Buying Coins instead of having cash lying around

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I think you must be right, I missed the "error" part of the description. Therefore my estimate should be increased $300.

 

Got to agree with GDJMSP all the way on this one. Well, almost anyway. True that so few of us realize how much a store charges versus what they pay for products. Shoe department person at Walmart told me that for each pair of shoes they sell they could give away two pair and still make a large profit. We all accept this markup with no problem but a coin dealer making a profit seams scandalous.
However, I still think most coin dealers are used car salespeople during the week.
Ask the next coin dealer you meet for a good used car.
Not sure but thought I saw a few coin dealers pictures at the post office.

 

There are two dangers when dealing with coin dealers. The first is working with a dealer who sells overgraded merchandise, probably the biggest problem. The second is abnormally high markups. There are three dealers within a reasonable distance from me. I would only buy from one of them. He seems to try hard to correctly grade the coins he sells, and is very open about charging a 20% markup on all merchandise. So he usually sells at greysheet prices and buys coins at 20% below that price. From what I see, he does a pretty high volume of business because people seem to trust him, and has a number of wealthy clients for whom he assembles high value high quality collections. That seems like a perfectly reasonable and honest and profitable way to run a business. The other two dealers sell cleaned and overgraded merchandise, are fairly rude to people other than the 'regulars', and will probably be on America's Most Wanted someday.

 

GDJMSP, few people buy furniture or even jewelry as an investment; not true with coins. Many dealers run adds referring to their coins as investments. In the investment world "markups" or commissions are tiny compared to the markup of coin dealers, and they are almost always clearly stated. Most coin dealers will dance the markup question when asked directly, unless the coins are bullion.

Why are there no brokers in coins? A broker could help secure the best deal for his clients for a fee, while a dealer is always on the other side of the trade, so at odds with the clients best interest.

If one has slabbed coins to sell, wouldn't using a bigtime auction be the best way to go?

 

There are, but their fees make it uneconomical to use them for anything but high grade, truly rare coins.

Again, yes if they are high grade, truly rare - no if they are run of the mill stuff, or non-top tier TPG slabs.

In fact, virtually all the top auctioneers have substantial minumum values that they will accept from a consignor.

 

GDJMSP, as I said, I don't mean to insult anyone, but I don't think you have fairly answered my problem with coin dealers advertising rare coins as a good investment & then helping the customer make selections. I read someone post that knowledge is the key to making good coin investments, buying undervalued, or buying bullion & hoping the PM prices go up.

As an investment, 40% off the top is hard to overcome, especially with a vehicle where prices don't appear to move up a lot. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but haven't nusmismatics remained fairly stable in price. I mean gold has nearly tripled in price in the past six years & I think coin values have stayed fairly stead.

To repeat, I don't think coin dealers should pitch coins as an investment. If they talk to people as collectors, I have no problem with their charging whatever markup they can get away with. It's when they solicit business, pitching coins as a good investment that I think they step over the line.

 

Unfortunately anything can become investment as long as there is demand and supply. Is there a demand and supply for coins? Sure there is. Why can it not be investment?

I'm sure most coin collectors hate the terms investors as they are likely the coins to increase the values rapidly before they can get the coins that they want.

 

"Just going back the same 6 yrs you mention you would be hard pressed to find a collectibe coin that has not increased in value at least 300%. Most of them have increased much more in the same amount of time."

Thanks for this info. I, apparently, was misinformed. Now I feel better about those coins I bot about six years ago. :hail:

 

These two coins are both slabbed & PCGS graded, one is 1871 $2 1/2 MS65 & the other 1885 $1 MS67.

The dealer was recommended by an investment advisor who was right about getting out of stocks in early 2000. Unfortunately, I hadn't realized how much the markup was on coins at the time. I bot these coins, about a dozen morgans, also slabbed, & a bunch of gold bullion.

I've never tried to photograph coins or I'd post pictures to get opinions. Perhaps I should try a few. What should I do for lighting?

 

Is the 1885 dollar gold or silver? If it is gold it is a $6000-$6500 coin, but if it is silver (a Morgan dollar) then it is worth $2750-$3250 based on 2 that were sold yesterday on Heritage.

The quarter eagle is more mysterious to me. A MS64 one sold yesterday for $8700 and it is one of 5 known in PCGS 64 with only one higher. Are you the owner of that one coin? If so it could be worth $15000-$20000.


If you can post photos I would be very appreciative, those are truely superior quality coins!

It seems that the quarter eagle was probably a good "investment" if that was why you bought it, at least until another MS65 is found in some old time collection.

 

The 1885 dollar is gold, & the 1871 $2 1/2 is the highest known, graded of that year. Unfortunately, I paid nearly $25,000 for the two in early 2000, so my bullion purchases have done far better as an investment.

I intend to post pictures. I did a search for "coin picture" & "lighting for coin pictures", but haven't really found something instructive. Any help would be appreciated. Perhaps I'm using the wrong key words or looking in the wrong place.

 

HI SCOTT
Please befor you buy any more coins come to this forum and ask the members for help, At some time all of us have spent to much money for our coins.

 

Very nice coins indeed! It is very possible that I've underestimated the value of the quarter eagle, as finest known coins are difficult to accurately price. The golddollar's price is relatively accurate, though. The coin is relatively common in MS67 although it is quite rare in 68, so there is a relatively constant stream of them up for auction.

 

Try to find one graded for $300. This may be the key out of all the A.G.E., with mintages between 6000-12000