Buying expensive coins

I love the walking liberty half dollar series. I recently came across a 1921 D graded (NGC or PCGS, I forget which), AU 58. Dealer said $8,500.00. It's blast white, checks all the boxes, a very nice looking coin. I didn't pull the trigger at the show because it was difficult to rationalize (?) spending that amount of money on a coin.

I have 3 nieces that are approaching 16 years old, and while I doubt I'll be buying any of them an automobile, I kept thinking, I could buy 2 or 3 automobiles for the price of one coin.

I saw the dealer at a subsequent show, and he had a dummy with him. Not literally, like Jeff Dunham, but someone that I guess was a friend? They start babbling on, "Do you want to eat steak or chicken nuggets? Ha ha ha?" Which got me to thinking, is he good for business? Because I think I get the point he was trying to make, do you want to have this $8,500.00 coin, or are you happy with your ANACS VG 8 that cost $325.00?

But the reality is, he put in my head do I want to continue to not have to worry about eating, or do I want to drop all that cash on a coin and be stuck eating ramen noodles for some period of time to get back to a level of comfort? Not that I'd be in trouble if I bought the coin and something happened, but rather, would I have buyer's remorse?

Anyone else have this struggle?

 

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All the time. I have no issue at all spending on another person. But I sure do feel guilt each time I spend on myself. I tend to justify my coin purchases as "storing wealth for the future" and it gets me through the guilt process.

 

Yes

 

Yup.

 

Me too.
Fortunately I have an understanding wife so sometimes -- with her approval -- I can buy a pricier coin.

 

Absolutely.

 

I’m the odd ball I guess. My answer is I never have that struggle. I’ve never bought a coin that expensive but I have paid over 5 thousand for a few of them. I also have paid several thousand for CSA Notes. I just save so the money is there if I want something that expensive but I never feel guilty or argue with myself. I either want it or I don’t. Of course all other bills and expenses are paid and accounted for when I do spend that much and I always have extra for emergencies. Plan, you must plan and not act solely on impulse.

 

I have little desire to buy 'expensive' coins even if I really enjoyed the coin.

The only way I would/could spend at those levels would be if my income/wealth was so high that $8,500 was 'hobby money' equivalent.

The most I've spent on a single coin was ~$650 for a PCGS VF 1921 Standing Liberty quarter.

 

I love you man, but be careful with this rationale. This is what dealers want you to think. They want you to equate investing with coin collecting. Well, let's look at a common coin purchase, (best case):

1. Buy at auction, pay 20% commission but you know what you are doing, so net you pay market price or a little under.
2. Hold said asset for years/decades with no current income. In fact, it COSTS you money every year because whether you rent SDB, buy insurance, or self insure, you care taking a risk someone can steal it from you. This has an economic costs, even if you bear it yourself and do not write a check.
3. You sell. Best case at auction and only take a 20% haircut if it sells well. Maybe you made some profit. But wait, now the tax man comes and wants 28% of said "profit" even though when you paid for it those dollars were more valuable than today's dollars, so you are really being taxed on inflation to a large extent.

Sure, you enjoy owning it in the meantime, but those are the cold hard facts of this "investment".

Myself, its my hobby. My avatar I paid more than a few pennies for, (same name as my daughter), but I only spent "hobby money", the same money I would lose if I gambled, drank at clubs, was into race cars, boats, etc. Money I can afford to lose and never see again. Sure, the kids might get a check when I am gone and they don't want them, but I don't sell so I will never see that money again. I simply believe its safer to have this mindset than "store of value" because of the negatives I talked about earlier unless its intentionally part of a portfolio, like 5 or 10% in gold to offset other risks. My wife asks me what my coins might be worth, what I paid for them, etc. I honestly, put a gun to my head, have no clue. I remember SOME coins I have bought, but not most, let alone have an idea of what they are all worth today.

Of course, this is dependent upon your income as well. I am lucky that $1000 for a random purchase or a few thousand for a special coin will not affect my lifestyle any longer. Others have larger budgets, others smaller, your "coin money" budget will vary.

Just my opinion sir. I walk around coin shows and here "investment" and "store of value" from about every dealer when discussing pricier coins. Way too much money that should be invested is used to buy coins due to such talk. Now, if you are in a position to afford it, and its your hobby money, have fun. I never tell another man or woman how to spend their hobby money, its their money, their relaxation, their right to do as they wish. If your family is taken care of, and you have set aside appropriate amounts of retirement money, do what you like. I just like to remind people of this game dealers try to get you to play that its an "investment". If it is, its one of the worst ones in the world, (better than drinking or many other hobbies, but still),

 

Indeed, if maybe not quite to this degree...more like maybe a few $hundred v. $50 or $75. I'm more curious about buying 2 or 3 cars for the $8500 coin price...not sure I'd want to be the recipient of one of those $2500-$4000 cars...

 

Well said and solid advice..... Believe me, I am as frugal as they come. The folks in my office think I pinch pennies so hard that they squeak.... I been happy with five dollar coins most all my life. Only in the last 8-10 years have I allowed myself the luxury of a few of the nicer coins that I dreamed of my whole life.... No, these aren't an investment strategy by any means for me. But if I have a few nice coins in the safe, it keeps the extra cash out of the bank account where I know from experience will magically materialize into clothes that my wife will never wear.

 

all of the coins I have paid more than $500 for I lost money on after holding them for years. On the plus side I have bought and sold hundreds of large cents over the years that I have made up those losses and than some. Most of those purchases were in the $20 to $50 range. Just my two cents.

 

Fair enough. My cousin has always said I squeeze a nickel until it screams, so sounds like people perceive us similarly. I am the same, living on less expensive coins for years until my career caught up with me, (and I accumulated enough degrees maybe), that I can check off a lot of coins I thought were forever out of my reach like my Antony/Cleopatra tetradrachm.

 

Never over or even extend yourself on any purchase. The key to personal wealth is to live with in your means. Spend less then you take in.

 

high priced coins never appealed to me i go for the more simple coins which do appeal to me and fit my set budget

i don't have a ego to feed or do i care for status , i'm just a simple common man who enjoys the simple pleasures of life

 

You're lucky in a sense. I don't spend that much on coins, and neither of us spend much on clothes -- but we both have a weakness for tools we'll never (or rarely) use. And they're different tools. But that means each of us finds it hard to talk the other down when a new purchase is tempting.

Oh, and musical instruments. At least now she's into flutes and whistles, which are a good bit easier to store than hammered dulcimers or guitars. And I'm temporarily sated on guitars myself.

 

I'm afraid you're going to get a very bad surprise the next time you DO look for a used car. The dealership offers on my almost-5-year-old Prius are creeping closer and closer to its original sticker price.

 

I bought two used cars a year apart 9-10 years ago. I can sell either one of them for more than I paid originally. I mentioned to my mechanic I was thinking of selling my wife’s car and he said it’s cheaper to repair it than buy another used car. The price of new cars is so high they don’t advertise them in Sunday’s paper.

 

Everyone has a coin budget. My most expensive coin is $750 of which I made 2 payments on. I got an inheritance from my late grandmother so I was able to afford that great coin. Do I feel guilty of spending so much on that coin ? Yes, but I justified it at that time. Could I afford to spend that much on a coin now ? No. Spend what you are comfortable with. Make sure all your other bills are paid first. Coins are a bad investment unless you have endless amount of money to buy the very best coins out there. I really enjoy coins, but I am realistic in my coin buys. Most of my coin buys now are in the $1-350 range. There is no way I could/would spend $8,500 on 1 coin unless I had way more money to do so.

 

Good advice of course but if I followed it I'd never have any fun at all