I'd like some advise concerning undervalued coins... Is it as simple as looking for low mintages and comparing their values with similar mintages in the same series? Thanks in advance...
Sorry, but it's much more complicated than just comparing mintage values. Some coins of certain years were hoarded, while others of similar mintages were completely disregarded, other circumstances, etc. If you're looking to invest in undervalued coins, I would go out on a limb and suggest that some series are undervalued as a whole. BUT, investing in coins (that's what it sounds like you're asking) is probably not the BEST run for your money.
If it was, I'd go buy all of them and I'd be rich But I'm not Finding undervalued coins can be done but it usually requires a good bit of study and a thorough understanding of the coin market. It also helps to be able to predict what collectors will fancy in the future. And since predicting anything in the future is almost impossible to do - about the best you can do is make an educated guess. So my advice is always the same, buy what you like and forget about profit potential.
I like it ALL! But I always want to try to buy the material that has the better chance of appreciating in value. You mentioned predicting the future, I've thought about that a bit.... trying to predict what may be popular in the future. I tend to think, and I may be wrong, that low mintage, scarce material will prob always appreciate in value. maybe not sky rocket, but will always rise some what. What do you think?
Well, basically everything olden has gone up in value in the past few years, so, in the words of GDJMSP, "buy what you like." Though, the safest bet is probably a key. Don't take this as encouragement though; if you're looking to invest seriously, I would stay away from (rare?) coins.
Well I want to collect coins, so I'm going to consentrate on coins I think will appreciate. Any thoughts on Dimes? Seated to be specific?
With all due deference to your intensions, may I suggest that you seek investment advice from those who dispense it? The great majority of the active members of this forum take the same approach expressed by GDJMSP and 09S-V.D.B. Coins are for collecting, unless you are willing to devote the years of study required to become a professional dealer. Successful investment in stocks, bonds, real estate, etc., requires a great deal of time and study, which definitely does not guarantee success. If it did, we would all be multii-millionares, who could buy all those beautiful coins calling out for good homes without having to worry about their future value.
I seek investment advise when purchasing stocks, bonds, futures... collecting coins I do for fun, but I'd be a fool not to consider what my efforts with produce 20 years down the line. I'm an excellent chess player. 1900+ and I achieve this buy thinking min 10 moves ahead. I approach everything with this same philosophy. It's in my genetic make-up and cannot be avoided. So I must take this seriously to a degree... even though it's a hobby.
OK Carter I'll tell ya what - I don't normally do this, but in this instance I will. If you really want to collect with an eye to the future then forget about US coins and switch to world coinage. I say this because with world coinage you can collect coins with a far greater degree of rarity, much smaller mintages, greater beauty (IMO), more history and all for a fraction of the cost of US coins. You also have the advanatge of the ever increasing popularity of world coinage with a much better chance of value appreciation. Now you're gonna ask which ones should I look for ? Well my answer is the same - collect what you like and forget about everything else. You see, that's how it works the best. Those who collected what they liked over the years instead of worrying about investement potential had the value of their collections increase several fold while at the same time enjoying their collection. While those who only think about investment typcially lose money in the end and don't even get to enjoy their collections in the process. That's why most experienced collectors will answer the question you ask in the same way - collect what you like. That's really all there is to it.
Sure thing why not. I would serious recommand you to stay off from US coins like what gdjmsp said, if you want to maximize your profits - US coins are currently quite expensive but who knows how much higher they can go. On the other hand, foreign coins are fairly cheap, depending what you are looking for. Taking the example of Russia's platinum 3 rubles (sorry, Russian numismatics is my field), an XF 3-4 years ago was just 400USD. Now it has blown over 1,000USD and they don't appear very often either. Why? Supply and demand, mate. But it seems that demand has outstripped supply too rapidly as such coins were the only platinum coins that managed to circulate in the public. To how much the values would raise up to, I don't know but that is up to the bidders to pay how much they would like to. Some very hot areas right now are Spainish, Italian, German, Polish, Russian, Korean, Vietnamese and Japanese are excellent examples. (DON'T just buy coins from these areas since I told you they are quite hot, they might cool down after some time!!! Or I could be *VERY* wrong with the current hot areas) However, I believe you shouldn't just take our words and take a good look at current market values against a catalogue like Krause and compare. It is more than essential to understand *WHY* demand is raising. For example in the Russian numismatic field, people in the past used to be "poor" and had to sell such coins for whatever they could. Right now, Russians are getting rich and hence they are buying back whatever they could. It is not only the Russians that are hoarding all the nice and crappy coins but as well as foreigners as they have come to appericate the ridicious minting techniques, etc. Polish coins have the same reasons like the Russian coins. It is pointless to try to buy whatever coins even if you had all the data of mintages - afterall you need to add in various factors such as number of possible culled coins, or how many coins that survive in high grades etc, which you can rarely get decent database of.
I think someone has probably looked into long-term coin appreciation and could compare it to bonds and guaranteed interest investments, In the last 25 years, coin values have generally lost, mostly because of the 1980 Hunt brothers fiasco. Silvser went up dramatically and dragged coins with it to an unrealistic high.
I collect Morgans because I find them beautiful and because I love American history and their history within that history. I hope they appreciate one day so that if I will them to my kid he might get a tidy nest egg from them but I think of them more like a savings account that I can enjoy. Because I like them I buy them. I never put money in a savings account because where is the fun in that? Hey, want a sure thing in investing? Buy Beanie Babies.
