Coins as an investment?!

If you read the fine print, it cautions that the values listed are average dealer ASKING prices and that the market is volatile. Don’t invest, enjoy. TC

 

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With all the market drama, I believe BACON! Is going to be big!!!

 

Where are you getting 2.45%?

 

Two year CD. My financial guy scans the CD market and finds them. I’ll have to check later on what institution it came out of.

 

the bacon market is literally sizzling ...

 

I always like bacon. Unfortunately I usually eat the profits.

 

Coins are mostly a losing investment. I don't much consider them an investment but a hobby. Anyone that's collected long enough and bought/sold a lot of coins knows that. Sure, you can hit a flip now and then but I always get less than I paid as a general rule. Book/web/where values omit the cost of selling, I consider them ballpark values, even completed sales. Then you have companies like PCGS buying in the open market - makes me mistrust completed sales even more. It's all a business to take BOTH the buyers and sellers money.

Now, that said, there is something to said about slabbed key date coins. They seem to generally at least hold their value or creep higher but.... can they always beat inflation and selling costs?

 

i believe that profit can be made on any coin collection! Tell me why not?

 

most people over pay for what they buy
Then when they go to sell they are offered below what they paid. Sometimes very far below.

If you buy any coins from TV ... that's a losing scenario.
many online places may charge higher prices than what can be sold for
you have to know "how and where" to sell coins to maximize revenue. But that takes time, many just sell some inherited collection for some amount.

 

or better yet

 

Those who can make money in coins will gain what by blabbing about it?

 

can be and will be or is are all very different.

 

Because it's a cruel mean world out there, prices change over time as do collecting interest. What's hot today may be dead in a month or so.

As an antique dealer I was once asked "What will be collectible in the future?" If I knew that answer I wouldn't be on CT today. That was about 20 years ago.

 

Everybody pretty much nailed it. If you have not bought highly desirable coins and decided to sell them 5 to 10 years down the road I'd encourage everyone to try it. It gives you an ENTIRELY new perspective. Until you do, you really don't know and shouldn't post opinions on it.
The main problems you face is that there's just so much out there chasing a relatively small amount of disposable income (in comparison.) AND, people are cheap!
If you use an auction site to get as much advertisement as possible, they take a huge percentage of the final sale. You're behind the 8 ball from the start. Then you lose money to paypal to get paid for it. Then you have to ship and insure it! I encourage everyone to try it. You won't be happy.
If you decide to go the quick and easy route and just go to a dealer to sell, be prepared to hear it's a slow or "soft market" no matter when you go or what you have. I was trying to sell a $5 Lib AU-55 with nice luster. 1885-S so not without a mint mark. A dealer offered me less than melt! I passed. This was a couple weeks ago.
The way to make money in coins is to inherit a collection you didn't pay for. If you only hoard coins your whole life and never try to sell you never find out what things are really worth if you go to sell. I would say whatever you buy, no matter how good of a deal you think you got, assume you will lose 25 to 30% if you need to sell it. I was set to lose 65%(!!!) on a beautiful star graded, proof like toned Morgan till I pulled the plug and just kept it. Did I screw up that bad buying it 2 years ago? I had to negotiate the guy down to get it for what I did or I simply wouldn't have gotten it. It's an awesome coin. In my head it's worth "X". On the open market it's apparently worth "Y" right now.
If an individual goes to sell, they want to sell it in a week or so... While dealers are content to leave a coin listed for years at the same price until somebody buys it. There's no breaks when you're the buyer and none when you're the seller. It's funny how that works.
I try not to sell much. It's just not worth it. The coin is always worth more than the cash to me.

 

A smart dealer doesn't want to do that. His capital is tied up in it and the longer it's tied up the lower his real return is, and he could be using that capital to buy items that he could flip quickly and make more money on. The smart dealer want things he can turn quickly and for such items he will pay more. Items that may sit around for a long time he will lowball when buying.

 

I think of coins as art.

 

@Vess1 could you post a picture of that Morgan? I’m surprised by your numbers unless the initial buy price was “moon money”

 

As an investment.... No not really. However look at it this way. If you have a twenty in your pocket it will likely be spent by the end of the day. Use that twenty to buy a couple nice Franklin halves, you put them in the safe and they stay there a while. I rather regard it as a way to safely store wealth more so than a long term investment.

 

Absolutely.

That said, I'd be lying if I didn't admit I take some comfort in the knowledge that should an unexpected need arise, I can recoup at least a meaningful portion of what I've put into my coin collecting hobby.

Would I take a net loss? Undoubtedly. But not even remotely in the same ballpark of the loss I'd take on what I've put into the hobbies of golf and fly fishing.

 

The resale market on Maxfli golf balls is kinda depressed isn't it? lol

Haven't seen an actual Maxfli ball in decades it seems.