Thread: Coin Collection Appraisal

Hi All, I am fairly new to the site and although I have done some looking around I did not see this questioned addressed specifically. I have been collecting for 35 years. I am the "unsophisphicated" collector. Mostly have been a change sorter, US mint buyer and roll sorter. A banker friend of mine said I should have my collection "inventoried, appraised & sealed" . This way the set will be covered properly for loss (insurance) or could be used as collateral for lending. My question to the forum is of the nuts & bolts of the process. How does one get a certifed appraisal and what are the dynamics of the process. Do you drop them off and say see you in a week? Do you hover over him while he does the work? Will he want to grade every coin? Like I said my collection is far from professional. Besides the mint purchased items, most of my coins are bagged loose in qt sized bags and I honestly don't know what all I have. I worry I could very easily be taken advantage of. I called two local coin dealers and both were eager to have me bring them in but they were short of details. When I told one of them I was not looking to sell, just get an appraisal, he said he did not due that type of service. I of course expect to pay for the appraisal, if I can find someone to do it. Please guys, whats the process and any advise would be great

There really is no process beyond what you have already mentioned. You find a dealer, or a knowledgeable collector, that is qualified to do appraisals and typically pay them to do it. And it isn't cheap. Prices can range from $50-$150 per hour to do the appraisal. And yes, each coin needs to be looked at and graded. Otherwise how else could they tell what you have ? And yes, you have to leave the coins with them.

The problem that most folks run into is that they cannot find anyone in their local area that is willing and/or qualified to do the appraisal. When that happens, you're kind of stuck. For then about your only choice is to ship the coins all off to somebody and then pay them to do it. And quite frankly, most collections aren't worth it.

Originally Posted by nejeff

Hi All, I am fairly new to the site and although I have done some looking around I did not see this questioned addressed specifically. I have been collecting for 35 years. I am the "unsophisphicated" collector. Mostly have been a change sorter, US mint buyer and roll sorter. A banker friend of mine said I should have my collection "inventoried, appraised & sealed" . This way the set will be covered properly for loss (insurance) or could be used as collateral for lending. My question to the forum is of the nuts & bolts of the process. How does one get a certifed appraisal and what are the dynamics of the process. Do you drop them off and say see you in a week? Do you hover over him while he does the work? Will he want to grade every coin? Like I said my collection is far from professional. Besides the mint purchased items, most of my coins are bagged loose in qt sized bags and I honestly don't know what all I have. I worry I could very easily be taken advantage of. I called two local coin dealers and both were eager to have me bring them in but they were short of details. When I told one of them I was not looking to sell, just get an appraisal, he said he did not due that type of service. I of course expect to pay for the appraisal, if I can find someone to do it. Please guys, whats the process and any advise would be great

hi where are you located ?, what you can do is find a ana registered numismatist that can teach you to grade. GD is right each coin would need to be looked at..and it may be a bit expensive but if you post pics of some of the coins we here a ct will help you with as much of it as you can.

Originally Posted by nejeff

Hi All, I am fairly new to the site and although I have done some looking around I did not see this questioned addressed specifically. I have been collecting for 35 years. I am the "unsophisphicated" collector. Mostly have been a change sorter, US mint buyer and roll sorter. A banker friend of mine said I should have my collection "inventoried, appraised & sealed" . This way the set will be covered properly for loss (insurance) or could be used as collateral for lending. My question to the forum is of the nuts & bolts of the process. How does one get a certifed appraisal and what are the dynamics of the process. Do you drop them off and say see you in a week? Do you hover over him while he does the work? Will he want to grade every coin? Like I said my collection is far from professional. Besides the mint purchased items, most of my coins are bagged loose in qt sized bags and I honestly don't know what all I have. I worry I could very easily be taken advantage of. I called two local coin dealers and both were eager to have me bring them in but they were short of details. When I told one of them I was not looking to sell, just get an appraisal, he said he did not due that type of service. I of course expect to pay for the appraisal, if I can find someone to do it. Please guys, whats the process and any advise would be great

You should create a spreadsheet inventory of the items you have on your own before you do anything. I would suggest a categorizing the loose coins by denomination and year. The US mint items will be easier to evaluate than the loose coins. Do you have any silver or gold? TC

One other thing that warrants mentioning is that once you have gotten an appraisal, you will need to insure the collection. Most standard HO policies do not cover collectible coins while others have strict limitations. It is possible to have a rider added to your HO policy, but the cost is usually prohibitive for the coverage you receive. The best coverage for collectible coins is through the ANA with Hugh Wood.

Chris

Originally Posted by cpm9ball

One other thing that warrants mentioning is that once you have gotten an appraisal, you will need to insure the collection. Most standard HO policies do not cover collectible coins while others have strict limitations. It is possible to have a rider added to your HO policy, but the cost is usually prohibitive for the coverage you receive. The best coverage for collectible coins is through the ANA with Hugh Wood.

Chris

I understand and have talked to my insurance man about it. My banker says to do the aprraisal and just drop that particular collection in a safe deposit box. $50 a year rental may be cheapest insurance! He says with the appraisal if I ever needed to borrow I could use the collection as collateral (not likely something I would do)

Originally Posted by GDJMSP

There really is no process beyond what you have already mentioned. You find a dealer, or a knowledgeable collector, that is qualified to do appraisals and typically pay them to do it. And it isn't cheap. Prices can range from $50-$150 per hour to do the appraisal. And yes, each coin needs to be looked at and graded. Otherwise how else could they tell what you have ? And yes, you have to leave the coins with them.

