Does any body use Heritage price guide to buy coins? I usually look at the Numismedia NGC (nmn) columm(usually shows the lowest price) on the price guide. If I can pay a coin below that price, I go for it. I have purchased several slab coins and most of them are below the nmn price guide. Any idea?
The only hard and fast rule for pricing coins is this : There is no hard and fast rule for pricing coins. There are no price guides, only guidelines. It is truly an art, not a science. That said, I consult Heritage auction results all the time as one source of input. I also consult CDN, Teletrade, Numismedia, PCGS, and even E-bay. <edited to add> I also consult various dealer price listings. Everything is taken with a grain of salt and funneled into the decision. It all depends on what kind of coin I'm buying and where I'm considering selling it.
Virtually every expensive ($100+) buy I make I have looked up the equivalent coin on Heritage and most of the cheaper one as well.
I'm with 900fine on this one - I use at least a half dozen price guides before purchasing any given coin. This includes Coin Values, PCGS, Numismedia, Heritage, Teletrade, the advertised prices of Tomaska, Ebay, and others.
I look at it as a guide but try buying a coin within a certain grade that has superior eye appeal vs. a generic dog for the lower end of the pricing, that's a challenge.
I use HA's past prices all the time now per Mark's recommendation. Great way to judge open market value.
There is a difference between the price guides mentioned in the OP and the prices realized. The prices realized are usually a better indicator.
Which price guide is he referring to? Is there an actual hardcover guide that comes out? Or is he speaking online with the auctions?
When you look at a specific auction there is a section that quotes 4 different price guides, including PCGS and several others.
Like several others I look at prices realized at multiple auctions, any trends from when those auctions completed, and just how bad I gotta have that specific coin.
And the 4 different price guides differ from each other quite a bit. And they vary from HA "prices realized"... which also show variance 'twixt themselves. If there are several items listed on the HA prices, check out those individual coins. Often, it reveals that folks pay more for better coins of the same grade and TPG. Another thing to watch out for on HA prices... one cannot tell from the table if ANACS coins are problem coins. So if you see a really low number, that might be why. Click / investigate. Also... sometimes the table will have coins of different varieties, so the numbers can vary widely due to having Rarity-1 coins share a table with Rarity-4 coins.
Yes this is exactly the right way to do it. Those price guides/trends in many cases vary by many hundred percent from lowest to highest. What you mention about checking the last few sold is also so important, you may see the majority sold for lets say $1K +/- $50 and then there are a couple of odd balls, more times than not those odd balls selling for half price are net graded problem coins and should be excluded from any pricing info.
I usually check up the prices for past auctions on HA for coins that I intend to buy, but I mostly just look at the nmn price for others. I just knew Teletrade recently, so I would use their price guide for future purchases too. I just ordered a greysheet from EBay and it is on the way to my door.
No, I don't use Numismedia for anything. I follow auctions and retail pricing more closely -- actual data rather than any guide, per-se. As an aside, one sure way to have a below-average collection is to only buy below price guide prices. The adage being "You get what you pay for" is apropos and even moreso as you collect rarer coins. Please be careful. Respectfully...Mike
Right-o. I didn't believe that when I showed up here, but I believe it now. I used to think paying more was just a hustle to over-pay. Sometimes, it is. If you pay premium, make darn sure you're getting premium. It's all about the coin itself. Quality is more important than price.
Basically I do the same. Prior to going to a coin show I make a list of what I want, need, could use. Then check as many guides as possible, use the lowest price as my guide. They are all just that, GUIDES.
