Hello everyone. I just received an inheritance that is in the form of old coins and paper money (...and stamps, paintings, and baseball cards). My wife's grandfather was an avid collector, but we have no idea what to do with them. I am in the process of reading up on the Indian Head and Wheat Penny, because their are a couple chests full of them! I would imagine that their grade is not stellar because they are all packed together, but I'm really concerned about getting swindled. Any advice for how I should begin to tackle this overwhelming project? Thanks! Jarslov
eBay is probably the biggest market for selling unsearched lots - most sellers split their coins into groups by weight (such as half-pound, pound, it all depends on how many coins you have). That option is if you do in fact want to sell them, it would save you the time of searching through all of them. You could also lose money, however, if there is a key date (a coin that is considerably more valuable) and you pass it up. Being "packed together" for so long does not necessarily mean that they will all be in bad shape - if I were you, i'd search through them all, but I'm just a little biased. Maybe this is your chance to get into the coin collecting hobby!
I agree with Steven88, speaking for myself I just couldn't fathom letting a huge lot like that go without searching it. You could make a list of dates and minkmarks that go for higher prices at relatively low grades and look for matches. Any coin magazine off the shelf has lists of current prices to give you an idea, and the minkmark placement on lincoln cents is very straightforward.
Whenever someone inherits a large number of coins, the first question always seems to be, "how do I sell them." Keep in mind that there is another alternative - keep them [at least for awhile]. Even if you don't want to keep them over the long term, there is no need to rush to liquidate them. Coin collections are an asset. They don't derive their value when they are sold for cash, they inherently possess value that can increase over time. So don't be in a rush to sell - that's the best way to get ripped off. Take your time. Learn about what you have. Maybe sell a few pieces at at time to al local coin dealer to test the market. The coins in a collection shouldn't be the first money you spend. They should be the last.
I agree with the idea that they would be worth keeping and learning about, but also, I understand that sometimes in the case of an inheritance that's just not feasible and coins can be that much worse if records haven't been kept... the tax man wants his cut of your inheritance after all. If the collection is large enough and your wife's grandfather was a serious collector, it may be well worth your while to contact someone to apprais the collection and possibly consign it to sale or auction. For myself, I would do as I think most of the others here would do... search through them, have a blast doing it, pick out the best coins, sell what didn't appeal or what was necessary to cover the inheritance taxes and keep the rest.
Check_M_All, I'm not an expert but I believe that the amount of the estate has to be pretty high for inheritance taxes to kick in. Jarslov, I agree that searching through the coins before trying to disposition them would be the best approach. You don't have to do it all at once. Perhaps just some organizing as you go instead of moving it all from one large pile to another one (after pulling the more scarce/valuable ones). And reading up is a perfect first step!
I don't know how all of the law works but I would think that coins wouldn't be included in the inheritance tax---maybe not at all but at least not untill you sold any. Speedy
To the best of my knowledge, inheritance tax is paid by the estate, not by the beneficiaries. Whatever is inherited is not taxable to the recipient.
My experience from my dad's passing was that pretty much everything that is left is supposed to be appraised and taxed within a certain time. I think it's a year. If there are records of prices paid, I believe the tax applies to the increase in value and not full market value. Don't quote me, I'm not an expert either just trying to go from what I remember. My dad didn't have coins either, but if they wanted values on sofas and such, I would imagine coins would fall in the crosshairs also.
Right, but the coins would be included as part of the estate. If the estate has already been settled, then I've fallen behind... I didn't think of that. In my case, my father died unprepared and without a will, so I had the role as administrator of the estate... as there was no executor named. You and Speedy are probably right. Sorry about that. Did I happen to mention that at times I am complete moron... mostly just when I'm awake
My Grandmother died 2 yrs. ago and left a substantial sum of money to my mother and Aunt, it's my understanding that the first 1.6 million is not taxed, she also had had lots of old coins, proof sets dating back several yrs.and lots of others, anyhow the coin collection was pulled out of the safe as well as other stuff from the house before the people came in and appraised everything, also the estate attorney said value everything in the house at $5000.00 which he said that is the norm. (basically what he said was to take out whatever they wanted, leave some good stuff, most of the things that were in the house were not listed anywhere prior to her death) Cloudsweeper is correct, the estate pays all the taxes, now all of this is in Washington st. and I'm not sure if it's governed by the feds or by each state
Your best bet is to buy yourself a copy of the Red Book. That way you'll be able to tell which coins are worth something and which aren't. Keep in mind some coins that others would call "junk", can be worth hundreds. www.coppercoins.com is a nice place to start. They pretty much specialize in Lincoln Cents. Lots of useful information there.
Got to agree with this and all the other ones that said keep the stuff. Unless your desperate for money, what you may be doing is dumping a fortune for a few dollars due to lack of knowledge. I've purchased to many coins from people because they just don't know what they have. Why do you think there are so many people on the antique roadshow program that buy something at a garage sale for a dollar and it's worth thousands. Be smart. Look up what you have. Maybe become a coin collector. There are worse things to become you know.
The tax depends on the state. Here in Pennsylvania, my mother died, we had a joint checking account with about 3000 dollars in it, and they taxed half of it, even though it was mostly my money! That was all she had,too.
Thank you for confirming that it's a state based thing. I was getting a little concerned. Back on topic. I think we'd all love to see a new collector join the ranks, but if you do decide to sell the collection, and you go it yourself on eBay, get a price guide, find what you can about what you have, and don't hesitate to let us know when you've started listing them.
Hog wash---I know little about law and am more than likely off farther than anyone---and no one is a moron---! Speedy
Thanks, Speedy. Two things have just been confirmed. First, you are indeed a kind soul. Second, you've obviously never met me.
jarslov welcome to the forum. Forget all about the taxes for now there is time for that, what you need to decide is to keep the items or sale them. Unless you are experience in selling coins on ebay then you should not do it because you will lose money, same with the stamps and baseball cards. Now for the coins get a Red Book ( a guide book of US cions) this will help and if you have a flatbed scanner or a good camera you can post threads and we can help you with them. You will not have too post all your coins because you will get an idea of what to look for after a few coins and the help form the red book. Now for the stamps and baseball cards I can help you with them just Privte Message (PM) me with pictures and I can give you some Idea of what you have. You can also get Pricing Guide for them too. Good luck on what ever you decide.
Hi Jerry My key thought on reading your post was "Chests full of indian and wheat cents" That raises a red flag as far value of US coins. Most non-collectors think wheat pennies are worth a fortune. Throw in the mention of Indian Cents......... Mostly it is all wishfull thinking....... I can`t speak to paintings, but I can tell you about Coins, Paper Money, and Sports Cards. If you want to know the BASIC value of Coins, buy a Redbook.... Stamps (Scotts Catalouge) .....Currency (Friedburg or REDBOOK currency), Sportscards (Beckett), If not, go to your LOCAL LIBRARY. If you need an appraiser, I am available at $85/HR plus airfair (this is really cheap, most are $200+/hr) Lodging, and Per Diem of $125. I don`t know art, except for Deco (LCT, Frankart et al.....)
