My wife volunteered me to go over to a church friend's house and look at several coins that he wants to sell. This never works out well--all it ever does is cause hard feelings when I tell him that his silver eagle is worth spot plus a couple of dollars...or his 1940 era walking liberties aren't worth much more. This is why I choose NOT to run a coin store.
Why should you feel bad if you are being totally honest with them? About 12 years ago, one of my pool-playing buddies decided that he wanted to sell his small collection which included some IHC's, and he asked me to give him an idea of what they were worth. Among the IHC's was an 1877, a 1908-S and a 1909-S, and I explained to him that these were worth more than the rest. I wasn't interested in the collection, but I had another friend who would probably buy them. Although, I went along for the meeting, I kept my thoughts to myself unless I was asked a question. The buyer made an offer, and the seller asked me if it was a fair deal, to which, I said it was. So, the deal was consummated. About one month later, the 1877 more than doubled in value. Oh, well! My pool-playing buddy and I are still friends to this day. Chris
It's happened to many of us, myself included. I guess the only way to do it so there are no hard feelings, is to bring a recent listing of the coins in question so they can agree you are being completely up front with them. Possibly a grading guide also so you can show them how you come to a decision. On your second note, if I owned the property outright, even at my ripe age I would open a Coin & Collectibles shop in an instant, but that's not gonna' happen.
I try not to let many locals know I buy and sell coins. One of my Dad's friends bought a TON of silver when it was at it's high a few years ago, and last year got cancer, so decided to sell it all. After I told him how much his stuff was worth he decided to hold onto it a little longer. Of course, his wife had to sell it all for a big loss after he died
I went over a bunch of Morgans a friend's grandmother had given him years ago. Not only had they been kept jammed together in one of those big match boxes, he finished the destruction by taking silver polish to them. They were all very common dates -- in uncommonly hideous condition. He decided to keep them for sentimental reasons.
Unfortunately, even such excellent ideas do not always solve the problem, especially when someone has it in their heads they're sitting on a small fortune, or that you're out to get them. I've personally found that offering to sell the same types/dates in similar conditions to the individual at similar prices to be another sometimes helpful approach, but again, nothing is foolproof and even this is at times ignored. It's really a damned if you do and damned if you don't kind of thing.
All so very true. And there's always the additional problem of sentimental value plus hearing..."My Dad/Mom would never have saved these if they were not valuable". Sometimes just best to avoid these close kinds of requests.
Heh. I do something similar for ridiculous eBay Best Offers -- I put up a lot of 100 40% Kennedys, and someone offered $79, saying "I sell these for a dollar each". I rejected the offer with a friendly note that I'd take all she would sell me at that price. Haven't heard from her since.
That is why my inventory has instructions. I put what I paid for things and what their approximate worth is. Junk silver is labeled as such.
Why dont you ask him to do a little research by going to ebay, search for the coin and year in question and click on the 'sold item' filter?
Do what I did, rent a small space in an antique mall. One of two larger coin shops in my area just closed and moved into a mall, which drastically reduced his overhead. I pay $52/month and it gives me something to do a couples days/week.
If I could find a rental at a price like that I probably would. Trouble is, I live very rural and the town next to me here in the Berkshires, Ma. is known as the antiques capitol of Ma. A very eclectic, snobbish group, that frowns heavily upon those not in their clique. The next town up does have a rental space group that I have never inquired on but when driving by and even pulling into the parking lot all I see are what looks like very old and expensive furniture, paintings, the typical antique items again. I will make an effort to stop by and see what they have to offer though.
Before renting a cabinet (or the like) I would suggest being sure to check out other vendors first, paying very close attention to what they're offering, prices, etc. I had one some years ago, and while it was okay to liquidate junk on the cheap, it oddly wasn't a place to offer anything decent (regardless of value). Varieties/errors drew very little interest, even when more than competitively priced, but if selling problem junk (as most other vendors did), it wasn't a bad place. Better yet damaged coins sold very well. Novelty-type coins - cheap IHCs, Buffalo nickels, etc - would sell well as would junk dollars, but considering the greater clientele, it makes sense. Junk level Barbers and other older types would sell well as long as priced in reasonable relation to spot. In fact, a number of local dealers/sellers would use the place to liquidate coins that collectors generally avoid. That said, this past summer I visited another antique mall, perhaps an hour from me, and there were many more coin cabinets than in the one above. However, I did notice that most were offing the same type of material and suggested my experience not outside the ordinary, at least in this general area.
Thank you for the tips. I have such a wide variety of items I could disperse, including much ephemera, very old silver plate, limited edition steins, so much I cannot even begin to tell. I would probably do okay with a wide variety as opposed to just settling with coins. I'm actually making the hard life choice of moving to Florida next year to be closer to a sister and my best friend of 50 years, so I'm going to have to decide what to do soon. But thanks for replying and appreciate your response. Tom
Based upon my own observations and experiences, I would think having other items to offer both a wise move as well as one that could/should increase your chances of a worthwhile experience. Best of luck, both with this and the move.
It's my thread, so I guess I should update it. Sure enough, my friend had 4 silver eagles, a capital holder with 5 wartime walking liberty halves (lightly circulated), a dateless buffalo nickel, and several 40's and 50's Lincolns. I told him what they were worth and that I wasn't really interested in buying them. He took the news much better than past history of the situation would have led me to expect. At least, he let me finish my ice tea before I left.
I haven't really had any bad or such experiences so far. Any private sales I done were with my eight year son (to get him used to the concept of what coin collecting costs) and a friend at work who is a long time coin collector. But these were me selling to them with full disclosure/understanding of the situation. I've looked at the coins my MIL has and let her know that market value (they are common coins) and she understood the value. My uncle has a coin collection that I haven't seen for about 25 years, but I have provided subtle hints to my cousins and aunt that when the time comes they should have me evaluate it for value before the go to any dealers. Though, I haven't pushed on it as I don't want them to think I'm trying to 'get' the collection.
I have not had bad experiences buying and selling to a friend especially if you have established a genuine friendship. I buy stuff from coin club members who are wonderful to talk to. sometimes the price discrepancy is off but the friendly art of the deal can work. Just enjoy the hobby.
