to retain ownership of items that still have long-term value or future growth potential.

Unlike traditional lending, it’s discreet, there are no credit checks, lengthy approvals or long-term commitments - just a secure, confidential way to unlock liquidity when you need it, while retaining ownership of the asset you love or for future gains.

The emphasis of our business is short-term. All our contracts are for 6 months with most customers redeeming their valuables within 4 months.

December and January are always busy months for us, with the cost of Christmas followed by a long January with the inevitable tax bill at the end of it.