How strong is the coin market? Like any trade market this market too has it's ups and downs. The coin market has been on a massive run in the last couple of years and as in any uptrend it is always followed by a downtrend. The economy is directly effecting the coin market. People have money. I see this every day when people call looking to invest. The average Joe hears every day on the TV how bad the economy is so why would they want to spend it on items that can be considered luxury items because after all most people are in this for the hobby. In my opinion the strength of the coin market is about a 7 out of 10 at the moment. Is now a good time to buy coins? It is a great time to buy coins if one is cautious. There are great deals to be had on most coins. Dealers are discounting coins that they have had in inventory to make them liquid and in turn providing deals for the average collector. As far as the investment quality coins are concerned there is also a discount over past trends. Generic $20 gold pieces have traded at greysheet ask for more then 2 years. My recent experiences are that this price is setteling to a comfortable place between greysheet bid and ask. Is now a good time to sell my coins? That all depends on when you bought them and what you paid for them. Prices have gone down but if you can still make money on your purchase at this time then selling is always an option. What should and shouldn't I buy right now? Nice, no problem coins are still strong. Problem, cleaned coins are being heavily discounted. US government sets (mint, proof, ect.) are weak at the moment with most of them loosing ground. Lincoln cents are strong with the keys and semi keys holding their ground. Mercury dimes are having a hard time at the moment with common date mint state examples being heavily discounted. Gold type is strong as usual giving up little ground. Jefferson nickels and Franklin half dollars are markably weak as are modern unc/proof album sets. High grade generic Morgans are falling off as well. Early American type is not loosing any strength. Gold and silver as a hedge against inflation? I hear about inflation fears several times a day. 90% coin silver is trading at a premium as are generic silver eagles. Gold bullion is scarce to buy and therefore is commanding a healthy premium. I always recommend that someone looking to buy some gold and silver at least making a numismatic investment (silver dollars, gold type) as this is a hedge on a hedge against inflation! :desk:
Thank you for this informative primer on current coin trends. I'm a newbie, so this was particularly interesting to me. Dave
Just got around to reading this. Thanks for the writeup. Looking forward to doing some business with you if possible when it comes time to fill the key dates in my Peace dollar collection.
Great post. Thank you. My initial interest in coins was due to the down turn in the economy. Banks failing, the dollar falling and unemployment rising. I came up with the idea of putting a fixed amount of money into silver coins. Initially, purchasing only Silver Eagles. Paying a premium because of the low amount of weekly investment. This went on for a year. Did I ever mention, I love silver.
