CoinTalk - Blogs - USS656 http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/uss656/ Coin Talk Forum: Where Numismatists, Collectors, Dealers, and Novices Gather to Discuss Coins en Tue, 21 May 2013 11:01:36 GMT vBulletin 60 http://www.cointalk.com/images/misc/rss.jpg CoinTalk - Blogs - USS656 http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/uss656/ Appraising an Estate http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/uss656/516-appraising-estate.html Tue, 04 Jan 2011 17:49:48 GMT ---Quote (Originally by -jeffB)--- As others have pointed out, not even dealers can quickly and accurately judge the value of a large collection; they have to make simplifying assumptions, and as businessmen they need to be conservative in their offers. But bidding 40% of melt value on a...
Quote Originally Posted by -jeffB View Post
As others have pointed out, not even dealers can quickly and accurately judge the value of a large collection; they have to make simplifying assumptions, and as businessmen they need to be conservative in their offers. But bidding 40% of melt value on a collection with obvious numismatic value isn't prudent, it's predatory -- IMHO, at least.
Thank you for posting what I was thinking when I read that last post! I have been collecting for 5 years and I wouldn't want the job of figuring a fair value but I would be able to estimate melt with little effort!

Short story, guy buys a business in a small town outside of Pittsburgh. Goes into local hardware shop to buy a large pair of wire cutters to take out very old wiring in attic of business location. The owner asks the 1st time customer what he is doing and when told the owner loans him a pair because he knows the guy probably will not need them beyond that job. Customer is amazed by the gesture and now does all of his business at this shop even though he could save a little by going to one of the giant hardware places. He also tells all of his friends about this gesture and soon others are going out of their way to use this small local store.

True story and do not forget ~ it works both ways and people love to talk about the nice gestures and who sc***ed them. This lady with the coin collection will probably tell anywhere from 20 to 50 people her story. They will in turn tell others. How many lost opportunities will these dealers have because of their business philosophy? While they can operate how they choose, it does not mean they will be successful in the long haul! ]]> USS656 http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/uss656/516-appraising-estate.html