If I were proposing in a year should I buy a diamond now?

[Tensai]

It seems like with all the price increases that it''d be better to buy now instead of later. Let''s assume that the proposal would be definite.

 

[gt6974a]

I''d say no for both. If the dollar strengthens then oil comes down, with that the ounce of gold.

For the rock, you never know, but with the increase powers of what I''ll call non-educated people, the diamond might plummet. Probably not but eventually it will.

 

[swingirl]

It seems to drive women nuts to know or suspect there is a ring around the house but not on their finger. Plus you want to get her input. You should wait until your are closer to proposal time to purchase although researching and educating yourself until that time is a great idea. That way when you are ready you will where and what to look for. Custom rings can take 6 weeks and it can take a while to find a stone if you are looking for a fancy shape.

 

[Splinter]

I''d wait until closer to the time. You never know what will happen, you might find out exactly what style she likes for example, which would suck if you already had the ring or stone bought. I can understand the urge to buy early, but it''s better to wait. The further in advance you buy, the more problems there could be by the time the proposal happens.

Plus you could always win the lottery in that time, then you can buy a rock the size of your head...

 

[nolongeralurker]

I think Tensai is just talking about the diamond, not the entire ring.

 

[neatfreak]

If the proposal is definite, then yes.

But the reality is that it is NOT and you just need to be aware that if you do buy now and something sours, you likely will get back only half or less of what you paid.

 

[iheartscience]

If the proposal is definite and you know what she wants, I would buy now.

But if you know the proposal is definite and you know what she wants, why would you wait a year to propose?

 

[Splinter]

Date: 4/18/2008 8:40:14 AM
Author: nolongeralurker
I think Tensai is just talking about the diamond, not the entire ring.

What if you buy a Round Brilliant but find the perfect ring only looks good with a Princess? Big risk I think.

 

[SYC]

great that you''re planning ahead! I would recommend using this time to do your research, with the plan of buying whenever the perfect stone (within budget) comes along. In terms of research, you should pinpoint what her tastes/preferences are, and then figure out how to get what she wants within budget (through Pricescope, searches with different vendors, etc.)

Diamond prices may or may not drop in a year, and who knows about metal prices. I personally have noticed that there isn''t very much inventory these days at a lot of popular PS vendors in the D-F color range (if that''s what you''re lookign for). So if you''re looking for a diamond in this range, it might be worthwhile to wait for more inventory to free up.

I just got engaged, and I just know our rings are going to be very expensive -- a family member who knows the business told me we probably would have saved several thousand dollars just on my ring (ie, not factoring in our wedding rings, etc.) if we had gotten engaged last year! But oh well, you can''t always plan these things.

Good luck with it, and have fun!

 

[sklingem]

You can buy it whenever you want if you know what kind of stone she would enjoy. I would NOT buy it now though just because of pricing considerations. Who knows how the market will fluctuate within the next year. I bough it way ahead of time because I happened to come across the "perfect" stone and did not want to pass it up. Good luck!

 

[Tensai]

Thanks for the responses!

We were talking about it before so I know her preferences and what wants. It would just be a round brilliant.

I thought if I purchased at a place with an upgrade polic, it wouldn''t be bad. If the price of diamonds increased, then I could be glad I got a good one at a good price. If the price of diamonds went down, then I could just trade it in for a slightly more expensive one for a much better diamond.

Yes, I would only purchase the diamond now and the setting would come later. I was going to give it a year, because I was going to do it in a special way on a specific trip we have planned.

 

[Tensai]

Any thoughts on buying now and trading up later?

 

[swingirl]

Well, now. I like the iea of buying now and trading up. Mara traded up at least once if not twice while she was engaged. If you buy something you really like you can always trade up if you find something better. But if you didn''t find anything better you''d still be happy with the original. Sounds like a plan to me. Just check all the details of the upgrade policy.

 

[iheartscience]

Well as long as you know she''s okay with waiting a year, I say go for it! It makes sense to buy now-I think it''s a safe bet that diamonds won''t be cheaper in a year. And if you go with Whiteflash or Good Old Gold, your upgrade idea is great, too. (Those two have the best upgrade policies, in my opinion.)

P.S. Just an FYI, though-most ladies who are ready to get engaged would much rather get engaged sooner instead of getting engaged in a year at the "perfect" time. I don''t mean to be a negative Nellie about your plans, but if you take a peek at the Ladies In Waiting forum here on Pricescope you''ll see what I mean!

 

[Splinter]

Date: 4/19/2008 2:05:08 PM
Author: Tensai
Any thoughts on buying now and trading up later?

Sounds like a plan to me!

 

[neatfreak]

Date: 4/18/2008 11:14:42 AM
Author: Tensai
Thanks for the responses!


We were talking about it before so I know her preferences and what wants. It would just be a round brilliant.


I thought if I purchased at a place with an upgrade polic, it wouldn't be bad. If the price of diamonds increased, then I could be glad I got a good one at a good price. If the price of diamonds went down, then I could just trade it in for a slightly more expensive one for a much better diamond.


Yes, I would only purchase the diamond now and the setting would come later. I was going to give it a year, because I was going to do it in a special way on a specific trip we have planned.

This sounds like a very smart idea. If you buy with an upgrade policy you can't really go wrong, but just FYI, most of the time you have to spend a teensy bit more to utilize the policy (some places are $1, some more-even up to 1/2 more). Not a big deal, but something to take into account when choosing your dealer if you KNOW you will use the upgrade policy.

I do have to agree with Thing2of2 though. If you have any inkling at all that she doesn't want to wait, it's better to do it sooner...it will alleviate a lot of anxiety for both of you!