The problem that most folks run into is that they cannot find anyone in their local area that is willing and/or qualified to do the appraisal. When that happens, you're kind of stuck. For then about your only choice is to ship the coins all off to somebody and then pay them to do it. And quite frankly, most collections aren't worth it.

So you just leave your safe full of coins with them? Problem is I don't have a real grasp of what I have. I would not call them "unsearched" but fairly close. Guess you need to find someone very reputable or inventory them yourself.

Iam trying to understand how i could grade my own coins and someone would loan me or insure them for what i say they would be worth?Seems you would need someone with a name that is a dealer to do this and it would be more cost than most of our coins would be worth.What would you tell the bank when you wanted to use them to borrow money?I have these coins i graded them at this amount and want to borrow this amount on them.The bank in my town would still be laughing right now.

Originally Posted by nejeff

So you just leave your safe full of coins with them? Problem is I don't have a real grasp of what I have. I would not call them "unsearched" but fairly close. Guess you need to find someone very reputable or inventory them yourself.

You have a lot of work ahead of you if you plan to do any of this for real. And no, if your planning to bring a safe, you can also plan to bring it home. Unless the quantity is small and quality high, no one will allow you to just drop off bags of coins and leave the problem at their door step. Of course if you don't care how much they charge you, that may change their mind. You are going to have to separate and inventory them, educate yourself about them, and take some protective measures now, so they don't get damaged from your handling and from trasportation. As Doug said, they charge by the hour, so being organized in your approach will cut the time down on the bill. You may need coin holders, folders, flips or at least 2x2 cardboard protectors on them. However, if you know how to separate your very common pieces, you may cut down on that step as well. Hence, you will need reference books, price guides, even certain magazines and the like, to use and educate yourself. Then shop around to various dealers for apraisal costs, or ask them who they can recommend for that service. Then a few personal phone calls (and visits) and you may have a good handle on what it may cost you and maybe a guess to the collections value. ONLY THEN do you make the decision to go ahead or not. 35 years ago, if you had been keeping records and storing your coins properly, most of this would now fall in place for you. Unfortunately, you are going to have to do it now to get the job done in the right way.

Originally Posted by nejeff

So you just leave your safe full of coins with them?

Yes, that is exactly what you do. There is no other choice. For unless your collection is quite small there is no way an appraisal can be done in a single day while you sit there and watch.

I did an appraisal once that took me 3 months to do. And that was with me working on it every single day, 7 days a week.

Originally Posted by nejeff

I understand and have talked to my insurance man about it. My banker says to do the aprraisal and just drop that particular collection in a safe deposit box. $50 a year rental may be cheapest insurance! He says with the appraisal if I ever needed to borrow I could use the collection as collateral (not likely something I would do)

Ask your insurance agent if they will insure "non-specific" coins for a fixed amount of coverage. Most won't or it is very costly. Hugh Wood, through the ANA, doesn't require an itemization of the coins. You tell them how much coverage you want, and it is fairly inexpensive.

Ask your banker if the bank will cover the "numismatic" value of the collection rather than the face value in the event of loss.

Chris

Originally Posted by cpm9ball

Ask your banker if the bank will cover the "numismatic" value of the collection rather than the face value in the event of loss.

Chris

The bank won't cover anything, not even face, for anything that is in a safety deposit box - ever.

Originally Posted by cpm9ball

Ask your banker if the bank will cover the "numismatic" value of the collection rather than the face value in the event of loss.

Chris

The bank does not insure anything you place in a safe deposit box. It's not covered by FDIC, or any other insurance from any bank.

You insure it at your own expense.

Originally Posted by nejeff

Hi All, I am fairly new to the site and although I have done some looking around I did not see this questioned addressed specifically. I have been collecting for 35 years. I am the "unsophisphicated" collector. Mostly have been a change sorter, US mint buyer and roll sorter. A banker friend of mine said I should have my collection "inventoried, appraised & sealed" . This way the set will be covered properly for loss (insurance) or could be used as collateral for lending. My question to the forum is of the nuts & bolts of the process. How does one get a certifed appraisal and what are the dynamics of the process. Do you drop them off and say see you in a week? Do you hover over him while he does the work? Will he want to grade every coin? Like I said my collection is far from professional. Besides the mint purchased items, most of my coins are bagged loose in qt sized bags and I honestly don't know what all I have. I worry I could very easily be taken advantage of. I called two local coin dealers and both were eager to have me bring them in but they were short of details. When I told one of them I was not looking to sell, just get an appraisal, he said he did not due that type of service. I of course expect to pay for the appraisal, if I can find someone to do it. Please guys, whats the process and any advise would be great

Suffice it to say, getting a professional appraisal is not what you see on the reality shows on t.v.

In the real world, you must leave the collection with the appraiser and however long it takes them.

Some collections can take months to go through. A friend of my mothers was a collector and had a very extensive collection of high valued coins, many CCs, St. Gaudens gold pieces, even some rare world coins.

The appraiser is still working on it to this day and she died 6 months ago.

Originally Posted by BUncirculated

The bank does not insure anything you place in a safe deposit box. It's not covered by FDIC, or any other insurance from any bank.

You insure it at your own expense.

I didn't mean the bank "insured" them. What I meant to say they are most likely safe from harm in a safety deposit vault. I have no doubt they would be safe there