Some Dispassionate Advice Required - GB Coins

Discussion in 'World Coins' started by 1934 Wreath Crown, May 26, 2020.

  1. 1934 Wreath Crown

    1934 Wreath Crown Well-Known Member

    I don't know if I'm allowed to ask some of these questions here but if I'm breaching any forum rules, it is not intentional and I apologise.

    I've been collecting coins, mainly GB old and silver over the past 10 years of so. Initially they were quite basic and eBay was my main source as I was even less knowledgeable than I am now and live in a region where coin dealers are almost unheard of. Also the quality of the coins available on eBay is not always great. As I learned more about coins in general, I explored other sources for purchasing my coins plus my sphere of interest also widened.

    I'm beginning to lean more toward higher quality, key dates or scarce/rare issues as well as adding ancients to my collection. Covid gave me the time and impetus to revisit my collection and start listing what I had. I realised that the coins I bought as bullion, no longer interest me and need to go. But I also have a second tier of scarce/key dates which are of lower quality compared to what I have bought over the last 5 years. I'm thinking .....Do I sell these and replace them with fewer but more desirable examples or should I just keep them in the back of the cabinet and forget about them???

    If the decision is to sell, what would be the best way to go about it? Most auction houses charge a huge chunk in buyer's and seller's premium and eBay means shipping many coins individually, which would add to the cost. Many of the coins are different variants of the guinea or sovereign and I probably could identify about 50+ coins that I no longer feel the need to retain.

    A sample of the kind of coins is attached to this thread and I would love to hear from knowledgeable GB coin collectors on what they would do in my place. BTW, I already have better examples of the key dates in these pictures (sorry for the poor quality of the photo).

    Would love to hear your opinions, advice and experiences, if you've gone through something similar.

    edited - pics removed
     
    Last edited by a moderator: May 27, 2020
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  3. furryfrog02

    furryfrog02 Well-Known Member

    I think if you went to sell and tried to sell to a LCS, you would probably only get a portion of the melt value. My LCS sells anything Victoria-QE2 for melt plus a premium. They buy for under melt and don't care what it is.

    You might make out better by selling through a third part. Sure you have to pay fees but you will have a market that actually values the coin itself and not just the metal.

    You could always send a few my way and I will take care of them for you ;) lol
     
  4. Chris B

    Chris B Supporter! Supporter

    My opinion. If you want the highest dollar amount returned to you, go the eBay route. It will take longer and there will be more work involved for you. If you want a relatively quick turn around and less work send them to the auction house of your choice. Because these are gold they will sell. Yes the auction house route will potentially mean less money for you but then again, the auction house is doing most of the work.
     
    PaulTudor likes this.
  5. 1934 Wreath Crown

    1934 Wreath Crown Well-Known Member

    The reason I'm leaning more towards an auction house is that eBay+Paypal charges work out at about 13%+, add to that international shipping, unless someone buys multiple coins, plus all the hassle of listing each coin, waiting for payment and worrying about loss in transit. Too much tension for someone my age:D
     
  6. Mkman123

    Mkman123 Well-Known Member

    1934 Wreath what I don't understand is why not go the zero fee route, sell them here or on other free channels such as facebook or instagram? No fees and payment can be what you choose....paypal, money order, etc. Then whatever cannot sell you sell it on ebay but at least you get to keep most of the money.
     
  7. Kentucky

    Kentucky Supporter! Supporter

    I think most auction fees are actually higher than that. Possibly try and sell some here in the "For Sale" forum.
     
  8. 1934 Wreath Crown

    1934 Wreath Crown Well-Known Member

    @Mkman123 actually I have sold through someone in the UK at VERY competitive rates and have been offered melt for the run-of-the-mill coins. My main hurdle is fully insured postage. They get very nervous when I mention coins and will not entertain any gold items at the post office here.:(

    As you know, courier costs can be prohibitive unless someone is buying a lot of items and is prepared to pay for the courier costs.
     
  9. Mr. Flute

    Mr. Flute Well-Known Member

    I presume the sample photo in this thread is indicative of coins that are objectively worth more than bullion value.

    If so, I would, in your shoes, assign them to a reputable auction house or find an individual that will purchase them at retail value (and/or you break even). I wouldn't take quality pieces like these to any random small time dealer to wholesale them.

    Good luck.
     
    1934 Wreath Crown likes this.
  10. 1934 Wreath Crown

    1934 Wreath Crown Well-Known Member

    Thanks Mr. Flute. I was thinking of getting some of them graded e.g. the 1831 and 1838 because I think they will grade XF or better and then handing them over to someone who has a strong client base in the UK. Might post an update when its all done:)
     
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  11. GDJMSP

    GDJMSP Numismatist Moderator

    My opinion, selling to dealers outright is your best bet. No matter what the money in your pocket ends up being about the same as if you sell them on ebay or an auction house. And ebay is a mountain more of work on top of it all. And trying to sell them individually simply doesn't work if you've got more than a just a few.

