!00 % Mark-up

Fact; The US Mint 2012 American Eagle One Ounce Silver Proof Coin is going for $ 59.95 + 4.95 for shipping.

The melt value is $ 32.35 ? Is the Proof condition worth the extra $ 32.55 ?

I thought the Government was a service organization, not a scalp business.

I suppose you will say, "If you don't like it, don't buy it". But I do like it and am willing to pay the price because I can afford it. But what about the young-ones that don't have that kind of money to throw away.

It seems to me that the Mint is discouraging young and old collectors alike away from the Numismatic hobby.

Dave

 

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Hmm, i thought the U.S. mint made this series for bullion purposes?

Didn't know bullion demanded that high of a premium

 

Hey Dave,
Don't confuse "bullion" coin with "collector" coin. I am saying this sarcastically of course because I know you know the difference, but the truth is there is much more that goes into a "collector" coin than a bullion coin. First and foremost it is a proof. A lot more preparation goes into preparation and handling of a proof than a bullion or UNC coin. That gets factored in. Then, collectors forget that there is a cost for packaging. Probably not a whole lot of cost, but someone has to pay it and it aint going to be the mint. Next there is the marketing part of selling the coin. Down in my part of the country I never see any tv or print adds for the mint, but when I went home to Conn, there were ads on tv, print ads in the papers and so on. That costs tons of money and that is passed on to the consumer. Then someone has to pay the bills and utlities and everything else. That gets all factored in. Then there is the whole profit thing. The mint is a for profit business. So profit margin is factored in and when it is all done, whether we like it or not that means we pay $32.55 extra per coin.

Prior to owning a business myself, I used to get mad about the incredible price differences from what I believed a coin should cost and what a coin really cost to produce. After owning a business that was customer based and focused on a hand made product, everything made sense and I completely understood. I used to get mad when customers used to complain how expensive our products were but then I used to challenge them to go out and see what the costs would be to build it themselves. Some customers took me up on that challenge and most always came back with a new clearer understanding of what it really costs to make and sell the product.....and I sure wasn't going to do it for free either.

Joe

 

This post reminded me of my days I worked at a Toyota dealership. We had a poster that listed the msrp of a Toyota 4Runner of around 26k fully loaded. The poster listed every part with price if you wanted to build from scratch, which was in the 80k range. Makes that 26k sticker price a whole lot more appealing. :thumb:

 

I'm not in love with the silver Eagle in either the BU or proof version, but in terms of price comparison, we would be hard pressed to find a 1-ounce proof coin with the design appeal and production quality of the proof silver Eagle for $59.95. It won't be found at the Royal Canadian Mint, the Perth Mint, the Royal Mint of Britain or the China Mint. The only other comparable coin that I know of that comes close in terms of design appeal, production quality and price is the Mexican Libertad proof. A Britannia proof, for example, will cost about $125.00.The silver Eagle has gotten overplayed; 25 years is enough. It's time to broaden our horizons. It's gotten to the point of uninteresting. However, if Dullsville is going to be around for a while, the price of the proof Eagle is not all that bad, relatively speaking.

 

Hi ! Joe,

Points well taken.

The bullion coin went for 36.18 each (Including shipping), which is well within tolerance of melt.

I'm still not over excited about paying double the price for a proof which may be only worth $ 40.00 in another couple of months.

Dave

 

I doubt it, I find it hard to find about any decent ASE proofs from all years for less than $60

 

Dave,
I also forgot to address the last part of your comments which I absolutely agree with. Although I have been collecting for as long as I can remember, the first coin that I ever bought was the 1986 Proof silver eagle. I remember mowing all the lawns I could just to save up the money to pay for this coin. I don't remember the exact price, but I think it was $26 or $28 something like that. I was 15 at the time.

