I've been investing in PM's for several years and really haven't kept up with U.S. numismatics, What would you think would be a good investment for down the road.. I know coins in general are a difficult investment but I am just looking for some ideas on some U.S. coins. Thanks Randy
I've had pretty good luck with older uncirculated and proof silver coins that are selling for around melt price. Also, I like to go to coin shows and look at raw coins to see if I can find something that will grade at a level that is above what the dealer is selling it for. As far as regular numismatic coins go, what is hot today might not be hot tomorrow. Or some things that are sleepers today might wake up tomorrow. It's interesting to go back through old coin publications and see that some things that were hot back then have definitely cooled off in recent years.
Usually the only coins that show much profit over time are the super rare coins that cost in the high six figures. But even those gain less than an ordinary savings bond.
Mutual funds. Most people think the best way to make profit is to buy the keys in the highest grades. Usually that isn't the best option. Those high priced keys tend to sit stagnant for years and then make a jump in price. Get in or out at the wrong time and you do poorly. Even when they make the jump the annualized rate of return usually isn't very good unless your in and out timing was good. I've often felt that the keys and semi-keys in the mid-grades were a better investment. You don't get the big eye catching jumps like the high grade keys, but instead you tend to get a steady growth year after year with a better annual rate of return and no long periods of no growth.
Junk silver coins have done remarkably well over the past 10 years, as have ordinary pre-1933 US gold coins. I am also finding that the low-grade Barber quarters that I bought in the '90s have done better than average, and am quite pleased with the performance of the 1913 (G), 1914 (VG), and 1915 (G6) Barber halves that I bought in 1996 for around $20 each. The common Morgan and Peace dollars that I bought in 1989-1990 for $5 each have been pleasant surprises as well.
^This if you are talking about a monetary investment. Any collectible is not a good place to look at monetary investments, and this coming from a guy who spends 10k a year on coins and books typically. Where coins ARE a good investment are in yourself. If you consider coin collecting yoru hobby, and any money spent to be the same money you would have wasted with any other hobby, then I believe coin collecting is a wonderful "investment". You learn a lot of history, get the fun of seeking out good deals or tracking down hard to find items, and enjoy a topic of conversation with many others. When you are done with it, or you die, there will be something to sell. Maybe you will sell them for more than you paid, but this is likely only if you held onto them for a very long time, but either way its a monetary return most other hobbies do not have anything. To me, "investment" is way too oversold by dealers in this hobby to promote sales. The cold hard truth is that there is such a huge spread between retail and wholesale, (buying from and selling to a dealer), that most never make a profit on coins held for less than 20 years. Even then most profits, annualized, are not very good. If you do not believe me, buy a $100 coin from a dealer at a show, and then go and try to sell that coin to another dealer and see how much they offer you. I would guess $50, if not less. Invest in yoruself man, have a good time, and let your wife sell off your coins when you are dead for gambling money.
