1999 silver proof set

The 1999 silver proof set is worse than gasoline prices. Every time I look, they it keeps going up. I don't know if I shuld commit now, or wait and see what happens. $350 is a lot to pay but just a couple of months ago, they were going for $250. What do you guys think? Thanks-Bob

 

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Put your money back in your wallet Robert, along with a note that says "look again next year at this time". If the price is either down or up from what it is now, do the same thing again.

After two years look again and if the price has dropped, buy the set. if the price has raised, draw out your gun and come and shot me.

 

Hello, I just registered on CoinTalk, and I am impressed with the site. I wish I knew when the next dip was going to occur. In early 2000, I bought two 1999 Silver Proof Sets for $65.95 each, and I cursed the dealer where I bought them. During the next two years, I bought two more sets for $84.95 and $89.95 respectively. Again, I felt I had been taken. Now I look in amazement at the prices for these sets. They can't keep going up like this can they?

On the other side, I didn't buy any of the 2004 Nickel Coin and Medal Set for $19.95. The other day, I gave in and purchased one for $135.00. Now, I see that the eBay prices seem to be cooling, and I want to kick myself for being so impatient). On the other hand, I now have a set.

If you want a set just to have one for your collection and your patience is strong, then look for a dip like OldDan says. I just don't have his patience, and I feel that your buying now may save OldDan's life (if the prices don't collapse right after your purchase).

 

Thanks guys. I always appreciate the input from someone with expeience (Old Dan). BTW kortgawain, Would you like to make a 200% profit on one of YOUR 1999 proof sets.??

 

Sell! Sell!

 

I bought one '99 Silver Proof Set from a dealer in late 2000 for $94.95. At $350.00 NOW, that was a great deal, although I wondered at the time. Would I buy one now for $350, if I didn't have one? Probably so, knowing how impatient I can be, although I'd try first to swap something(s) of equal value for one of them. You just never can predict what markets will do, or at least I can't. All one can do is speculate. I wonder sometimes if all of these state quarter sets are inflated though, and am somewhat concerned that they might take a dive when the craze ends, like say after the final sets are issued in 2008. Who knows? What it finally boils down to is this: How badly do you want one now?

 

I collected coins as a kid and just got back into it last year. I'm still suffering from sticker shock and I can't believe the prices, and that they are still going up. I'm still having a lot of time getting my brain to accept the idea of paying 1,000 times the face value of a coin, regardless of what it is.

 

The latest Coin Dealer Newsletter (Greysheet) states that coins are going through a bit of a slump as far as prices go and that they expect a 'correction'. So if you put any faith in that, wait a while.

 

Wish I had bought more of the 1999's. Gave one to a Grandson since he was born in 1999.

Wow, had I bought a dozen or so, my wife and I would be on a cruise to Europe about now.

You just never know.

I would bet in two years from now the prices will be down, way down.

We'll see I guess.

 

I would think that the market for any set containing coins from the "state quarters" program will flatten the year of, or shortly there-after, after the end of the program (2008). That is unless the U.S. Mint comes up with another program to stimulate more interest in more collectors than currently exist. I believe that if I want a coin or set for my personal collection, the price is simply a matter of what I need to spend at todays costs. Whether the price goes "north or south" after that is not really that important to me. I have purchased coins in the past that have totally "bombed" and others have gone through the roof, but I love looking at both even to this day.
Had I made the purchases with the intent of making a profit on them my feelings would be "mixed" at best. For some , the price of a bottle of vintage wine is more than worth hundreds of dollars they are willing to pay , while I am content with the 4 liter $10 dollar bottle.

 

Line_grade, I agree with most of what you are saying, but if I spent $350.00 and in two years the price had dropped to $100, I can't say it wouldn't matter to me. However, at least buying coins seems to provide some chance of residual value, unlike buying a computer for $3,000 and in a few years it is worth junk (and you usually have to pay someone to dispose of it properly).

My joy in collecting outweighs fluctuations in the market value of the coins from year to year. What is amazing to me is the spikes on some coin items that do not merit the price (e.g. 2004 nickel coin and medal set).

 

kortgawain,

Your comment touches on what I consider one of the "core" issues surrounding collecting today. I've noticed that there isn't much discussion of a coin's "value" among collectors. The WORD value is thrown around a lot, but is used as a synonym for the word "price." A lot of effort is put into determining the current price, and if a collector can acquire a coin for less, they consider it good value. Whether the collector subsequently gains or loses money becomes (pardon the expression) a coin flip. Personally, I think this is short sighted and incorrect; but probably unchangeable. Collectors will mistrust the prices in the Redbook, and pull up the current greysheet thinking that somehow it provides a better clue to value. But it doesn't. It's just another more current price.

For example, using the Redbook, the 1886O MS64 is listed at $7,500 and the MS65 at $200,000. Is this reasonable? Does the 65 have a "value" that is 26 times greater than a 64? Can you be THAT sure of the grading? I'd personally rather have 26 64s than 1 65, but that has to do with my concept of value. Going down a notch, the MS60 is $500 so you could own 400 of those for one 65 even though both are mint state coins.

My concept of value would take into account price ranges over a period of 7-10 years and some sense of what happened to similar coins in the past under similar price conditions. Value then becomes more of a professional opinion of what the likely future price changes might be for the coin in question, also comparing it to what else can be obtained for the same money and how that choice is likely to perform.

