My brother's father-in-law is planning on selling some gold coins on ebay (a mixed lot of $1, $5, and $20 St. Gaudens). He basically is assigning an arbitrary price on them, based on what he's read in different pricing guides) and grading them as what he deems "uncirculated". I strongly recommended that he get the coins certified by one of the four major grading companies to ensure that he gets the most out of his coins but he refuses. What do you guys suggest, do you agree that he should get them slabbed or just wing it and hope for the best on ebay?
Perhaps if you can get a chance to take a photo or even list the years and mintmarks of them, it will be very worthwhile to do so. Some coins might be worth slightly more than bullion but you will never know if there are any key dates and therefore worthwhile to slab them.
He would get more for them if they were slabbed. Perhaps even more important, he needs someone with a strong feedback rating to sell them for him and he needs to be willing to accept paypal. Many buyers are afraid to bid on gold coins because there is so much fraud in the marketplace. The more credibility your friend can give to his merchandise the more interest his auction will attract.
I never buy raw gold on ebay. There are to many fakes. Post a picture, get the date/mintmark information and post it also.
I'm not an ebay person but my son and a few friends think it's the greatest thing on Earth. My son sells just about anything ever made and makes good money doing it. If he just wants to get rid of those coins, that is the place to do it. I'm not sure even how ebay works but there is something about a minimum amount you will accept I've heard. Best to really know what those are worth before even considering putting them up on ebay. As noted possibly a slabbed coin would be a better seller, but then again with millions of people out there using ebay, who knows what will happen.
Dave: It is obvious that you will not change his mind, so, just hit him in the head with a 2X4 and get them as an inheritance.
Ebay is a wonderful place. I buy and sell on there almost daily but it's not a place for raw gold. Get them authenticated by getting them certified and if they have good grades AU-58 and up ..you chances are much better for a market value price. Post pictures first/date mint mark information if you can get it. If they are in bad shape ...certification would be a waste of money.
If I were in the market for gold, I'd probably stay away from unauthenticated coins unless the seller had a perfect feedback rating of at least 1000. Those "arbitrary prices" might not work, as they may: - Be from an unrealistic guide, therefore, higher than the market value, resulting in few/no bids - Not take into account the current relatively high price of gold, therefore, lower than the market value, not so bad if the coins are auctions and not "buy it now". I would strongly advise staying away from reserve prices; I and others don't like to guess. Lots of good pictures, enough words for a realistic description, few (or no) exclamation points, and no hype; all will help but a low feedback score, even if 100%, will scare people away. Not your fault, it's just the way it is.
For raw gold ? He'd be crazy if he didn't have a reserve. Say he posts a lousy pic for double eagle, and nobody knows him as a seller of coins. If potential bidders think the coin might be fake or are just reluctant to bid because he is unknown - what happens when somebody bids $20 and nobody else does bid ? He's out a double eagle for $20. If the guy is unknown on ebay as a coin seller and the coins are raw - take them to a coin shop and sell them. He'll get the same amount as if paid to have them slabbed and then sold them on ebay.
As a buyer, I too hate auctions with reserve pricing. But I would agree that if you don't have a strong feedback rating or know someone who does and can use their sellers account than you will need to set a reserve price. Another possibility is to use one of the many ebay selling services such as sellingrequest.com or pickup2sell.com. However, I cannot recommend any specific service as I have no experience with any of them and I do not know how much of a commission they charge.
