Learn more. Get a job (or if you have one, get a part-time job as well) so you have some disposable income. You can't have everything (a very old adage) Stop going to auctions, because you don't know how they work. (just so you know.... the highest bidder wins) Coin collecting is not always about the $$$. It's the passion one has. The love of coins is what drives a collector not the potential profit. Learn more. Excessive whining is irritating. Read the posts from other members. There is a lot of good advice in them. Learn more.
Stop going to auctions (perhaps even a totally different hobby), with your current stance and attitude, it's going to always bother you apparently. So stop now before you have a stroke or heart attack at an early age and start worrying about more important things in life.
If the prices are so high in your area that you can clearly get them cheaper other places then I see no problem with you buying online and re-selling them for a profit at your local auctions as long as you don not mis-represent what you are selling. If the situation you describe allows for honest profit then, if I was you, I would be thrilled not annoyed. If you find that you cannot make a profit honestly then maybe the selling prices at your local auctions are exactly what they should be.
Agree Mike. Most of the ones I am aware of have their own sites and I search those regularly - like Shawn Yancey. About the only reason I use ebay anymore is to look for varieties to fill some albums, but only after searching the dealers I use.
Just a couple points to make. Aside from the original post being a little over the top, good for you. This is how supply and demand works. The price paid reflects a higher demand for these coins at this auction, which is a signal that you should meet that demand, welcome to capitalism. Based on your marketing technique, overvaluing the coins on the holders, etc. you have a few more lessons to learns, but you are on your way to learning how to run a business. I applaud your entrepreneurial spirit and wish you the best of luck. Last bit, but things don't always appear as easy as they seem, otherwise lots of people would be doing it. The problem with auctions is that you need to sell multiple pieces. Some of them will be big 'scores' for you, but you may lose money on others, it's the average that matters, and once you factor in auction expenses... Well, let's just say it's harder then it looks. Please report back after the auction, I would love to see how you did. And congratulations on stepping out there, taking on some risk, and learning business by trying it first hand.
I started a thread about my last experience at an estate auction last fall. In the past, I would wait out the crazy bidders who would spend their entire wad at the beginning of the auction and subsequently I would get really good deals at the end of the auction. I always go to estate auctions that show pictures of the coins on-line. I would go onto ebay and check the current sales prices of each coin in a similar condition. It is amazing how close you can come. I would go to the auctions and pounce on the good deals. Usually, I would get about 25% through the auction before I began to get coins at 25-50% discounts. Last autumn, it all changed. Many more folks showed up for the coin portion of the auction. They would continue to bid for 25-50% over ebay prices. It was crazy. I agree with the author of this thread. We have some live ones out there that are crazy to give someone there money. I will commend him if he takes it. Let's rid the world of these coin folks that swim in the shallow end of the gene pool.
Seems to me thats exactly what collectors do. Now investors are the ones that worry about making a profit on everything. Collectors usually will pay more because they just want the coin and are willing to pay for it. I've paid well over five times book for coins many times because they might be pieces I might not see again for years. Does this make me a hoarder? I certainly don't see how it would. Guy
Thank you for that bit of wisdom. It made me rethink part of what I wrote before I had mentioned before this paragraph that I envied the people who had the resources to promote their dogs, which simply meant that I would like to have those same resources. What I didn't mention is that in that desire, I have no interest in taking away from those that have it and spend it on their dogs. Some people do envy those types of people, not just because of the money they spend, but because the money is spent on things other than what the people who envy (in fairness) believe it should be spent on. Life is not fair, and it never will be. The most that is fair is that everyone who is born simply has the chances they end up having and that is all. Some people have been rags to riches and it's a wonder their life turned out that way, and others have been born to wealth (through parents, etc.) and totally squandered their assets and rued the day they realized they did that. Some blamed themselves on that, and others blamed others for not stopping them. And blah blah blah. But I am simply adding to my previous post because I think it important that when I said that some other dogs beat mine due to politics, I was sloppy enough in that quick response to not make it understood that I am not bitter or complaining. I fully appreciate the efforts the owners and handlers of those dogs have made in contributing to the sport. Those owners and handlers have tons more experience than I should ever hope to gain in the sport as I came to it later in life. Some have been at it 35 or more years. I glean whatever information I can get from them. Also judges differ tremendously, some giving the nod to newbies if they can, and others seemingly preferring the experienced ones. Some are strictly judging dogs, and don't give a nod to either newbies or known handlers. Some have politics guiding them, and some don't. It's the nature of the game. I say when I loose to a dog I think I should have beat and think it's because of politics, that at some point in the future, I will probably beat a better dog simply because politics favor me at the moment. Basically, it all comes out in the wash. You simply have to be the best person you can be.
Can you say "persecution complex"? It has been estimated that there are over 7 billion people on this big blue marble, and every last one of them is determined to screw Detecto in any way they possibly can. The master plan is working!
Well, it was the OP who posted the same basic thread a few months ago. http://www.cointalk.com/t197848/
Interesting didn't see the previous thread. OP quite your complaining and don't take things so personal. Life is way to short to get your shorts in a bunch over something this meaningless.