So, I know very little about paper money. However, I'm currently going through a friend's father's hoard and there is a bit of paper money. I'm not really sure if any of it is worth grading, but I was curious - what companies grade paper money? Obviously, I know NGC and PCGS have paper money sections... but are there any other alternatives? What companies would you recommend? Are there any that you would particularly avoid?
It's almost the same as coins. The big two, PCGS and PMG. PMG is to currency as PCGS is to coins. PMG is currently the king. PCGS has just had it's paper money grading services come back to Collectors Universe. They had licensed the name out for like 10 years I think, so they are just now getting going again. There are a couple of others out there, I can't think of them off the top of my head, but they are the ANACS and ICG's of the currency world. I would go with PMG if I were you, the pricing is pretty close between PCGS and PMG.
How about for inexpensive items that you might think would be around $100? I don't want to spend a lot on certifying them, but I would like a bit of re-assurance - as I said, I don't know anything about paper money.
Thanks, I plan on doing that over the next couple of days. In the meantime - does anyone have a link to a simple description of paper money grades? That is, what qualities I should look for in a VG/F/VF/etc grade? I've collected coins for 25 years so I'm intimately familiar with the grading scale for coins - I assume that grading paper money is analagous, with adaptations for the medium.
PMG is the only game in town ! after the debacle at PCGS ( Collectors Universe ) There really is no other respected source that has been around long enough to achieve the trust of collectors, just see who's else is out there, not much
They don't provide pics, but I found this link to be helpful, particularly circulated grades. https://www.pmgnotes.com/paper-money-grading/grading-scale/
If you have any doubts, just post your pics here, there are plenty of people that can help you determine if a note should be graded, increasing value is the number one reason people submit notes to the TPG, remember there are fees involved so you have to take that in to consideration.