Need Advice: Which Gold Coin to Buy?

Hi I am very new here, and I have some very fundamental and probably also silly questions to consult with you experts here. Please help me with this: which gold coin shall I buy?

Here is the contexts of my question: I am just planning to buy some 1-ounce gold coins to battle the depreciation of the US dollars. Although this could be a fairly late decision, I figured better late than never. Although this sounds like an investment inquiry I am not really seeking profit, but merely trying to minimize my loss as the value of the dollar goes down.

But as soon as I look into the gold coin market, I feel a bit lost, because there are too many of them: (1) there are different series: American Eagle, American Buffalo, Liberty Double Eagle; (2) different years of production: 1980s, 1990s and 2000s, and others; (3) different packaging: proof-set vs non-proof coins (I am still not totally savvy about this; (4) to complicate this more, there are also non-U.S. coins, such as Canadian and Swiss ones; (5) there might also be counterfeit ones.

So, my key question is - out of all these variations, which gold coin would be the best candidate to buy in order to serve my purpose best? Again, I care less about the historical value, mintage, or speculation & profitability. I am merely seeking to retain the value of my $$$ in the most economical as well as the safest way.

Your insights and advice would be highly appreciated. Thank you!

 

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Check out kitco.com and see which 1 oz. coins are selling for the lowest price and go from there.

 

I think the simplest answer for most collectors is to buy American Gold Eagles. They will be the easiest to sell someday. There is no point in spending a lot of time searching for a gold coin that might cost $50 less only to find that it sells at a discount to melt value when you go to resell it because nobody collects it.

 

WebNomad,

I struggled with some of those same questions back a couple years when I started buying gold - mainly for the reasons you describe as protection against a declining dollar. I don't think it's too late - and history has shown that precious metals should be part of everyone's investment portfolio.

Which coin to buy I think largely depends on your own outlook of what is to come. Some on this board things will get much worse and the economy will shrink back to a barter economy....if this is your view then you should probably stick with American gold eagles and fractional gold eagles with that...some people say you should buy historic coins with numismatic value to protect them from confisication - if you share that belief then take a look at some of the older American gold bullion.

Currently there is a efficient market for most bullion and thus it is priced accordingly - i.e if you pay 70 over spot for a gold eagle then the seller is probably receiving 20 or 30 over spot. If you're paying 40 over spot for a Krugerand then the seller is probably only getting spot for the kruggerand.

I personally think that there is no going back from globablization and thus have no fear buying philharmonics or pandas or whatever. The market for them will always be there - and may even grow signifigantly as in China when more Chinese wish to buy coins from their own countries. So I simply buy what I like.

When buying coins chose a reputable dealer like Kitco or Apmex...then you can be guaranteed your not getting a fake. So my advice is to buy what you like - if you still feel nervous then just buy a gold eagle or krugerand...really can't go wrong with those.

Good Luck.

 

I started collecting gold US coins thirteen monthsd ago, then I stumbled across this site.
Becuase I don't know what I'm doing and have the wisdom to know it I've learned a heck of a lot from the members of the bullion form.I've bought all of the gold coins from the mint or slabbed (graded)from monaco,APMEX.com or Moderncoins.com. Through blind luck and this form I managed to keep my head above water and had a great time doing it. List price and gold bullion prices I'm up around $1,500.00. I also, check coinflation.com and buy common silver coins for less then melt value. sometimes way less than melt value. This winter, after I retire, I'll go through them for collector value. I recently discovered some very old whitman coin folders I had as a kid and will probably fill them.
Next I'm going to buy a portable accurate precious metal scale and I ordered the grey sheets. If you're interested in coins, not just bullion buy yeoman's red/blue books. Get the redbook in spiral back and blue book if available in spiral back. This books will give a "ball park" price but dated. I think the 2010 edition is based on 2008 prices.

What an obsessive hobby this is. BTW, my first question in this forum was very similar to yours. I went from a bullion investment guy to reawakening an old hobby and having a great time along the way.

The redbook has a section titled "commeratives." Check it for some beautiful coins, including gold coins. I like the saint guADENS coins old and contemporary,buffalos, etc. If I would've stayed a bullion guy this all would be a big yawn.

Good luck

 

You can also check out what the US Mint has right now, and get the original new government packaging. Check out the UHR. It's available for a couple more days before they end sales on it. Very unique coin!

http://catalog.usmint.gov/webapp/wc...tegoriesDisplay?storeId=10001&catalogId=10001

Just a thought....

 

Our friends the Chinese, among others, have shipped millions of counterfeit coins and bullion to this country. The latest I read about is they gold plate another metal that weighs similar to gold. Being I don't know much about gold coins if I buy slabbed coins from the previously mentioned vendors I'm confident I got genuine gold coins.

 

I would agree with this.

I would also add American Buffalo Gold coins.

 

Can you provide me a link where the Chinese are shipping counterfeit modern bullion to the US.

 

What country are you in, and do you think you might want to sell in another country?

In the US, Eagles are easy to sell and there's a relatively small difference between buy and sell prices.

If you're crossing borders, some places charge taxes on gold less than, say, .995 fine. Eagles are 22K so this might be a problem depending on where you go. Maples are a natural choice for 24K gold.

There are people who claim that 24K gold is more widely accepted by overseas buyers. I don't know myself.

Check out some place like APMEX that lists their buy and sell prices together, and look for what has them closest.

