Redbook values and cleaned coins

When looking at eBay sold (not completed) listings, I restrict myself to auction listings with multiple bids as opposed to buy-it-now listings. My reasoning is that auction listings provide a better idea of the market's valuation instead of the valuation of a single (perhaps misguided) buyer. Looking at eBay auction listings only, the values for 1916-D G-4's seem to be fairly consistent with Heritage. I've no doubt that there are other types of coins where the eBay prices are higher, but this doesn't appear to be one of those cases.

 

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torontokuba;

Reading has the physical presence of the book. Gardening has the seed, or plant or even plot of ground, also physical attributes. You could collect the gaming chips, cards, dice and even room keys from the casino's; but the act of gambling is not collectable. It is not a physical thing.

 

I'm just saying it's a hobby for some, solely based on the definition of a hobby,
"an activity done regularly in one's leisure time for pleasure". You can collect drink napkins and enjoy the free drinks to remember your gambling past time. The odd win makes for a memorable experience. That's all part of this hobby.

 

I can buy that :>)

 

It's hard to say if Redbook's prive guide is higher or lower than the market at the time those prices were obtained.

One thing for sure is by the time each edition of Red Book hits the shelves at bookstores, those prices are outdated and unreliable.

As other's have stated, you'll get a more accurate idea of pricing from completed sales at Heritage, TT, and eBay.

 

When referring to prices realized on Heritage, is it with or without the buyer's premium? Do the complete auction listings have the premium already figured in?

 

I believe the prices contain the BP for the completed sales.

 

i argee. that being said, the problem with ebay prices is that there are so many buyers who don't know enough about the coins they are bidding on. i could search ebay coin listings on any given day and time and see most coins selling for more than they are really worth. it does however drive up the prices of the coins in that given market. and there are many people who use ebays sold listings for a price guide.

 

Does anyone know what Ebay's share is of the overall numismatic market? Just from looking at the sheer volume of transactions I would think it must be quite large, if not the largest, at least if we excluded the higher end material (i.e. $1000+). With that being said, shouldn't Ebay be considered the market maker? If there are lots of data points on Ebay for a given coin and I exclude the outliers, that should give me a very accurate picture of what my coin would be worth if I go to sell it. Therefore, the prices my coin sells for in coin shops and on other auction sites would be irrelevant, especially if Ebay is the largest market for that coin. How then could we say that Ebay prices are "too high"?

 

Exactly! The prices will vary depending on where you decide to shop. This applies to most market places. When you buy a vehicle, you research who has the best prices or you may be restricted to a region where the prices are higher than others. Does that mean you overpaid for the vehicle? You may have paid more than another person, but you may have also been limited to what is available to you and what your needs are.

 

I agree that there may be certain coins that can be found cheaper in places other than Ebay, and that when this is the case it wouldn't make any sense not to shop around. However, the dealer websites I have seen seem to be priced higher than Ebay, and in the rural area where I live I don't have access to many coin shops or shows. From the limited visits I have made to brick and mortar coin shops it appears that the majority of their business is bullion, so there is not near the inventory that could be found on Ebay or other auction sites. Also, if I were ever in the position of having to sell my coins, Ebay would be my most likely option as I don't own a coin shop or have my own website. Therefore the Ebay price is closest to what I would get if I sold coins, minus the fees of course.

With that being said I would love to find out which online sources would have better deals...

 

I have found recently Ebay has more reasonable prices than my LCS and coin shows. So, if the roles are reversed does the logic imply that the Ebay is not overpriced? Yes, maybe for me, but your LCS may have similar coins at more affordable price.

When you say someone "over pays" this opinion is based on your knowledge and will still remain opinion. There is no right or wrong answer to this. You are always entitled to your opinion, and I am always open to hear anyones opinion.

I do think it is similar to purchasing a car. I did not restrict the scenario to dealerships either. There are multiple venues where you can purchase a vehicle all similar to coins. There are dealerships, online, and auctions all similar to a coin. There are everyday vehicles and there are collectables. Not everyone collects the same vehicle type or year. Similar to coins. Prices vary based on who is selling the coin and the motivation behind selling the coin.

 

When ever you are dealing with a published fixed value, it is in danger of being obsolete from the moment the ink hits the sheet of paper. The longer the time interval in between revisions, the less accurate the fixed price could become. That is why the grey sheet comes out weekly. Consider that verses the Redbook's yearly publication. Auctions will give you a snap shot of a given moment in time, so the more current that sale the better you are. You could obtain the average auction price by eliminating the highest and lowest prices hoping to get a better consensus. It's your best shot.