Your thoughts on starting bids on auctions.

Would you ever start the bidding at one dollar on a coin worth several hundred dollars?

 

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Why not? Someone has to get the ball rolling!

 

I stay so busy, Larry... If I see one that strikes my fancy I place what I think is a reasonable bid only because I know I likely won't find the time to come back to it..... There was a bid in Texas a week or so back called Minerva. Had several pieces that struck my fancy and I put in my bid. Never heard anything and came back to find that bidding wars ensued and both coins I put a bid on sold for multiple times what I bid..... But that's me. Set it and forget it.

 

No. I'd start at my bottom dollar.

 

I calculate the value of coin, then subtract all additional costs including the buyers premium, shipping etc. That sum becomes my max bid which I enter and not look back until the auction is complete. If I won yippie! I was the who wanted to pay the highest price for a particular coin on that day.

 

I've lost some nice coins this way. Eye appeal plays a big part regardless of past auctions or grey sheet. Not all coins are equal..

 

I’ve done it a few times but only because it’s early in the auction and I want to stay in the loop on that coin. Sone auction sites don’t let you track the coin without a bid. I never expect to buy the coin at that price, I just want to track its progress.

 

I did not mention eye appeal, grey sheet or auctions. How someone calculates the value of a coin is strictly up to them. A coin that I feel is worth $50 dollars to might be worth $200 to someone else. Remember the extrinsic value of any coin (or item) is what the individual is willing to pay.

 

I evidently read this differently than everyone else as I thought you were asking about setting an opening bid--not placing a bid.

 

That is what I figured as well.

As far as my answer, I think it depends on the coin, the venue, and your risk tolerance. Start with risk tolerance-if one is afraid to lose big, then don't start at a $1; begin the auction at the lowest you are willing to take. Then we look at the venue-eBay, GC, Heritage, Stacks all tend to get plenty of eyeballs and would be the type of place to do a $1 start. However, you should still do some research and see which venue is more likely to give you the best result (accounting for fees as well). Finally, the coin matters a lot. Something that has great eye appeal and is in a series that has a big collector base will do well at a $1 start. However, if you have something that is more obscure or not very appealing, then starting at a $1 can lead to poor results.

 

I avoid auctions where all the coins start at 1 USD/EUR, so the answer is no.

 

I'm confused. Are you talking about selling or buying?

 

Excuse me. I'm just looking for the restrooms. Sorry.

 

I have a large collection of "stuff" in many buildings on my property, and I also formulate a "fair market+" offering price that usually wins the auction, but often I'm really surprised at the final price.

With Gold certified Numismatics, it seems almost insane request pricing!

JMHO

 

When I have sold on GC, I let them set the minimum. That has worked out just fine. I do believe they do allow a $1start if you select that option.

 

I do it all the time. It’s my “foot in the door” so that it’s easier to follow the lot. Sometimes it’s my only bid if the item gets too high.

Minimum bids provide protection to the consigner. I got burned once on a sutler token that performed poorly in an auction. It happens, but I have rarely got any bargains in auctions. I more often “pay through the nose.”

Minimum bids can be a trap. If you set them too high, you won’t get any “action.” I much prefer minimum bids to the scam were the consigner bids on his own stuff. That’s borders on unethical behavior.

 

Why?

 

From the perspective of the seller, it might seem scary to start the bidding at one dollar. However, if there is enough traffic and enough views, there will be enough people bidding to get your coin to the right price. When I sell on Ebay, I usually start everything at a dollar.

From the perspective of a buyer, I like lots that start at a dollar. That means its a true auction. I'm hoping for a deal. I'll put my bid in, and inevitably someone else comes along. Even when it starts at a dollar, it always goes to the market price.

When I see something starting at a high price opening bid... I always assume that's the dealers minimum and anything higher than that is over market price. I generally don't bid on those.

 

Time for some clarification from me. My reply in post #5 was based on my ass-u-m-ption you were asking from the bidders/buyers position. Now I'll give my answer to your question. I do not see the point or the difference between a dollar or 0. If the seller had a minimum price that had to be met then a starting bid or (hidden) reserve would be placed on the item. I've found most of the time the starting bid is high market value. Either the seller is under water on the coin or wants a guaranteed profit. I learned to not waste my time applying my mythology to starting bids/reserves. 99.999% of the time I'm not looking for unicorns anyway. Many times an auctioneer will put a $5 opening on a low dollar item. Think 1/10oz silver round. My own thoughts on that is it's not worth the effort for anything less, but when you add my pricing mythology to that I would be grossly over paying. I learned - hard pass.
Just sharing my thoughts and experiences while building my coin business over the last few years. I am not exaggerating when I share I may hours every week reviewing scores of auctions and make hundreds of bids every week. if I am successful on ten of those bids thats a good week. My buying as a dealer is different then buying as a collector. I want coins and PM to resell, I don't need coins to complete a collection. I'm the who has to find the best coins at the best price so I can sell to you at the best price helping you to complete your collection.

Happy bidding, happy collecting!

 

This is what I was thinking of. It is scary. I let an auction house set the opening bid prices on a consignment. I could have controlled that but didn't. My fault. A few of the coins that started at $1 worry me.

Thanks everyone for your thoughts. It's cool to see the opinions of both buyers and sellers.