Bad experience at new coin shop

So a new coin shop opened up near work in Lemoyne, PA (near Harrisburg) a couple of months ago and I have been meaning to stop in, but haven't had time. Since I want to sell some of my junk silver, I thought I would check their buy prices. I called and asked if they were buying junk silver and what they were paying for it and the guy asked what I had. I told him and then he asked what I wanted for them. I thought this was a little strange from a coin shop, but I told him what I "want" for them (not melt but pretty close to it), and then said that I don't expect to get that high from a shop. He says he is not interested at that price so I ask what he will pay for them. The guy refuses to tell me his buy price, and that I must tell him what I want and he will either accept or refuse. I then ask him what he would do if a little old lady walks in and says she wants 5 x face. Does he take it or does he tell her they are worth more than that and give her a good price. His response was simply that they pay the highest in the area (but won't tell me what it is) and then hangs up on me.

So does this seem shady to anyone else, or am I reading too much into it? Every other coin shop or silver buyer I have ever called before had no trouble telling what they pay. Some feel the need to state that it might change according to the market, but they understand that I am not going to drive there with thousands of dollars of coins to see if they pay a fair price or want to low-ball everyone. Now I am disappointed because I was looking forward to having a new coin shop in town, but they have definitely started on the wrong foot with me. I will probably still go look at their inventory, but I probably won't buy anything and I definitely won't sell anything there.

 

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I think you are right to at least give them the benefit of the doubt, and at least checking out the establishment. Here's your second chance at a first impression. Please give us a follow up, if you don't mind.

 

My guess would be that he thought you were his competition and trying to feel out his prices to undercut him...Gotta say, don't give up on him yet, you never know where the next great deal/cherrypick will come from.

 

I get these calls all the time at the shop. I have no problem telling them what I pay (75-85% of melt on junk silver). If I am confident I can blow most of it out at a show at a decent price I may pay more. My offers are based on my assessment of current market conditions. Considering they areen't paying worth a hoot on the Bay for a lot of this stuff plus it costs me at least 12% of sales to sell there are many who don't like what I pay and don't show anyway. Let them sell it on the Bay then. On numismatic material I simply tell them "I will need to see it to give you my best offer." I usuaally qoute a buy price of 60-65% of CDN Bid for this. Man of them walk but what we buy my assistant lists it and moves it on the Bay for me. I recently had a huge collection of Commems walk in and we flipped it all in about 2 weeks and kept about 10% of it for retail shop customers.

Many collectors, full of message board Koolaid, have an inflated idea of what they can get for their stuff. I run a business and my buy offer is based on what I can move it for right now and make a decent profit that makes it worth my while.

 

Forget that the call ever happened and stop into the shop and see what happens. TC

 

i agree. I would try go to the shop and see whats up.

 

What a jerk!! lose that number!

 

I think shopping for coins is an experience where you need to be comfortable with the dealer. Just from what you said, I don't get a good vibe from that place and I don't think I'd want to shop there.

 

Seems strange that he would not offer you a price but I'm sure he has his reasons.

Question: Would you commit to a price for junk silver over the telephone without seeing what you were buying?

 

With this information, I'd bring some of your silver into his show and specifically ask that you want 80% of melt, which is XX.XX (state what you want) and see what happens. What happened over the phone sucks a little but not worth burning the bridge completely.

 

At the moment, with silver at $29.24, APMEX is selling $1000 bags of 90% silver coins for $21,021 (100.54% of melt), and buying them for $20,298 (97.09% of melt). Of course, you'd have to pay shipping costs, and they may pay less for smaller than bag quantities. Still, it's a good metric.

I wouldn't take less than 90% of melt when selling in person.

 

My local coin shop will tell you exactly what they are paying for silver and gold, over the phone. As long as the coins are not so worn that they lost weight. Just thought I would mention that.

 

Most coin shops I've been to rely on the fact that the seller generally has no idea how much money what they have is worth, and survive by buying low. I suspect you ran into one of these shops and that explains why the person on the phone reacted the way that they did. I would simply move on to another dealer who is more forthright, or you might try the same thing in-person to see if they react differently (it's easier to be a jerk over the phone than it is in person).

 

Yes, I ended up selling them to another coin shop nearby that pays about 95-96% of spot. I didn't figure that this place could beat that, but if it was close enough it might have been worth it to save the drive. And for the record, I called the other coin shop (the one where I did sell them) and he gave me a quote over the phone immediately.

 

The shop by my house won't give out prices either. He wants to see what you got before he commits himself.

 

I ran into similar situation where the buyer was equally as evasive... all I asked was what percentage of spot he paid. Pretty easy question, yes?

When people won't answer the question, more often then not, they'll try to rip you off.

 

So by my calculations ( at 85%) you'd be paying about 18X today. That is fair but not great.

My local dealer just quoted 19X.

My problem is with buyers that try to steal it for 12X or less.

 

I agree !

You are selling it as junk. If it's silver it's silver !

It's like calling the oil company to ask the price of home heating oil. What are they going to do....tell you after they fill the tank ?

My local dealer used to just hang a sign in the window with the price.

 

It's best to check around with multiple Dealers and not always deal with the first one you contact.

 

I stopped in this shop today and wanted to update anyone who cares. There were 2 employees in the store, no customers, and someone else (not sure but the owner talked about calling him and then the guy walked into the back alone so I assumed he was another employee or maybe partner). I got the immediate impression that I was bothering the owner by even being in there. I was looking at the display cases of civil war antiques, etc and when he asked if he could help me I said I was just looking for now. When I got to the coins, he again asked what I was looking for and I said I was just looking, but interested in junk silver and lower grade coins (I am a small-time collector). He pulls out a bag of $75 face in junk silver and offers it. When I say that is more than I can buy at one time, he offers some silver eagles at $31. When I decline he starts to lecture me for several minutes about how if these prices are too high for me than I am better off selling to him because his markup is so low. Then he seems to lose interest in me. I pretty much get ignored for the next 10 minutes, and when I ask for any lower grade cents, dimes, quarters, or any barbers (he had lots of highly graded stuff out but not much else) he just says that he sells all that in bulk and ignores me for the rest of my time in there.

My impression is that his buy and sell prices are ok (he finally gave me his junk prices of $18.70 buy and 20 sell with spot at $28.15), but if you are not spending thousands of dollars then he is not interested in dealing with you. In his defense, they were still unpacking from a coin show, but with 2.5 employees and no other customers in the shop I expected a little bit more from a new coin shop. I can't imagine that unpacking from a coin show is as time-sensitive as packing for one, especially to ignore a new customer to do it. Bottom line, I probably won't return to his shop.