Message:

<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Orielensis, post: 4007704, member: 96898&quot;]For me, the main point here is that the added sales tax makes it much less attractive to buy from US auction houses or even ebay. Here is an example why:</p><p><br /></p><p>I recently won a beautiful Fulda bracteate (will take my own pictures and do a write-up soon) from CNG for $110 hammer. My final invoice added 18% auction fee ($19.80), $10 shipping, and sales tax ($12.58), coming down to a total $152.38. That means the total was about <b>38.5%</b> higher than the hammer price.</p><p><br /></p><p>My last auction win for 2019 were two Roman Republican denarii from Artemide Kunstauktionen in Vienna. They hammered at €110, including, as typical for about all European auction houses, VAT. With the usual 18% auction fee (€19.80) and an equally usual €12 shipping, my invoice totalled €141.80. That&#039;s about <b>28.9%</b> more than the hammer price. I paid with a European bank account. Had I used my US bank account and Transferwise, this would have added an additional 1–2% in conversion and transaction fees.</p><p><br /></p><p>Before sales tax was added, buying from a US auction house was slightly advantageous because of the less expensive shipping and the lack of conversion and transaction fees. Now, this is more than made up for by the sales tax. Purchases like the ones mentioned above are in the lower range of what most collectors spend at auctions. Even for those, <b>you&#039;ll now have to add about 5–10% more if you buy from a US auction house compared to a European or Canadian one</b>. The exact percentage depends on the respective sales tax rates, shipping costs, and conversion fees. If you make larger purchases, shipping costs matter less, tipping the scale even more in favor of international auction house purchases.</p><p><br /></p><p>If I were, for example, CNG or Heritage, I&#039;d be quite upset about this. But if I were Artemide, Numismatik Naumann, Tauler y Fau, Teutoburger, AMCC, or another trustworthy international auction house, I&#039;d happily expect more US customers in my upcoming auctions...</p><p><br /></p><p>To keep this visually appealing, here are the three coins mentioned above:</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1054864[/ATTACH]</p><p><font size="3">GERMANY, Fulda (Abtei). Heinrich IV von Erthal. 1249-1261. AR Bracteate (29mm, 0.52 g). Abbot seating facing within polylobe, holding palm frond and gospel / Incuse of obverse. Kestner 2293; Bonhoff 1369. (<i>CNG&#039;s description and picture.</i>)</font></p><p><font size="3"><br /></font></p><p><font size="3">[ATTACH=full]1054868[/ATTACH] </font></p><p><font size="3">Roman Republic, moneyer: Sex. Pompeius Fostlus, 137 BC, Rome mint. Obv: head of Roma, helmeted, r.; behind, jug; before, X. Rev: SEX·PO[M FOSTVLVS]; she-wolf suckling twins r.; behind, ficus Ruminalis; in l. field, the shepherd Faustulus leaning on staff; in exergue, [RO]MA. 18mm, 3.87g. Rev: RRC 235/1c. Ex Artemide, e-live Auktion 10, lot 199.</font></p><p><font size="3"><br /></font></p><p><font size="3">[ATTACH=full]1054867[/ATTACH] </font></p><p><font size="3">Roman Republic, moneyer C. Naevius Balbus, denarius serratus, 79 BC. Obv: diademed head of Venus right, SC behind. Rev: Victory in triga right, C NAE BALB in exergue; above, CLXXXX. Ref: Crawford 382/1b. Ex Artemide, e-Live Auktion 10, lot 256.</font>[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

Your name or email address:

Do you already have an account?

• No, create an account now.
• Yes, my password is:
• Forgot your password?

Stay logged in