Your Numismatic "Finances"

Some of us, well maybe all of us, have a unbearable urge to buy coins. Whether you have a funny or real answer, do you have a financial budget, monetary restrictions on your purchases? What does it take for you (or your significant other) to accept a coin purchase?

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

I got rid of my "insignificant other" a long time ago. So, I can buy whatever I want. Unfortunately, Social Insecurity doesn't agree with me.

Chris

 

i have a low budget. around 20-30 dollars until i find a job

 

I have a separate "Financial/Investments" account which I use. But it competes with my primary driver of stock investments and such. So I only buy when I really, really want something like the Apollo coins recently.

 

I try to limit my monthly budget to 5% of my paycheck.

 

I try to keep my coin budget low until I get rid of my student loan debt. I'll be able to allot a larger portion to coins/currency much later.

 

There is always gonna be another coin to buy. 10-20% of my paycheck. It all depends on how bad I want it. If it is a coin that rarely comes on the market and I want it I will pay with a credit card. Yes I have made payments on a coin before. lol

 

I currently budget about 7.5% of my expected annual gross income for coin purchases with a certain target of that amount (somewhere around 20-35%, can’t remember specifically) for intrinsic/metal value of the coins. Actual purchases vary year-to-year creating an excess/deficit that I track and can “use”/“repay” in future years. These annual spending targets are tied to expected cumulative costs of sets/pieces I want to collect over a multi-year (20-ish) timeframe.

Coins are illiquid assets and there are high costs to transacting, so I try my best to only buy those that I think I can be happy with for life.

 

I don't have a budget really. There have been times when I've felt flush enough to purchase some and others where I don't purchase because I don't think it will be financially healthy for me to do so (i.e., it would take money that is needing to be free for day to day living). My coin collection is modest and unfortunately many of the coins I have collected generally won't bring back to me what I paid when I sell them. So when looking at this as a hobby, any budget you put in has to also be tied to what money are you willing to have as disposable.... the same way in many cases as spending on movies, etc. You get your fun from them but the return in $$$ being less may be the same as the $$$ spent on things like movies... you enjoyed it while it happened, so base it on that. For example, I don't see movies too often, but things conspired recently to get me to see two new flicks in one day, first movies in a theatre in 7-8 months, and only two in about 6 movies seen in 4 years in the theatre. Basically it was 20 odd bucks out for about 4 hours of fun seeing movies. Enjoyed it tremendously, but I'm not getting that money back. Transfer that to me spending say 100 on coins and when I can sell them I might only recoup 60-80 of it because I bought at the value it it had retail, I have to be happy with the joy it brings me in both owning it and acquiring it. However, I can justify a hundred or so spent on a coin or couple of coins even in those circumstances if I know that I am getting the enjoyment of them.

I also have been selling a number of the coins I have purchased before and will continue to do so.... because not every coin retains the enjoyment factor for me. Occasionally have sold for more than I paid, but usually for less. However, keeping a coin just because I cannot get the price I paid for it is not always a great choice. The coin may never get much more and if I don't want it I hate keeping it.

 

My Monetary gains from Metal Detecting pays for most of my Mint Error Acquisitions!

I have made thousands detecting.. I recommend the hobby!

 

I spent forty years happy with what amounts to owning cull coins. Now that I can treat myself to some nicer coins it is darned hard for me to make those purchases. I have, but the coin really has to grab me. I don’t really have a budget but spend more of my available cash on PM’s. That is easier for me to justify since I have them earmarked for my kids and grandkids. I just get to enjoy them while I am still at the party!

 

No hard and fast budget, but I do have one hard and fast rule. I refuse to pay more for a coin than I did for my house.

 

$75 ???

 

actually spent $675.00 in silver coins in 1979 that over time I had pulled from a cash register while in college. Sold it during the housing boom for over $230000.



.

 

This is a very smart question to ask at your age. You should only use discretionary cash to purchase anything related to a hobby. If you plan to go into the coin business then this might change how you spend for coins. Always pay yourself first if you have an income. What that means is put away a specific amount as savings. My grandfather told me to save 10% of everything I make and one day I would be a rich man. Savings now really means 401k, IRA, or other investment vehicles.

Next comes living expenses then what is left is what you can spend on your hobbies and leisure. If you want to save for a big splurge that is not part of the original 10% (I have upped this to 15% personally) which is for your retirement.

 

I haven’t been buying lately unless something good and cheap comes across my path to sell. Things looking better lately before was just bottomfeeding. When things were good. 2015 and before. My usual criteria was anytime the checkbook was over $10k and there wasn’t anything major on the horizon coins were fair game

 

When I do coin shows I do try and buy some new stock though too

 

My buying is limited by my cheapness

 

I spend in bursts of $200-$500 every two or so months.