Hi All, I was very happy to find this forum. I have a buddy that has some coins he'd like to get rid of. I'm not too familar with the gold coin industry, but have been doing some reading, and trying to familiarize myself. If you have any resources for first-time buyers like myself, please let me know. I'd like to make a solid purchase of aound $5000 or so. I am looking to hold the coins for over 10 years in my safe. Can you lend any suggestions from the list of coins he has below? So far I've found this guide to pricing: http://www.pcgs.com/prices/ But I am sure there is a better guide, or more to pricing that I should know. Highest Regards, John LIST: COMPLETE DATE RUN OF AMERICAN EAGLES SETS PR69 1986-2005 75 COINS TOTAL 8 COMPLETE 4 COIN SETS OF 2006 MS70 FIRST STRIKES 4 COMPLETE 4 COIN SETS OF 2006 PR 70 1 COMPLETE 4 COIN SET OF 2005 PR70 1 GOVERNMENT ISSUE TRAY OF 2006 $25 GOLD AMERICAN EAGLES 20 COINS TOTAL 1 GOVERNMENT ISSUE TRAY OF 2006 $50 BUFFALO COINS 20 COINS TOTAL 1 GOVERNMENT ISSUE TRAY OF 1984 $10 OLYMPIC W PR69 20 COINS TOTAL 3 -1986 $50 GOLD AMERICAN EAGLES PR70 2- 1988 $50 GOLD AMERICAN EAGLES PR70 2 -1989 $50 GOLD AMERICAN EAGLES PR70 2- 1990 $50 GOLD AMERICAN EAGLES PR70 16- 1996 OLYMPIC FLAG MS69 3- 1995 OLYMPIC STADIUM MS69 1- 1995 OLYMPIC TORCH RUNNER MS69 3- 1996 OLYMPIC CAULDRON MS69 2- 1996 SMITHSONIAN PR69 1- 1996 SMITHSONIAN MS69 1- 1997 JACKIE ROBINSON MS69 2- 1997 FRANKLIN D ROOSEVELT PR69 2- 1991 MT. RUSHMORE MS69 2- 2000 LIBRARY OF CONGRESS MS69 3- 2001 CAPITAL VISITOR CENTER MS69 1- 2002 OLYMPIC FLAG MS69
I'm not the greatest expert or anything but I think I'd hold off before spending $5000. If you own between 0 and just a few coins I don't think it's wise to spend $5000 on something you might not be all that interested in. If you insist on spending $5000 I'd buy a ton of silver/gold and to a lesser extend platinum (or even palladium) coins. Don't go for any rare dates/errors/etc. just get your basic American Silver/Gold/Platinum Eagles, Canadian Gold/Silver/Platinum/Palladium Maples, etc. That way even if you lose interest quickly you still have precious metals that have little value other than their metal value. If you start buying a bunch of rarer stuff without experience, there's a good chance you'll make foolish purchases (if you start small, a foolish purchase won't really matter. I'd much rather pay $5 for a circulated 1943 cent because it looked really rare than $2,250 on a "MS-60" 1817 Large Cent with 15 stars that turns out to be a EF-40 worth less than $500). Unless $5000 is a very insignificant sum of money to you, do not spend all of it on coins that have a high numismatic value. Here's what you should do: Buy a Red Book, you have to have one of these if you have even a slight interest in coins. Think twice about spending $5K with little knowledge of what you are doing Start out with coins where you can't really lose - 90% junk silver, bullion with little numismatic premium, etc. While you do this, feel free to buy some random coins you don't have/ have never seen i.e. 2 cent pieces, trimes (3 cent pieces), barber dimes/quarters/halves, etc. Don't get really nice examples but just buy a bunch of different types of coins in good condition (when referring to condition, good doesn't mean great, it means merely okay). I'd say spend a couple hundred dollars on bullion (I'd get mostly junk silver since it's pretty cheap) and maybe $100-$200+ on different types of coins. Read the red book and look at what you've got. If you still very interested in coins, spend up to a thousand dollars on whatever interests you the most. If you still want more, then and only then, should you go spending large sums of money on coins. This post didn't really address the collection you have a chance to purchase from but use my advice towards that collection. Whatever you do, buy a Red Book. Until you have read through a 2007 Red Book, do not spend more than $50 or so on coins. There are other great books out there but the Red Book is a must-have (the blue book is similar but I've never bought one. If you want to spend a bunch of money, that may be of some use to you as well but honestly I know little about this book). Lastly, the United States isn't the only country that produces coins so you may be interested in foreign coins, too but that can be a very challenging (and rewarding, too) place to venture. I'd start with American coins especially if you live in the U.S. (I didn't look at your profile) since that's what you are most familiar with and they're easiest to find.
