I'm glad I finally bought silver + What other types should I buy?

So for the passed year I have been contemplating between buying silver and not buying it. Today I exchanged about $55 worth of pennies for some cash and thought to myself, why not buy some silver rounds with this money? Anyways, when I got to the store they first showed me some rounds that were made by private firms and they looked like someone dunked them in oil and let it dry out, but when I saw the panda's and kookaburra's I fell in love. I ended up buying a 2014 kookaburra and a 2014 panda. These are my very first silver rounds and I swear I have never thought that I would think something made out of metal is beautiful and here I have the two most beautiful coins sitting right in front of me. I also ordered a 2015 3/4 oz Canadian Grey Wolf off of ebay. I'm not in it to make any sort of money, although that was my intention when I started looking at silver, now I'm just here to collect and maybe save some money for retirement since I'm just awful at saving money. So I'm currently looking for some other rounds that are also beautiful what do you guys think I should get?

Link to the Canadian Grey Wolf I got: http://www.ebay.com/itm/121459747201?_trksid=p2060778.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

I like many different things but by far advise sticking to government issued bullion for ease of liquidating when/if you need to do so. If you are buying bullion or collectible bullion, many years issues of the Mexican Libertads turn out to be low mintage years. They tend to carry a premium even in bullion pieces because of this. I would avoid buying past years issues unless familiar with pricing, due to premiums they now typically carry. And if you like them for some reason aesthetically, buy some when they are available for a current year. They come in many sizes, but 1 oz and a stunning 5 ounce silver piece are what I would recommend.

Remember to always trust your instincts, study and save before making snap purchases, beware of the effect of emotional marketing urging you to buy/spend your hard earned or saved cash, and have fun! Congrats on your entry to this area of investing or collecting, whatever it may serve you.

 

Great Britain's Britannia Series has some nice silver pieces among them. Each year can be different so just don't look at one round.

 

Yeah that's great advice, I also think government issued bullion is the best bet because they look way better than private firm made bullion. Thanks!

Salty, I will look into them. Thanks!

Also are the Somalian Elephant coins and koalas collectible? I really want to get them, but idk if I will be able to sell it later on if anything should happen.

 

Certainly anything can be collectible. If it's something that moves you that's fine, but it may be hard to find buyers if you hope to sell it for more than its intrinsic value. If you mean in terms of value or future value, I would do a lot of research into this and try to understand the current trends in bullion, and bullion bought and perceived/held as a collectible. It may not always be as popular as it is now. Many of the bullion dealers and world mints are making a lot of money selling limited mintage and certified bullion, getting some folks to pay a premium for it, but it can be a very risky buy. For such things, collectibles and coins carrying a premium, you may wish to start into collectible coins, not bullion. It's a whole other realm to learn about and to enjoy delving into.

 

Thing is I already collect coins, I just wanted to buy silver because I want some variation in my collection. What I mean by being able to sell it later on is that will I be able to sell it at the same or a close premium to what I bought the round for? I will be doing a lot more research regarding bullion I don't like going into something blind as a bat. If you could point me to some sites or books that will help me with bullion, that would be greatly appreciated.

 

It will be worth what the market values it at, on the day you sell. You have no control over this nor does anyone else. So the best answer to your question is 'Maybe".

 

Alright thanks. Oh I looked at some bitannias and they are marvelous! Will be buying some later on, I really like the one from 1999.

 

There are many many dealers online, but you can also buy from local coin shops and sometimes dealers at coin shows will have bullion. Shop around and understand the costs involved for the methods you use to buy, and at the quantities you buy. Read lots of forums, not just this one. Kitco has lots of historical commodities market information[1], they sell bullion and also have a forum where members discuss related matters. Sites like bullionstacker dot com took off with the recent bull market in PM, and there are others like them. 321 also has some interesting commentary at times. Others may chime in with additional links to help you along.

Most questions you have will likely have been answered in some fashion by any number of people on forums or you can glean enough information to start to find answers yourself by digging back through old conversations.

Online dealers like APMEX, Provident Metals, Gainesville and many others are good for a user friendly online shopping like experience however you pay a premium for the interface. You can also look into companies that deal more for investment and may offer longer delivery times and competitive prices with less customer frills. A-Mark, FideliTrade, Dillon Gage, Monarch, Scottsdale, QSB, others.

The list of places to acquire metals has exploded in the past 5-10 years. It just takes some shopping around and finding the differences, what kind of service you like and where you want to buy from, locally, online, or by select dealers in your state or elsewhere.

Be careful when/if buying bullion on eBay or similar venues. There are issues with counterfeit bullion and unscrupulous sellers to beware of, but it's not to say you cannot buy there.

On YouTube you can find a whole host of "stackers" who love to show off their bullion and soliloquise(!) exhaustively about the benefits and reasons to buy physical precious metals. Just be aware of the message and keep in mind your own personal goals, price points and the reason you are buying these things. Some people make impassioned cases and are adamant in their finances, commitment and politics for why they buy. Others just like to share what they collect and buy through the mail, how they bought for "under spot" (price) and make 'unboxing videos'. Do your own research and develop your perspective and goals without allowing yourself to get overwhelmed by others' insights and/or biases.

I often say, investing is a very personal thing, and you must define how you do that for yourself, as there is no one way nor right way of doing it. It can be and is risky, so know that with knowledge and patience, you are more likely to make intelligent choices and succumb less to emotion.

