Hello. In 2012 I made my typical order for two Silver Proof sets. I was thinking of selling one of them due to the premium on the sets. I was wondering -- is it better to try to sell it to a local dealer (I'm in Chicago) or on eBay? I realize that the dealer will need to make some profit on it if he buys it, so does it make more sense to go the eBay route? More broadly, am I correct in thinking that the premium these sets command won't increase as time goes on, unless there is another spike in silver prices? Or maybe some other factor will cause them to be valued more like other sets of this era?
IMHO sell now as I believe these have hit their high. The same thing happened in 1999 with the silver set. I peaked at around $300.00. Now it's around $85-$90.00.
I think that you asked a great question and I hope to answer both parts. First, selling the coins on eBay even after paying all of the fees will likely net you more than a dealer. Most dealers that I know buy proof sets at or below 60% of graysheet bid. You’ll do better on the bay, trust me. As to the question about future value, it’s impossible to do anything but guess. My experience over time is that proof sets eventually lose most of their premiums within a short period. Take the money and run.
Thanks very much for this advice, Mike. I was just about set to try my luck downtown with a dealer. I see that people on the Bay are trying to get a full $250 or more for '12 Silver sets, but recent sales using the "Buy It Now" option are for more like $170-$190. People who tried to auction them often seem to get less than $100 -- yikes. So it looks like some of the set's momentum may already be declining.
The wind is no longer at your back. A fresh headwind is up. Pack up the spinnaker. Tack sharply and keep yar opponent on yar lee.
I only ordered one set that year but I sold it at it's high or close, $299.00 I believe. It left a gaping hole in my set for a few years but I then re-purchased it at $85.00 so I'm a happy camper now. I distinctly remember the buyer asking..."Are you serious? Only that much? Is there anything wrong with it?" Nope, just taking a nice profit and biding my time.
Yes everyone, the premium on 2012 Silver sets is a hoax and NOT what everyone believes. Some ding dong started the rumor the 2012 S Native dollar was scarce and idiots jumped on the band-wagon. Although you may see these graded and priced at $200 or more, NGC, PCGS and the Grey sheets have the value considerably lower. Case in point, check out these mintages: 2012 S - 1,189,445 2013 S - 802,460 2014 s - 665,100 Which do you think is more scarce? I rest my case.
Sales of the 2012 sets were ended early. That resulting in a lot of people who were waiting to the last minute getting shut out and it caused a big (unjustified) run up in the price making the 2012 set "rare". As Daniel points out the sets after it have even lower mintages, but the old "it s rare" story combined withthe fact that a lot of people bot collectors and dealers aren't willing to take the loss on what they paid for the sets are slowing the fall in the price of the set.
10% final value fee on ebay? Are they trying to kill the coin and bullion section? Why would anyone bother to sell on ebay now when they can lose less than 10% selling to their local coin shop instead?
Conder101 makes a great point yet, other factors come in play too. Because these idiots believe the 2012 S set to be rare, they are artificially inflating the value by setting prices double what the market states the value is. Although ONLY a fraction of sets are sold (albeit to buyers that don't care about the price or are so ignorant about mintage figures), these are the auction prices used by Grey sheets, Red Book or others to determine value. That said though, these values are incorrect and will adjust in time as NO sales at these inflated prices are registered and thus lower to acceptable levels. Again, a low mintage does not correlate to rarity or high value, on the contrary, it merely shows a low demand from prior years. Be cautious of the idiots selling above market value and do your research be buying too.