And reconsider buying coins, if all you're doing is protecting yourself from inflation. If you're trying to protect yourself from major financial collapse, physical is safest, but if you expect the economy to keep running while inflation erodes your wealth, a vehicle like the gold ETF or BullionVault won't put you 3% in the hole the day you buy like coins do (plus you can liquidate in seconds). Physical gold is for when you're more worried about counterparty risk than about theft and loss. That's your call to make and I won't try to influence you, but be aware of the decision.

 

"Can you provide me a link where the Chinese are shipping counterfeit modern bullion to the US"

google came up with multiple pages referring to chinese gold counterfeiting. I got tired of pasting the links.

Read more: http://www.cointalk.com/t85407/#post771935#ixzz0b2tHGBJK
​

http://www.cointalk.com/t85407/#post771935#ixzz0b2tHGBJK


http://www.coinpage.com/coin-image-2693.html

http://www.tbrnews.org/Archives/a2921.htm#001

https://www.kitcomm.com/showthread.php?t=36475

https://www.kitcomm.com/showthread.php?t=29574

http://www.dailypaul.com/node/84683

http://www.abovetopsecret.com/forum/thread442271/pg1

http://www.rumormillnews.com/cgi-bin/archive.cgi?noframes;read=142337

http://www.free-press-release.com/news/200903/1236948287.html

we are so in hock to the chinese the US government just gives them lip service. So far I've not bought any chinese coins. no pandas for me.

 

midas1,

No offense but abovetopsecret, dailypaul, and even forums on kitcomm and cointalk are not valid sources.

Moreovers, buyers should always beware. You're not going to find a gold chinese panda on ebay for 19.95 and really expect that to be anything more than a gold plated coin..

Furthermore, there is no credible evidence that there has ever been a gold coin made with tungsten (either from the chinese or anybody else) - and it amazes me how much ignorance I read on so many forums about this subject. Rumors like this don't serve the hobby well.

 

flydl2atl, The posted links were from the first page only and you know how/why google ranks links. Other links are from professional people that deal in gold bullion. OTOH, counterfeiting is a significant part of the chinese economic engine. The story starts in Hong Kong. china has been screwing us since nixon opened trade with them. The only real way to tell is to take multiple random core samples from from those 100oz - 400 oz bullion bars. It is well documented (google again not whack job web sites) that china has been selling bogus coins on eBay for years. And by their own admission they have shipped millions of bogus coins to the US. If you chose not to investigate it or believe it that's your choice. Where do you buy your gold coins?

When you get some down time do some serious googling on china and counterfeiting. Personally I hope I'm wrong but I don't think I am. They counterfeit everything else why not gold?

 

Thanks for all the advice and insights!

So, as others have recommended, I checked kitco and apmex, and oddly, most of the gold coins sold by kitco are for shipping outside the U.S. only, but why?

Another question I have is - in case I acquire the gold bullion from sources other than the mint/kitco/apmex, what would be the appropriate way to check up its authenticity? Thanks again.

 

Calipers and scales should be sufficient for checking coins. If you do a lot, there's an elegant plastic thing called a Fisch that checks size and weight easily.

Very few things are as dense as gold, and the ones that are are either nearly impossible to stamp or else even more expensive than gold (sometimes both).

 

Great Questions. However like many of the anwsers, buying gold can vary ALOT. The goal prices are at near record levels and the premiums are high. But who's to say that in 6 months this may be a bargain? Maybe not who knows.

Don't invest in what you don't know. Jim Rogers says this and its true. Invest in what you do know. Its common sense. You know you want gold. You want to exchange as few dollars to get as much gold as possible. Your not getting that with proof anything, UHR, even Buffalo's and Eagles carry 80-100 premiums. Maples Panda's and Phils also run high. Go to a repitable dealer and buy Bullion and Mexican Peso's. This will be your best gold content for your buck. However, the bullion may provide better since it does have a .999 purity. I think purity is importaint since it can be melted down with less work.

 

I think this advice is okay for someone with some experience in buying AND SELLING bullion. For someone starting out, it is much better, in my opinion, to stick with the American Eagle series of bullion coins. It will be much easier to sell for full value. Ease of resale is more important than saving a few dollars.

 

AGE, great coin indeed. Easily Recognized and Respected no doubts there. But I got the vibe the question at heart was how to get the best bang for your buck with gold. Thats bullion bars. Ive done very well buying $50 Peso's also. In my experience, the bullion bars always fetch spot. The peso may be offered 10-15 $ less than spot (not too shabby considering you can buy Peso's at around 3% over spot) When trading in an AGE, usually spot plus 5-10 bucks is offered, which is a complete buzz kill after recalling that $80 premium you paid simply for the purdy-ness. This high premium doesn't serve its purpose when the math is done at the end of the day.

Bullion bars and Peso's are highly recognizable gold when you bring them to a dealer. You'll do better with an Eagle if you sell it to another investor. This is where the Eagle's beauty and recognizability will do its job. You'll also get more than $5 over spot, maybe $40. It is much more difficult to sell to another investor if you don't have a shop. Dealers know their bullion and should pay approprietly without the hassles.

OG

 

Go with a worldly recognized coin that's 24K pure like the Krugerrands, Maple Leafs, or 1oz bars from a recognized company.

 

Getting the best bang for your buck involves both buying and selling. For someone new to the game, that would be AGEs. It's okay to have a different opinion. That's what makes a market. I would never advise someone making their first purchase to go any other route.