BTW, this is by no way an exhaustive list of resources linked to, just some examples that are commonly cited and which might help you get a point of reference online.

 

There are some interesting coins that are in silver, but are not just bullion. I like the Mexican onzas, and a lot of the Canadian stuff.

 

I agree with other good advice here. Collect government issued bullion. Collecting bullion is actually brilliant, since you get the safety of bullion with the satisfaction of collecting. There are tons of different government issue types, so lots to choose from. One caveat is to not pay too much of a premium if you are truly buying for bullion. If you wish to buy just for your hobby, then whatever you want, but maybe start with a variety of current year, low premium bullion pieces first. I actually just bought my son a half ounce turtle wanting to start him on collecting coins like this.

Btw, forgot to add @treehugger is an expert in many of these issues. Hopefully he can chime in here with some sage advice as well.

 

Thanks for all the help and advice! You're all saying "Don't pay too much of a premium." could I ask how much is too much?

EDIT: Also when people say premium is that how much the coin/round will cost over spot?

 

Yes sir. up to 5 or 6 dollars over spot is still considered a bullion item. More than that and its becoming more of a collectible, which is fine just different.

 

It differs between bullion dealers and other sellers. You will see for example the given constantly fluctuating spot price in the markets. These prices are based on price per ounce of large 1000 oz Comex bars generally. Prices are displayed with a buy and sell per ounce cost. Dealers use this to set their prices for buy/sell to make a profit for carrying the product for customers who pay a bit more than they did.

Premiums vary based on how much you buy from some dealers. Let's say one ounce of silver costs you more to purchase than a roll of 20 silver 1 ounce coins. The more you buy the lower the price (premium) you'll pay.

Many people want to own gold but the smallest fractional bullion (bars or coins) carry the highest premiums compared to buying a full ounce. In recent years bars of 1 - 10 grams of gold have become readily available and 1/20th of an ounce units are also being marketed, but they carry high premiums and are usually poor returns on investment. Most advice points to saving your money and buying government issued bullion in full 1 ounce or larger amounts.

You can learn about these premiums just by monitoring prices and comparing dealers and then comparing prices for the same products they sell.

Also, don't be swayed too much by the premiums placed on bullion of earlier dates. Some bullion dealers online really increase prices on bullion issued a few years prior just because they can and suggest that they haven't much of it to sell, but its not really always something of the kind of rarity that would command a premium for you if you were to resell it yourself. Of course, sometimes there is a rarity issue, but when investing in bullion that is not a major concern and debatable if bullion is collectible/rare or worthy of any such premium. A 2014 Silver Eagle is for all intents and purposes the same as one stamped in the 1980s, for bullion issues.

There are a lot of competing factors in the bullion trade, especially these days, marketing all sorts of sizes and gimmicky series of issues to maintain these robust sales periods they are enjoying, but be careful of what you are paying, especially if just investing for wealth preservation, for they may not reward you as much as more generic pieces would.

I'm sure I haven't covered everything and only generally at that, but others may fill you in with other areas and advice as you raise questions about this topic.

 

You are a coin collector already, so you have an advantage in that you can figure out what different kinds of coins are and can pick out some that are what I call "mildly numismatic" for a little over spot. I look for the oldest and coolest coins I can find for a little over spot. A good example is the Mexican 8 reales. I was able to buy about 5 or 6 of them for around spot, and then they took off. It's hard to find them for anything less than around $50 nowadays.

Some of the coins I would look for include Barbers, maybe Walking Libs, and definitely Standing Liberty quarters, but they had very weak dates, so it's hard to get any which still have a date in junk silver.

The fun thing is that you are going to be collecting and hopefully saving money as well.

 

Got a couple questions. I went on apmex and noticed that are having a free shipping deal if you buy the 2015 britannia. So I want to make the free shipping count and put in
1/2 oz Silver Round - APMEX (Walking Liberty Half-Dollar)
2015 1 oz Silver Somalian Elephant
2015 Great Britain 1 oz Silver Britannia BU (12/19)
1 oz Silver American Eagle BU.

My question is what's better to buy a random year silver american eagle or a 2014 silver american eagle?

Also how do I know what size of an airtite I need to buy for these coins and others I will be buying in the future?

 

It's been my experience that you will usually get the current year issue of the ASE if you buy the "random" or date of their choice ASE. You may get another date, so if you don't want to go pot luck, then buy the date you want.

If you look at the specifications on Apmex's website, they'll tell you the diameter of the coin or round you're buying.

Something you might consider is the airtites with the foam insert vs direct fit airtites. It's personal choice that you need to decide, do you want the airtite to fit the exact coin you're putting in it or would you prefer the outside diameter of the airtite to be the same for your collection.

 

@Lasers
If taking advantage of the shipping offer currently featured, take a look at the details of delivery, dependent on when APMEX receives the coins. Mentioned in this thread:

APMEX Free Shipping This Week With Britannia Purchase

For AirTites you can look up the sizes on a couple of coin supply websites:

JP''s Corner has a Ring Diameter Guide, a handy PDF you can download.

The company's website is here too for info on AirTite Holders.

 

Well I finally got some junk silver at 13.5 x face, which is pretty good, because the price of silver is going up today.

 

Oh my, thanks for telling me that, I was gonna get the walking liberty adn the american eagle as christmas presents for my nephews, I guess I could just save another $30 and order from JM Bullion with free shipping. Thanks, you saved me a lot of frustration and wait time.

Oh and is JP's Corner a trusted seller? Do they accept PayPal?