Who's your favorite dealer?

When you ask who's your favorite dealer, I'd come back at you and ask for what type of coin? There's really no one dealer that I tend to favor for everything. If you asked who's my favorite for Lincoln cents, I'd probably mention Virg Marshall. If you asked who's my favorite for high-grade Franklin halves, I'd say Rick Tomaska. I'd never consider going to Marshall for high-grade Franklins, or Tomaska for your average Lincoln.

 

Larry -

I sure won't claim to be an expert either - but it's obvious how they make their money isn't it ? They sell for more than they pay.

One thing many collectors don't realize is that dealers buy most of their coins from other dealers - not from collectors. And since they buy from other dealers they get wholesale prices. Just like any business does.

Any collector that thinks they can go to a dealer to sell their coins and get the same price that the dealer sells the coins for is not thinking clearly. It's just not gonna happen. The dealer knows what coin will sell for so there is no way they will pay retail prices to the collector. If they did - they'd soon be out of business.

Now I'll readily admit - there are a fair share of dealers out there who will not pay fair prices to collectors. Understand fair does not equal retail - it means the average buy price. These prices are publicized so it is a simple matter to look them up and verify them in the CDN - Coin Dealer Newsletter. And there are dealers who will still play the grade game - it's a 62 when you want to sell to them and a 64 when you want to buy from them.

But by the same token there are dealers who will pay fair prices. And as Peter said - it depends on the coin as to which dealer you sell to or buy from. But none of them will pay retail.

 

Larry, I'd recommend to you getting hold of an issue of the Greysheet. Here's their website. They provide a "spread" as you call it, of buy and sell prices and most normal dealers use this as a guide for both buying and selling. It's somewhat comparable to looking up stock prices in the Wall Street Journal.

 

I don't subscribe, but I do buy a few issues several times a year. Unless you're a full time dealer probably getting one every six months or so is good enough. I prefer to do buying and selling at coin shows, but also use Ebay and dealers directly at their shop or by mail.

 

Larry -

Many times people get involved with coins because they think they can make money - this is seldom the case. In fact - it is very rare. In order to make money with coins you have to be either very good ( translated as knowledgeable ) or very lucky. The only way dealers make money is because of the buy/sell spread - just like the stock market.

Collecting coins as an investment vehicle is not a good idea - again unless you are very knowledgeable. Even then it is iffy. Collecting coins because you like them is a good idea. And perhaps - over a period of years, usually many years - if you learn enough about coins along the way the value of your collection will increase.

But to answer your question - when I sell - I do so in many ways. I use ebay - private auctions - coin shows - and private individuals. But in no case - in over 43 yrs of being in the hobby - have I ever sold a coin and received retail prices. I have sold coins for a profit yes - but even then I did not receive retail value at the time. Of course I rarely ever sell a coin. I only do so when I am upgrading a piece in my collection. For instance I will sell an MS64 and replace it with an MS67.

You have to also keep in mind that only a very select few coins are rare. By far - the vast majority of them are common. Too many times a collector will be convinced to buy a coin because somebody says it is rare - when actually it isn't. Of course there are different definitions as to what is rare. A coin for which there are 1,000 others just like it of the same grade is not rare. And in many - if not most cases - there will be 10,000 like it. Find a coin for which there are less than 10 - and that is rare.

 

Yes - some customers do get better prices. But it has nothing to do with the customer being a sucker or not. It has to do with repeat business. If a particular customer repeatedly purchases coins from a dealer - many times the dealer will begin giving him discounts. This is a reward for coming back over & over and the customer spending his money with this one dealer instead of with others.

Dealers know there are other dealers out there. They all want the business. If you have to give a little sometimes to keep it - it only makes cents to do so