Now as you clearly point out, the coin as nearly tripled in cost and kids aren't nearly as eager to go out and make a buck like we did when we were kids. I am willing to pay some kid $50 just to mow my lawn so they can make some money, when 30 years earlier I was making $10 to mow the same size yard, but I just can't find any youngster willing to make a buck. Times have definitely changed. I am make less than I did 5 years ago. 5 years ago, you saw me on here posting all my gold coins. Those days have sadly come to an end. With a lot of the collectors starting to retire, and the cost of living is increasing, I can see how this hobby has become increasing more difficult to continue in the way that many of us were used to years ago. I miss those old days.... and I am at the ripe old age of 40.

 

Excellent posts Joe and Treehugger.

Face it Dave, if we want to keep the proof collection alive we've gotta pay the price. Well, we could try the 'aftermarket' in a few months but I never have the patience when it comes to ASE's. Or, we could wait a few months and hope that the price of silver drops like a stone and the mint re-prices the proofs downward. Heck, I could have saved a few bucks on the ASE collector coins (burnished dies) if I'd only waited a few weeks after the initial offering. Truth is, though, I can't wait. That's me, the collector talkin'..........

 

Dad blasted young'un.........

 

Knew you would get a kick out of that Ken! LOL!

 

it's the extra production and pkg costs that add $20+ to the price. when silver was $5-6 dollars proof eagles were $30+ from the mint. so whats that by %. that's not the way to look at it. there is a cost to production that is added to the price that has nothing to do with spot price of the metal. besides every time in the last several years the issue price goes up it tends to bring the value of the other issues up to it so it's a plus for collectors.

 

Just to keep things in perspective, if a proof silver Eagle was selling at $26.00 in 1986, as mentioned above, it should also be noted silver was selling at about $6.50 an ounce. Therefore, the coin was selling at 4 times spot.

Silver is about $32.00 an ounce today and the coin is selling at $59.95 or less than 2 times spot. On a relative basis, today's proof Eagle should be considered a bargain.

The wide variance between the 2 costs reinforces what jacer stated above. When considering the value of an item, the production and marketing costs have to be taken into account also, not just the material cost.

I think if you like it and have a little extra in your budget, you should treat yourself and get it. Who knows? 1 of these days, North Korea might launch a rocket that actually works.

 

Sorry, silverfool, I was writing my post as yours was being loaded. I did not intend to hijack your thoughts.

 

I agree that the price is discouraging to young and less fortunate collectors however like has been stated the difference is for the numismatic value in owning a proof coin. Plus when I was younger and I really wanted something I would find a way to work for the money or save for it. This made the item even more special to me when I could purchase it or if someone gave it to me as a gift.

 

Isn't that what graduations, birthday's, loosing teeth, Easter bunnies, Santa Claus, bar mitzvah, Hanukkah Harry, et al. are for...

At least some of those events in my life are how I was able to afford such collectible things before I had a job and disposable income for this sort of material.

Of course, there's always working all summer or doing part-time jobs to save up towards a goal of owning whatever one desires, saving for something that they are so committed to possessing. Been-there-done-that!

:thumb:

 

Krispy we seem to think alike (so far... )

 

I think the high price is discouraging a lot of young collectors, but I think it has more to do with the price of silver/gold then with any specific policy by the mint.

For example, I started seriously collecting in the last 2 years, at which point silver and gold had already seen a huge run-up in price. I realized pretty quick that it would be extremely expensive for me to fill previous holes for these proof silver, or ASE type collections, and I just did not see much bang for the buck in it, especially as I believe both prices will come down in the future. Now I realize the last point is debatable, but that's not my point. The point is, if you started buying these when silver and gold were $6 and $300 there is a certain amount of path dependence which makes you buy the new ones, although you grumble. But for a new collector looking to get into these series the that grumble is a major stumbling block.

 

Why are you buying it if you feel buying it is throwing money away?

 

Interesting analysis by Silverfool and Treehugger. Makes me feel somewhat better about paying todays price.
Thanks for the comments.