    And yeah, I know this is never what anyone wants to hear but it's the simple truth. And yeah, I know a bit about it as I've sold 2 entire collections - and tried every way there is !
     
  12. 1934 Wreath Crown

    1934 Wreath Crown Well-Known Member

    I totally concur. Would never think about going the eBay route. The additional trouble and hidden cost of international shipping would kill me. I've already shortlisted about 50 coins (mainly sovereigns) which I intend sending to someone in the UK. He's even offered me spot on the ones he feels might not do too well in an auction. He did pretty well on the first lot of 20 odd coins that I sent him in March and I achieved almost exactly what I had estimated.
     
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  13. jaytant

    jaytant Active Member

    I went though something like this a few years ago. I did have time on my hands (2 years). I didn’t have any dealers nearby, let alone a trusted one.

    First offered them to aquaintences, forums and eBay Buyitnows at my price. (I sold like 15% like that over 2 months). Then divided the rest into two piles based on a weekend of researching sales values on eBay and auction houses. Whatever seemed to get good pieces on eBay, I consigned them (to avoid packaging and shipping hassles) all to an eBay seller with no reserve. The rest went to auction houses. I first tried three houses with small consignments (when small consignments were acceptable) and then sent the balance to the best one from my experiences. They didn’t do too badly, nor too great. If you use eBay consignment sellers, you end up with roughly the same in hand whether you use them or an auction house. (It wasn’t some super valuable collection that I could negotiate a lot on reducing seller fees). Both those venues had their surprising duds but also a few items went shockingly high. I ended up with about 95% of what I expected which wasn’t bad.
     
  14. 1934 Wreath Crown

    1934 Wreath Crown Well-Known Member

    I think that since most of my coins are gold and established eBay dealers are asking for at least 20-25% (to cover eBay and Paypal costs + their commission), I'm better off going with an auction house that only charges 10% BP and minimal listing fees from sellers. Thank you everyone for your input and for helping me make up my mind:)
     
  15. Mkman123

    Mkman123 Well-Known Member

    @1934 Wreath Crown Try this ebayer: jkcoins
    He has a website that you can read up more about him and his fees. His consignment prices is lower than 20%, he's pretty well known for those who are into world coins and his auctions do well.

    The person is known on cointalk, very well known on PCGS forums, and also well known on ngc forum. I've used him and its been great.
     
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  16. 1934 Wreath Crown

    1934 Wreath Crown Well-Known Member

    Thanks. I will contact him
     
  17. jgenn

    jgenn World Crown Collector

    When you feel that a coin no longer fits in your collection you have two choices, sell it now or sell it later. It's unlikely that you will change your mind about how it fits in your collection. Just be realistic on what you hope to recover from your original costs -- for many reasons you are not likely to break even.

    I chose to sell 20 certified world crowns through a major auction house last year. I did it that way to have a well documented record of my sales as well as to avoid any complications from eBay returns, etc. I actually sold one at a profit but the rest were at a loss, some quite considerable.

    Here in the USA our Internal Revenue Service considers coins as collectibles and so they fall into a category where your profits are taxed as capital gains up to 28%. For those of us that sell coins at a loss it means that our transactions can be used to offset gains on our "better" investments.
     
    Last edited: May 29, 2020
  18. TheFinn

    TheFinn Well-Known Member

    Selling through an auction house will cost you more than ebay.
     
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  19. 1934 Wreath Crown

    1934 Wreath Crown Well-Known Member

    Not really. Many auction houses charge 10% whereas eBay+Paypal is 13%+ and there is a lot more anxiety with unscrupulous buyers claiming it is a fake or using the Money Back Guarantee against the seller, as an after sale negotiating tactic.

    Add to this international tracked postage of say $30 (about 6-7%) for an average sovereign and unless you'e got buyers with multiple purchases, you're out of pocket VERY QUICKLY.
     
  20. harley bissell

    harley bissell Well-Known Member

    OP - Contact your favorite dealer or auction house. Since you are still collecting offer them a trade. They sell these coins and give you a credit for your future purchases from them. They should greatly lower the auction fees since they get all the proceeds plus profits on your future purchases. That would let you convert these unwanted out of balance coins into the ones you want at no additional costs to you. If they don't give you a big break on fees or you don't trust them don't do it.
     
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  21. Thomas R Reynolds

    Thomas R Reynolds Active Member

    Try David Lawrence Rare Coins. I did wonders through him. No buyers premium and a low flat shipping rate. He also takes consignments to sell at a very good rate.
     
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