What's the premium for slabbing inexpensive coins?

It really depends. Take something like an 1883 Carson City Morgan. A raw UNC (especially a raw UNC in the GSA packaging) sells for about the same price as a graded MS 62/63. And there are other common date Morgans plus Peace Dollars where a slabbed 60-62 can sell for the same or even less than raw UNCs.

 

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Those examples aren’t completely the type that I’m talking about. I don’t mean to be nitpicky but the GSA coins are known to be uncirculated and there is a premium associated with the original packaging so it does not surprise me that those would be comparable. In the second example lower grade common Morgan dollars are essentially bullion coins. Again we’re talking about common dates like the 81-S

 

In the few series I collect, when the coins are a common date “inexpensive” coins, there is now pretty much no premium for slabs at the Low MS range.
The only reason for buying a BU coin unslabbed at a higher price was if I thought it would grade 65 or above.

 

All I know is I can buy slabbed coins all day long for less than the cost of what you can get a coin slabbed for. Please explain to me if you and I can get a coin slabbed for $30 and yet I can buy hundreds of slabbed coins for under $30 how any "slabbing premium" you will always get from the marketplace? Are you being paid money to take these coins away from the original owners?

The slabbing game is where you think you know grading well, and can buy raw coins that you properly grade, (or seller was undergrading), and then send in for confirmation. In other words, its like real estate. You do not make money in real estate selling, you make the money BUYING. If you are good and can BUY the coin at a lower grade and send it in a get it graded higher than the price level you bought it at, you make money. If you pay 65 money for a 65, that slab is not adding value. You have to buy a 65 for 64 money, then get is slabbed and THEN you profit. It is your PURCHASE that made the money.

For common stuff like run of the mill morgans, there might be a little premium for the plastic to some just because so many fakes are out there, but not $30 worth of a premium.What is the price of a AU 1881 s versus raw?

 

The GSA I just added in but if you look at a typical raw non GSA 1883-CC, I see plenty selling for the same amount as 62/63 graded examples.

Morgans, Peace Dollars, Modern US and World cover the great majority of slabbed inexpensive coins. If we are talking about less common coins, then the discussion is not the same as what we initially started talking about. What specifically are you looking at then?

 

And another point: it’s fine to slab inexpensive coins (many have done it for sentimental reasons, for uniformity, for registry purposes, etc) or buy inexpensive slabs. One just has to go into it knowing that you might not easily recover the premium paid (there are cases where you will or can even make a profit, but that isn’t generally the case).

 

Something like this. Seems like when I see coins like this, the asking price is a little more, but then you know the coin is likely authentic and less likely to be cleaned. With mint state examples, you have some confidence that it's not a slider, and so buyers pay a premium for those guarantees.

Following is descending prices for AU on ebay

 

What he said.

 

Yes and no, agreed about the ancients and I'll concede that the OP is talking about low value coins, but a nice raw coin is hard to beat. I've made the mistake of buying about 50 slabbed coins, few of which offer me any peace of mind on my purchases. Should have stayed 100% raw, and rely on my own judgement, not somebody else's guess.

 

Crack them out!

 

That's your opinion and what you enjoy and there's nothing wrong with that. That doesn't change anything I said about the market and how they will be treated though

 

That is a coin that is less commonly found slabbed, so the asking prices do tend to be higher (vs raw). Note: those are asking prices and not sold prices.

With coins like that, there are also fewer records of sales and that makes determining the premium even harder. For example, the only other sale of that Lira (NGC MS 62) that I found was $124 in 2016 at Heritage.

Considering so few are slabbed, you might be able to recoup the slabbed coin premium if another person is looking for the coin but it might take a while. And if the coin is more readily available raw, then you have to take into account the risk that more will be slabbed in the future if the premiums start rising (which could then stabilize or even decrease the premiums).

 

Interesting analysis. FWIW, I love this coin, and there just might be one in my very near future. It does make sense that premiums will flux, and based on some of the comments here, disappear altogether. So I guess the answer to my original question is that the premiums are on a case-by-case basis and you can't count on them staying relatively static.

 

That is fair enough to say. There is no guarantee you will ever get that cost back, but there are also loads of market inefficiencies and arbitrage opportunities here. Two different markets really, one of raw and one of slabbed, and the prices may not correspond. I agree there are probably many instances where the slab only market will pay a strong price versus the raw market, and for those with the knowledge to profit, they will. Remember though it is not all free money. If you buy a coin, slab it, you also need to find a seller that will pay "market rate", and also pay all selling fees involved.

Nothing wrong with this, and many people make a living at it.

 

Heh, except in extremely rare circumstances, I always buy things below market price. My philosophy is that there is always a deal somewhere in a universe filled with cool stuff.

FWIW, I've tried to be pretty clear here...that I don't plan to initiate slabbing. I'd rather buy slabbed coins. Imho, professional graders aren't consistent enough for my tastes. I do have a few coins I'll be sending off in a "once every ten years" kind of activity pretty soon, but it's not how I operate.

 

You can certainly find good deals on already slabbed material. Look for good eye appeal and something that is within your budget.

 

Didn't read EVERYTHING posted thus far, but another factor putting pressure on market values is the population of coins certified HIGHER than your common coin.

If you own an MS67 with a population of 1, none higher, the minute someone finds 3 or 4 MS68's and one 69, your "premium" just tanked.

But maybe someone has already mentioned this.

Z

 

Stop lining the pockets of private companies and learn to grade your coins

 

Wow. This place is nuts.

 

It's a pretty good site, but went downhill (with a tailwind) when I joined . . . .

Z