Retirement......numismatic coins saved....

Great to be able to have that perspective.

 

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is not the real question not coin collecting as an "inflation hedge" but as an alternative specie if the dollar were to tank as it did before the depression. this is not political, but do coins offer any protection when a politician suggests "just printing more dollars" as a way to pay our country's creditors? an answer would be nice to both questions. thxnks

 

Usually the people saying this are SELLING the coins they are recommending.

Yes it is just so I can have the collection.

When did he buy it? back n the 88-89 boom they were actually "worth" that much. (MS-65 1881-S Morgans were pushing $800 - $1K at the time.)

Same here, to me that would just mean that now I can buy MORE!

 

This fact cannot be overemphasized IMHO

 

Do not buy for investment or profit, buy for the beauty and art. I think I never purchased a coin because it was or seemed to be a 'bargain'. If I saw and liked it and if could afford the coin I bought at any price because I loved it and never considered buying it for a profit, now or in the future. When you wish to sell the market determines the price.

 

That is only if you sell in an Open Market.
If you are selling more as a business to an individual, or communicating with less knowledgeable collectors, then you may be able to sell above the open market.

There's many ppl that buy coins in the open market and turn around and try to sell them for multiples of what they buy them for. They may add value, etc or just try to flip them.

 

Yes, I see these ridiculously overpriced coins listed on eBay for months and sometimes years. Whoever buys it anywhere near the ask price will be hopelessly buried in it.

 

The seller is also buried.

 

Well...possibly purchasing coins for some is a "win-win" situation. Coin collecting nice ones, and also selling them at a possible profit. Who knows now with the way the economy is going. Many people truly believe the paper money will be obsolete soon...then what will everyone do? Like I said, I can't possibly make a "stash of coins" to make up for the obsolete paper money, and a lot of people will also be in the same boat.

 

It,s nice that we live in a country where one can even contemplate what to do with their money at all. What it boils down to is are you comfortable and not hungry?

 

That's right....if you boil it down. Used to be a time where people could plan and save money. Saving money in banks...used to be the CD % was good, and now that is almost ridiculous for anyone to put money into CDs. For some, it's hard to even afford the basic essentials one needs in order to survive. Life was easier; one didn't have to worry about getting a job in what they went to college for....now hate to say it, for some, college is just a waste of time and money; the jobs just aren't out there what they went to college for. So now it seems for some, they have to settle for "just the basics", which is fine; satisfied with just getting by and living somewhat comfortably.

 

Rare coins are not commodities and are not a substitute for commodities either. But then most likely, the coins you have in mind are not remotely actually rare but common or very common.

The "investment" coins which most closely resemble bullion are bullion substitutes such as common Morgan dollars, Peace dollars, generic "classic" gold ($10 and $20) and some modern US bullion. Still, the premiums to bullion are frequently high or very high and subject to price changes which have low correlation to the bullion spot price.

There is no "fail safe" option which will appreciate in either nominal or stable value terms or which will maintain anyone's living standards. The common fallback position is usually what I term conventional diversification but the problem with this strategy today is that all major asset classes (bonds, stocks and real estate) are absurdly inflated versus historical standards due to the current asset, credit and debt mania and subject to "unexpected" collapse.

 

Places where coins are purchased by individuals, will buy back their coins at "spot price", which is good.

 

I've bought and sold coins for the last 60 years and have made money on my coins more often than not, but I've never been a full-time dealer. In other words, I always kept my day job. It's been a lot of fun and has given me much to write about. My advice is to buy coins that are accurately graded and priced at or near wholesale at the time you buy them. You can nearly always get your money out of them if not make a buck or two. Also, I subscribe wholeheartedly to the advice to buy only coins certified by one of the big two (NGC, PCGS). Two of my main reasons for doing this are that they'll be easier for my heirs to sell and the slabs offer protective housing. One final note: I try to avoid all the modern coins put out by the Mint to entice collectors out of their money. Don't get me wrong, they're often quite appealing. I still believe you should stick with the tried and true.

 

The depression was a period of extreme deflation. The Fed has been fight deflation since 2009. I think every thing loses value. Cash is king, not anything else. Once the deflation is over and the Fiat money system starts to get reflated assets will reflate also. One point, if the Feds keep printing money that will eventually cause inflation, where the dollar is worthless. During the depression no one had dollars and they bought a lot.

 

People truly believe that cash is going to become obsolete. This deflation, has been so long now. And the economy and markets are bad...people don't know what to do; how to save money in a somewhat "risk-free" way where they are going to profit "somewhat"possibly. Just have to save cash; I guess.

 

I see this hobby as a fun way to park a little extra money in something I love. It will always have some value. That's better than blowing it at the bar or wild vacations with only pictures to remember. I don't need a lot of toys to enjoy life.

Going back to the op's question. I'm a big fan of putting real money into rental property. It will pay you for the rest of your life. Passive income is the key to living without a job in the future.

 

Rental property....at first one has to have money to get into real estate, but I guess it pays off in the long run.

 

I hear and see all the arguments for and against investing into coins for retirement or for a suitable investment. Obviously, one should diversify their money for when they do retire. I think if you do your research you can use coins as a means of making money when you retire; maybe. Saying this, I love collecting coins for the pure sense of the joy of collecting. If I happen to make money when I reach retirement then so be it; if I don't I feel the same.

I would rather enjoy spending my days until I retire collecting coins I love then worrying about whether I will make money doing so. I hope that when I do finally retire I would have invested in other means of capital such as stocks, bonds, Roth IRA's, CD's, personal savings, etc. Sometimes I personally feel that the numismatic community forgets why we started collecting coins, paper money, bullion, etc in the first place. The last time I checked; for me at least, it was for the pure joy of acquiring the coins that I love and will pass on to my children.

I do understand that solely investing in coins as your top portfolio goal is foolish as the markets are very unstable and volatile. If you have the time to do the research and carefully studying the market then maybe you will succeed. Someone wise once told me that "we are only the caretakers of the coins we collect; until someone else becomes the next caretaker".

 

I once knew of a fellow who took 50k and invested it in Gold Coins for which rose to a value of whatever Gold is today. I would not advise it unless you already have deep pockets with extra money to play with. What i would advise is that you sit down with a Financial Advisor and ask him or her questions on your needs an goals. They will advise you on what direction that might be best for you. Do this and you'll feel better about yourself and your future.