The Best Reason To Sell Your Wedding Ring After Divorce

Deciding if you should sell your wedding ring after divorce—the essence of bittersweet sentimentality isn’t an easy decision. I get it, which is why my engagement and wedding ring sat in a drawer for about 8 years before I sold them.

I ended up selling my wedding ring during a time when I felt like I needed extra money, and at that point, although I thought it was gorgeous and it was sad to part with it, I had reached a point where I became disconnected to it. In fact, when I finally physically parted with my wedding ring, it felt almost liberating to have it out of my house and out of my life.

I realized later that the karma of keeping my wedding ring might have been holding me back in a way from fully moving on after divorce. In other words, the decision to sell my wedding ring was just another step further from my past and a step closer to acceptance, peace and living my best life.

I always tell people that you should wait as long as you want to sell your wedding ring after divorce, so that you can naturally get to the same point I did, and that there will be no regrets.

But recently, I heard a story that changed my mindset!!

      A woman wanted to sell her wedding ring to help pay for her daughter’s college education. The woman had been divorced for 15 years (since her daughter was 3 years old) and the price she hoped to sell the ring for was $10,000. She ended up selling the wedding ring and is happy about how the process went, and what she ended up walking away with.

But here’s the part that got me. This woman sold the wedding ring to help pay for her daughter’s college. Coincidentally, my son is looking at colleges right now, so I know what the tuition costs at many schools across the country. Based on what I know, the $10,000 will probably cover a semester—in some cases, not even.

I’m not saying that the woman shouldn’t have sold the ring. Every bit helps, and good for her for a selfless act that will help her daughter’s education. But, what’s interesting is, had this woman sold her ring 15 years ago, gotten the $10,000, and invested it with a Wealth Management Advisor, what would have happened?

Let’s take into account the market performance history. From 1957-2018, the average S & P annual return is 8%. Now, while no one can invest in an index, (which is what the S & P is) the index represents the value of the 500 largest corporations, and it often used as a quick measure of the stock market and economy.

So, had this woman sold the wedding ring 15 years ago, and made an average of 8% per year, she might now have $31,721. Had she sold the wedding ring 10 years ago, she might have $21,589. And, even if she would have sold the wedding ring 5 years ago, she would have $14,693. Remember, this is all based on an 8% annual return compounded; some years the returns may be higher and some years they may be lower.

The thing is, a wedding ring and other precious stones don’t appreciate in value. The value stays the same—

Unless you sell it and invest.

Historically speaking, putting money under management (letting a professional invest it for you in stocks, bonds and other opportunities) pays off in the long run. Sure, the value of a financial portfolio fluctuates from time to time (sometimes so much it makes us jittery) but if you just leave it and if you are committed to keeping it in the account for several years, historically speaking, you will likely come out ahead.

Of course, there is never a guarantee with investing money, and past performance does not always guarantee future returns. But, when we look at the past 100 years of the market’s history, investors almost always come out ahead. But that means not pulling out the money when the market is down.

Additionally, you can choose to invest your money into safer, more conservative investments. You won’t make as high of a return, but you take on less risk. A good financial planner will help you with these decisions by looking at your entire financial picture, which includes your risk tolerance, age, income, lifestyle, and several other factors.

The bottom line is, there are lots of reasons you might decide to sell your wedding ring after divorce. I wrote a whole article on the subject, which included what 35 women did with the money they got from selling their wedding rings. Examples include a woman who donated it to a woman’s shelter, a woman who got breast implants, and a woman who bought a new set of tires.

But I truly think the idea to sell your wedding ring after divorce and invest the money into the market is really really great, perhaps the best reason to sell the ring.

I know it’s hard. I know it’s emotional. I’d even say it might be heartbreaking. But if you think about what you are really doing, think of it this way: you are taking something bad that happened (your divorce) and turning it into gold (almost literally!) You’re doing something wonderful and meaningful for your child with an object you wore on your finger, most likely during the time your child was conceived. And now you are helping that child, and that is a beautiful thing.

Remember that a wedding ring is only a material item. The beautiful memories you have of being a young bride in love don’t come from saving your ring. Those memories live in your heart and you never have to sell those.

In closing, I’d like to recommend two resources I completely trust if you decide to sell your wedding ring and invest your money:

Matt and Anne Gabel of MJ Gabel.

Elaine Moss and Pete Mullins at Vestor Capital.

I wish you all the best!

Love, Jackie

Like this article? Check out “49 Things That Will Inspire any Divorced Woman!”

Editor-in-chief: Jackie Pilossoph

Jackie Pilossoph is the Founder of Divorced Girl Smiling, the media company that connects people facing with divorce to trusted, vetted divorce professionals. Pilossoph is a former NBC affiliate television journalist and Chicago Tribune/Pioneer Press features reporter. Her syndicated column, Love Essentially was published in the Chicago Tribune/Pioneer Press and Tribune owned publications for 7 1/2 years. Pilossoph holds a Masters degree in journalism from Boston University. Learn more at: DivorcedGirlSmiling.com