Thanks for the excellent info.. It helps A BUNCH.. I'm looking at it more as an investment than a coin collection. I might put them under my pillow a few nights a month, but thats about it : )
If you're looking mostly for an investment, stick to bullion. You need less knowledge on coins and if you only buy coins for their metal value it is almost impossible to make a big mistake (you might spend a few cents per ounce too much but that's not a big deal). You say you have $5K to start with, if that is the case and you want any gold/platinum, do not buy the 1/10 oz. coins (or any fractional ounce for that matter). The only gold I own is 1/10 oz. because it's the cheapest but in a way it's the most expensive. 10 1/10 oz. gold coins will cost much more than 1 1 oz. coin. The smaller the coin the higher the premium. Buying coins strictly for their metal value is a good way to go, that's how I started. I prefer the 90% silver since it is still a collection - you can buy folders/albums to put the coins in and you end up with a nice collection of coins in addition to a ton of extra "junk". When purchasing 90% silver I buy as much as I can afford for the lowest price per ounce I can get. I don't care what the denomination or years are, I'll worry about that when it comes in. If you get a bunch of the 90% silver you'll more than likely get many different types of coins (there are 3 common styles of half dolalrs, 2 types of dollars, 2-3 quarters, 3 dimes) and that's what sparked my interest on coins in general. eBay is a great place to get stuff because a lot of sellers will throw in a good mix of nice looking 1960s silver with some poor examples of older stuff. They're all worth the same but the old coins can be pretty neat while the 1960s silver looks like the money you find in change today (other than the fact one is silver). Also, I've gotten a lot of bonus non-silver in eBay auctions that is kind of cool, too. My favorite is an Antebellum (pre- Civil War) Large penny. It's from 1827 and it was free with some silver I bought. Other than the hole right in the middle of it, it's in pretty goood shape.
musclebeach: First, welcome. Second: if you are just looking to spend some cash as an investment, then the eagles would be the safest bet. I inferred from your answers that this is a one time thing for you, and that you may not even look at them for the next ten years, if so, then I will stick to my answer. However, everything that cat said is valid, and buy the red book is number one if you want an education.
I never suggets coins as Invesments because the way the market works---you could lose that money in a heartbeat... Something Bowers said once was this---if you are going to buy $5,000 worth of coins---take that money and buy $2,500 worth of books and $2,500 worth of coins. To buy coins and come out ahead (and even then its a chance that you will come out ahead) you must read and learn as much as you can about coins---the grading of coins---the way coins are minted---how to detect fake coins---etc. I know people who have invested in coins----some have done alright---I just helped a guy sell some junk silver that he bought back when silver was around $4 ounce----we got $13 ounce.....but then there is another guy who paid a few times what the coins were worth---neither of the guys knewn anything about coins when they bought them---the guy that lost money has come around and is learing pretty fast about them. The PCGS's price guide is NOT a good one to use--it is a hyped up---over priced---guide that shouldn't be used IMHO--some disagree. The best pricing info is from ended auctions---go to Heritage and sign up for a free account and then you have thousands of ended auctions to view at the click of your mouse. I would say that out of all of the investments in coins I've seen the best so far have been bullion (junk silver coins or just plan bullion) and Key Dates--- That is been good in the past---but that all may crash tomorrow--and no one can even guess at 10 years---for coins the market changing everyday it is almost an every day game--you have to view it and read thoughts and play it everyday so you don't get burned..... Speedy
I just spent $5,000.00 yesterday and this is what I bought. Actually, I spent $5,404.95. I bought 4 sets of the 2006 W unc. Gold 4 coin sets. 4x $1,350.00. These sets will pop once they sell out. It's nice to help a buddy out but read up on the new issues and judge for yourself. You are entering the market at a good time and opportunity knocks only once. The holy grail would have been to spend your $5,000.00 on 2 sets of the 3 coin Gold 20th Anniversary set at issue price. But that was 5 months ago and that gravy train has left the station. Those sets have doubled+ in value, raw. Remember - coins are not an investment vehicle and past performance is no indication of future growth but if you are a gambler ... you gotta roll the dice sometime.
I would suggest you only buy coins that are graded 69 or higher by PCGS and looking down the list you provided I don't see any that i would buy if it was my first purchase. None of the coins you list are really key dates, and for an investment i think you should focus on key dates.
Muscle, I bought my bullion raw for the Mint via their website: usmint.gov. Personally, I prefer my bullion raw. Older gold, I buy slabbed because I'm not a grader. I'd rather have NGC tell me that my collection of 1908 No Motto Saints are MS63-64. There are so many fake Saints out there on the market, I would rather pay for the authenticity than trust my unskilled eye. Whatever you decide to buy, do your research, shop around for prices and have fun. I promise you though...the minute so see your purchase in hand... you will never want to sell it. Gold comes with a fever. A fever for which there is no cure....just so you know ahead of time.
To tell you the truth---I wouldn't be buying any of these 2006 Sets---I bought one ASE set for my collection that was it because of this reason... A ton of people were buying them hoping that they will go up---it you watched Ebay before Dec. 25th. and after Dec. 25th then you saw some prices go down---at least some---alot of people think that the mintage is really low---well when you get to looking at it thousands of coins isn't low--if you want a low mintage how about a Proof Barber Dime---or such...with maybe a mintage of under 500---or some world coins that have mintages under 100...The thing is---mintage doesn't make a coin rare---you can have a one in a kind and not many people want it---but then alot of people might want a 1956-D Wheat cent---that is why I suggest that you learn about the market...do a search here on CT for Investment.... Speedy
I agree. Mintage is only one factor that you should consider and should never be the driving factor in any business decision. I bought my sets because I collect gold eagles and I can see this set doing very well over the next 10 years. More collectors are entering the market daily. This hobby is white hot and doesn't show any signs of cooling off. Prices will always fluctuate but one thing that is certain - it will be worth more money once they sell out. How much more, no one knows. I'm willing to roll the dice on this one. If I can double/triple my money, like I have done with the 3 coin gold and silver sets and the single w unc, I will be more than pleased.
