Inherited coin and stamp collection

Hello,
I inherited my father's coin and stamp collection. Most of the coins and bills are circulated. I don't know where to start and whether it may be easiest to sell the lot as a whole. How do I find a reputable dealer in my area? I am in Anderson, SC, recently moved here so I do not know many people and certainly none that I am aware who collect. Any suggestions are appreciated!

 

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Hey Cheryl..... I am in Columbia South Carolina. I don't know about the upstate, but I do know several very honorable shopkeepers in the Columbia area. I don't know the extent of your inherited collection, but an hours drive may be worth your time and I would be more than happy to introduce you. I will tell you this.... Stamps are a hard sell these days. You may want to take some time and do a bit of studying. You never know... The coin bug just may bite!

 

post some photos of your coins here with both sides of the coins in focus and we can tell you what you have and what it's worth. some coins shops give appraisals with a fee. some coins shops will only offer so much money for each coin because they have to make money on each coin. it is better to sell coins individually because collectors might only want 1-5 coins at a time.

 

Hello Spirityoda, Thanks, Columbia isn't so far away. Give me a few days and I can post some photos, get an "un" detailed list together! Thanks, Cheryl

 

About how big is the collection? Posting photos of the entire collection together will help us get an idea of which coins/bills are the most valuable and which are worth less.

Pictures are key in this situation. Only then will you get an approximate evaluation and helpful advice.

Welcome to the forums

 

A photo of the 1st pg of US stamps would give us a idea of the depth of that part also. We have a sister forum that is a similar format and all , but stamps and philatelic material. You might post there also, Jim

https://www.stampexchange.com/

 

You may find that his collection is more valuable to you than what you can sell it for. Money isn't worth trading in find memories. He's gone but he left a piece of himself behind just for you.

 

Welcome and I'd like to echo @Collecting Nut 's advice. I've helped a couple people liquidate an inheritance and some of the stuff I've seen was worth more as a family token than taking to a dealer. I think @spirityoda also gave great advice in suggesting breaking the collection up and selling piecemeal. Basically, the faster you want/need to sell the collection, the less money you're going to make. Even posting a few photos in here of what you have can help us help you determine if this is something you have the potential to make some money off of, or if you just have some cool items that were passed through the family. Either way, the more you learn, the more value your items hold, so stick around and learn a thing or two here!

 

As I’ve written about on here previously, I also inherited a coin collection from my father . This collection also had about 300-400 $2 bills . I could have taken to a bank or coin shop for face value. But instead I passed many down to my grandson with a note attached that the pile of bills had been collected and saved by 5 generations of his family. He was extremely proud to be the new owner of these and told me he was saving to pass down just as I had. I think it was one of the most memorable gifts that I haven given to him. He now knows a little about the generations that came before him .

 

Post some pics and put together a list of coin types and yrs along with some info about how long your family has had this collection and you might find some sentimental collector on here that will want the whole lot. Remember some of p(probably most) do this as a hobby of history related items and wouldn’t mind sorting thru them for the excitement of thinking thru the history of that coin. For example ai found a civil war token in my dads stash and my mind went immediately to what this coin had meant to some families of that era.

 

My grandmother passed two weeks ago. I went back home and attended to all the heartwrencing affairs that have to be tended to..... But I did bring back with me Grandma's leather coin purse. She had saved several odds and ends coins from back in her prime. Wrapped them in wax paper and tucked them in that leather coin purse. And that is exactly the way they will stay in my coin safe too.

 

That’s wonderful. I understand that not everyone can afford the time or money to preserve inherited items. I’ll spare the backstory, but my biological mother passed away in the 90s. I had last seen her when I was 2 and had no idea she was also a coin collector. I was given her collection by my oldest (half) Brother, whom I lost contact with for over 20 years. Unfortunately, it had been picked over throughout the years, but I put every coin in a 2x2, labeled it, put it in a binder and then gave it back to my brother. Even though I’m the coin collector in the family, he lived with her for many more years than I did and I just couldn’t allow myself to keep her collection, when he had the biggest connection with her.

 

Try separating them into cents. Nickles. Etc.. And dollars. The google lincoln cent values etc... Get a feel. Most of the time these sites will tell you right off the bat. What the better ones are. Some lady left a person a 20,000 cent just recently. Good luck. It will blow your mind how easy it can be to do your own homework. Then post pictures on coin talk of the ones that seem interesting and possibly rare and let us marvel at your dads collection. Mintage amounts play a large part of a coins value. Rock on sis

 

Noble

 

Sometimes I get it right

 

Try this site for local dealers - I see four listed for Anderson, plus many more nearby:
http://www.coinzip.com/coinDealers.php?pageno=2&state=SC

These short articles from my local coin dealer's blog might be helpful when preparing your collection for appraisal:
http://www.centraljerseyrarecoins.c...organize-my-circulated-silver-coins-for-sale/

http://www.centraljerseyrarecoins.c...ot-to-do-when-selling-your-coins-to-a-dealer/

 

I was in a similar situation as yours. Take your time sorting thru your dad's collection. By what he collected, you will gain new insights into the man that may pleasantly surprise you. Start simple. Separate the coins into metal groups, gold, silver, copper, etc. Then by coin type within the metal group: silver dimes,quarters etc.. Purchase a coin book with pictures and values (or the internet) and start comparing. Condition and low mintage of the coin are the keys to their value. By doing the above I was rehooked into collecting and most importantly, I felt and still feel, this intangible ongoing conversation with my dad. For this reason and if you decide to sell, please save a few pieces and pass them on to start a new family tradition. Blessings.

 

Hello All,
What wonderful helpful advice and suggestions! You all reached out to offer assistance, goodness I appreciate it all. I think I asked for help before I was ready! I am jiggling several few life events at the moment, I am going to-at my leisure-go through the boxes, and figure it out and catalog the collection. Give me a few months and I will post photos and descriptions. What I am wondering how does one go about finding a buyer? It seems that just because a person is selling doesn't mean there is a market?

 

Finding a buyer really depends on what type of coins you have. There are niche markets for all types of coins. People collect by series, mint mark, country, and date. There are also individual markets for things such as mint errors, ancient coins, and commemoratives.

If possible, please post the entire collection in one (or a few) pictures. It doesn’t have to be organized as long as everything is visible. This will help us give you advice based on the exact type of coins you have.

 

The type of coins you have will dictate who your buying market will be. Some people will only buy silver or some only American coins from certain time periods, etc. Many buyers only purchase coins that are only consistent with what they already collect. If you seek to sell coins individually, ebay is a good place to start. If you are lucky to have valuable high end coins, the various auction houses may serve you well. If you desire to sell the whole collection to one buyer, there are dealers and appraisers who can start you in the right direction. But first and foremost, take your time and determine what coins you have. Then organize them in order to get a preliminary idea of their worth which will then guide you on the strategy you can take to sell them. Please take your time. This is a process. You want to honor your dad by doing your due diligence. Too many heirs let greed get in the way and subsequently sell for convenience sake and leave too much money on the table.