Hello CT-ers, I have been asked to appraise a 'friend of a friend's' Mom & Pop U.S. coin collection this Summer. The owner knows Zero about coins & their value. There's a good chance I maybe offered the collection to buy & wanting to be fair, I'd really appreciate knowing what CV % is usually offered from those of you who are coin dealers. I will probably re-sell the bulk of the collection. Any tips or opinions sincerely appreciated, J.T.
I would suggest you proceed very carefully. Appraise for a fee, with documentation, OK. Buy based on that appraisal, questionable. Appraise for no fee and direct the person(s) to have another appraiser determine value of your offer, OK. It sounds like a family member is seeking the advice on behalf of parents, and is doing so via a mutual acquaintance. If you are simply going to buy and sell, then the basis of the evaluation/appraisal could be questioned and it happens frequently. Maybe better to refer to an independent appraiser and offer to purchase 15-20% under independent appraiser, may be fair. The size/quantity/quality and type of collection of course is important. The first decision to make is should the appraisal be a wholesale appraisal or market appraisal? Appraisals, especially these days, can be a problem and definitely so for the person that is appraising and will buy. Everyone is different, and there will be many different opinions, so consider my thoughts and opinions as kicking off the (hopefully courteous) verbal fisticuffs contest. And definitely , I wish you well. edit change appraise to appraiser.
I think what you do and how you do it depends on a number of factors: - First, are you a "professional"? That is, are you a coin dealer with a business and tax number? If you are, then how you approach this is different than if you are a hobbyist that is just providing some opinions. - Is this "appraisal" for tax or estate purposes? If so, it needs to be approached from that basis. If all the owner wants is just a ballpark, then that's different. - How close are these "friends"? If the whole thing goes sideways and you lose their friendship, is that a big deal to you? If so, maybe you should beg off and suggest someone else. - What's the aggregate approximate value of this "mom and pop collection" and what's the value of the best coins in the collection? If it's low, you can treat it fairly casually but if it's high, you must treat it differently. And by low and high, I kind of mean in the eyes of the owner of the collection, first and your opinion second. I've done this before for a friend who wanted to know the value of his mother's accumulation. I sat down with him and went through the stuff with him and with the price guides so that when the bad news sank in - "your mother's coins are not worth much more than melt" - he had seen how I got to that conclusion and had worked up to it himself gradually. - What's your motivation here? Just to help a friend or to buy and resell this collection and make a profit? Whatever it is, be upfront about it with your friend and the collection's owner.
I’ve always found it a fine line to walk. If I’m asked to price a small collection, no problem. If it’s more than a couple hundred dollars, we visit a local dealer. More than a couple thousand, I advise a second local dealer. If that’s more than they’re willing to do, we price by 75% of EBay sales and I count out cash