Anyway, I'm not a professional and I can't do this very well (yet) because I don't have the skill, experience, or judgement. But if I was a professional or even just a better collector, I'd question everthing about the current pricing of coins because much of it makes absolutely no sense unless it is pursued purely for enjoyment with no concern about financial gain or loss.

Hopefully this comment isn't offsensive to anyone and I fully recognize that I'm probably in the bottom 5% of knowledge in this forum (and that might be generous). It wasn't intended to be. It is only intended to challenge conventional thinking on pricing, value, and the idea of investing in coins. Sorry for being long winded.

 

If you get a high end MS64 coin you might try sending it back in to PCGS or NGC...sometimes they up the grade...that would add a few $$$$ on the price tag.

Speedy

 

Cloudsweeper99, thanks for the opinion. I think I understand where you are coming from, but I can only hope to achieve that balance between value and my collecting desires. If I purchase a silver set for $350 under today's prices and later the long term value levels off and the "price" in 5 years is only $250, personally I still feel pretty good, because I wanted the set anyway as a collector, and the drop off in price doesn't substantially affect my outlook on having the set. I still have the coins that comprise the set, and the mintage of these coins will never change.

On the other hand, if I purchase a 2004 Coin and Medal set for $135.00 (which I did), and in 5 years, they are selling for $25.00 (which I think is more what they are worth in value), I will always secretly kick myself for paying so much for something that has a temporary price of $135.00, because the US Mint decided to sell only 25,000 of these medals and boxes together and include three proof coins that are minted in much higher numbers in various packages or in regluar proof sets that don't approach this temporary price. Of course, I foolishly chase the packaging just like so many filled with the collecting addiction for the product, not the parts.

Collecting today seems to be intertwined in many of the offerings with the packaging and output of the US Mint in ways that weren't the situation before about 1986 with some exceptions. Of course, the old collectors and the wiser new collectors probably don't fall victim to this as much as I.

 

Lucky you, look at me, lol

 

kortgawain,

The reason I posted my rant here is that I could tell from your posts that you understand this issue. OldDan seems to also. I completely agree with your comments and observations.

 

1999 Silver Proof

I may be way out there on my rationality as I am new to this whole coin collecting.

But I think the 1999 Silver Proof is will always be high in collectible value.

The US Population census is about 303 million citizens. There is an estimate of 140 million new collectors in the coin collecting for the state quarters.

Young, old, children have now starting collecting the state quarters. So many now have the bug.

There was only 804,000 and some 1999 Silver Full proofs minted. I figure about 1/3 of these got split apart due to dealers separating them to sell each part separately, also to remove the coins get them graded etc. Some just stuck in a drawer maybe even lost in a fire etc, or people just didn't care about them so lost taken apart spent etc. . So if we take 1/3 off of the 804,000 brings down to about 536,000 still intack original Full proof sets maybe higher lets say 700,000 still left intack.

K with 303 million us citizens and only 700,000 left of the 1999 complete silver original sets to be divided up amoung 50 states (not that they will be divided like this just a quick sinerio) that is only 14,000 people in each state that could even possibly have obtained a chance of having a completed original full set of the state quarters program. Full sets meaning the 1999-2009 silver proofs, 1999-2009 clad proofs, and 1999-2009 P&D mint sets.

Now lets see Hawaian Islands has 1,275,194 people as of the year 2005. So even 14,000 people were to have full sets in this state would not be that much. Same with Idaho which is not a populated state of 1,429,096 in 2005 still again 14,000 is not very many and it goes on. The states with the largest population 14,000 is only going to be like a handful. New York state For example has 19,254,630 residence as of 2005.

Now later on all these children and some adults that started there precious quarter sets have grown up and became actual serious collectors or course some will drop out and not collect anymore lets say only 1/10 continue collecting out of the 140 million new collectors thats 1.4 million new collectors. They remember the good times of sitting with family and sorting through change to find the quarters. well now they want the full set of the collection that started them out in the first place. And they want the silver, clad, mints etc. well the 1999 silver is never going to be an easy one for them to aquire and so therefore I think the price will stay relatively high in that aspect.

I have the full compete series up to date but actually this set is for my husband he will get them all for valentines day (he does not know I purchased them for him) at that time he will be givin the opportunity to sell, them and keep the money to spend on what ever he may like or keep them as a nice collection. In the end the decision will be up to him. I do hope he does want to keep them as I do think that it would be somthing nice to hand down to our children.

Another factor I see is 1999-2000 is the year of the turn of the century this also could play a part.

I may be way off on my thinking or reasoning, numbers etc. but I guess my theory might not be the same as someone elses!

What a great board. Thanks for listening and sorry for the long post.

 

dont you have enough folks gunning for you now?

 

I find that a more realist time figure for new items from the mint before they finally settle down into their true value is between ten to twelve years. Some will fall much sooner, but if they stay high for over ten years then they are much likely to hold their value.

 

the 1999 Silver Proof is so expensive because it is the last set of the 20th century (even though 2000 is the real last year) and it is seen as something special. factor in the new State Quarters and you can see why it's so expensive. in 10 years it will probably be back to a reasonable price >$100.00.

the balance between price and value is lost on so many collectors who "must have the coin" regardless of price.

-steve