I would like to know what you think is the best way to collect silver for long term investment. I know it really comes down to personal preference but I would like to hear what you think. Personally I am in silver more for the longer term and not so much for the numismatic play. I have a good selection of each category (100 oz bar, junk silver and silver rounds). I have yet to get into the ASE's because of their mark up from spot. I try to get my silver as close to spot as possible. Recently I have been thinking of selling my 100 oz bar and then using those funds to get more junk or maybe spend it all on ASE's as I have a good selection of junk coins. The cheapest I have seen ASE's go for is right around $3 over spot. Or do I stick with the junk route where I am able to get them for spot at worse case scenario but typically pick up dimes and quarters for a few % points under spot. What is your preferred method of collecting silver (which coins) and why? Any feedback or suggestions are appreciated.
I like any junk coins that kids today have never seen in circulation, so no Kennedy halves, Roosevelt dimes or Washington quarters. All coins most have very readable dates. I Also like Maples, Pandas, Philharmonics and Libertads way more than ASE. I wouldn't have no more than 20% of my silver in 100 ounce bars.
Although I never had a 100 oz bar, I do collect ASE's and junk silver, but I would suggest having an appropriate ratio of junk silver to bullion. Mine is 5:1 junk to bullion. Just figure out what you like more. I prefer junk silver because it has some sort of great history and a nice variety in selection. Hope this helps. ~Cannyn
Keeping in mind that this is being posted in the "Bullion Investing" forum. I'd say that ASE's, Reputable silver rounds, or 10oz Bars are the best way to invest in Physical Silver. Regarding Junk Silver, if you can get it for less than the Silver Rounds i suppose i'd get the junk silver.. I'm not a huge junk silver fan it seems more for the doomsayers than long term commodity investors. The most important thing is your Dollar Cost Average per Troy Oz. The second most important thing is for those troy oz to not be all made up of random no name rounds/bars. HOWEVER long term... i don't know if anyone will care whether your bars are JM, Engelhard, Sunshine,... or No name as long as they say .999 Fine on them.. I used to like the idea of 100oz bars, but since you are "longer term.." try imagining the hassle of selling a 100oz bar in 10-15-20years when silver is worth ??$100/oz???... your bar is now worth $10,000. Cool but now you have to find ONE with $10,000 to spend... Selling 10oz bars for $1,000 now sounds a whole lot more reasonable now doesn't it?
The forms of silver that can be boughtl close to spot will probably be sold for spot or less. An ASE on the other hand, can be bought for a premium to spot and sold for a premium to spot. This makes the premium less important. I believe [others may disagree] that someday the Mint will cease production of ASEs, and when this happens every ASE will begin to accrue at least some numismatic premium because demand will continue while supply will become fixed. Many people collect ASEs and I don't see this changing. In a few decades, people may think about ASEs the same way they think about morgan and peace dollars today. So if you concentrate your purchases on some of the dates with lower mintages that seem to sell for the same price as the higher mintages, there is a chance, but by no means a certainty, that your investment will increase with the price of silver plus a premium to the price of silver -- the double play in silver investing. Anyway, think about it and decide for yourself, but this is the way I see it.
I appreciate your insight and feedback. I had a similar concern about the 100 oz bar. What do I do if silver is trading at $100 an ounce? It won't be nearly as easy to move as ASE's or smaller bars. I do like the junk route as they are easy to liquidate now and I don't see that changing down the road. I am going to look more into the Maples, Pandas, Philharmonics and Libertads. For now I have stayed with the domestic coins with silver but on the gold side I have purchased some Krugerrands but those are my only international coins. Again, thank you for your feedback and suggestions they are very helpful.
problem with 100 bars is they tend to be less liquid and therefore you probably have to sell at spot or a bit behind spot. If the price of silver goes up, and you try to sell to a dealer or through any bank transaction, there will be a report filed with the IRS since you'll exceed the $10,000 threshold. Not sure if that's something you will want, as a lot of that price appreciation may be due to inflation, and you'll pay tax if you report it on your tax return. other than that, junk, 1 or 10 ounce bars are good. I'd stay away from odd sized bars like 5 ouncers, half kilos, kilos, 20.59 ounce, etc. unless they're CS or PS or something. Those tend to be somewhat harder to sell than 1 or 10 ounces (harder to sell as in a slighly lower price)
