What to buy next

The 1974 Silver 40% Ike Uncirculated is priced under 10.00 with a low mintage of only 593,577

Your getting a coin that’s almost a half oz silver and 33 years old or for about 12.00 you can get the proof

IMO Ikes are sleepers about to awake

 

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Cool I'll be sure to check that one out. I don't even think I have any Ikes saved right now.

 

invictus might have a point though. With 40 dollars, what are you expecting it to grow. 50? 100? 200? 500? 1000??? It's only possible if you can find a special deal or an underrated coin.

 

I agree, you don't have to go wild with your budget to have a good time and (possibly) make a buck.
Look at the 1897 S Barber quarter. Not long ago I paid $19 for a G-4 (2001). Today I'd be lucky to get one for double that, and I still think that it is a good deal. Current trends= $45.
Or the 1895 S Barber dime.
A semi-key that I used to get for $18 in G-4. Today I'd have to pay $36 for the same item (last one $25 11/06). Current trends= $45.

Other dates, like the 1913 P (paid $6 in Feb, 2002, current trends= $16; and 1915 S quarters (paid $4 in March 2005, current trends= $9.00) come to mind.
And the 1913 S dime, in 1999 I paid $5.75 for a G-4; in March 2006 it cost me $15 and today it trends for $20.

So, don't say that there are no good deals in 'less expensive coins'. There are. I have many that I constantly look for and will buy any that I see.

 

Right, I bought a 1943-S walking liberty half about 6 months ago for $4 and now I can't even find them for less than $6. That's a rise of $2 in 1/2 a year, if it continues to rise, in 20 years it would be worth who knows how much.

 

Also, consider this:
If I buy a 1896 S Barber Quarter for $650 and it goes up 10% that is an increase of $65-- not small potatoes.

If I buy an 1897 S quarter for $40, then that same 10% is only $4.

So, if all else remains equal, buying 16 1897 S quarters (as if you could find them) = $640, and you would earn $64 (10%) more easily than the 1896S's increase.

Remember, it is easier for a lower value coin (but still scarce and in demand) to increase by the same %'age than a higher value coin. There are more collectors for the lower cost coin than the higher one.
(But, I will still buy all the properly graded 1896 S's that I can find).

 

I don't see how "scarce" and "in demand" a low value coin can be, it sounds like a self-negating concept, but I won't argue the generality that there are coins under $40 that will go up in value to a good degree.


We all have different ideas of what our time is worth. I'm busy and value my time highly, so a "decent" percentage return on something with a base value of only 40 bucks isn't going to result in a dollar gain that I would appreciate.


Let me try to create an equation to quantify how I see this operating, and give you all an opportunity to stamp my planchets in disagreement:

Cost basis of your investment = (Base investment + buyer transactional fees + tax on purchase + (all time spent on research and transaction x your labor rate) + misc. expenses)

At this point the cost basis is most likely far greater than the market value of your purchase. So you're immediately in a loss situation, unless you really nailed it on the purchase price.

Sale value of your investment = ((Coin sale price - seller transaction fees) - the % value the dollar has lost since you made the purchase) - (all time spent on research and transaction x your labor rate) - misc. expenses.

For the Sale Value > Cost Basis, you can see how the variables need to work out. With a mere $40 investment, your gains need to be huge to overcome the other variables.

Thus the best way to compensate is by jacking up the numbers by investing in higher value coins right off the bat.

 

I tend to disagree with that view. A plain old silver eagle may have more investment potential than a key date on a percentage basis. Key dates have done well in the past, but all that means is that it is possible that they are overpriced. Lets say you own one silver eagle and the price of silver doubles. The silver eagle will probably also just about double. But will a key date coin already selling for a few hundred dollars necessarily double in price because of a $13 increase in the price of silver? Maybe, maybe not. So I would submit that coins selling for prices reasonably close to bullion value are probably better investments than key date coins because there is less of a speculative premium built into the price. You just have to buy more of them. Even if you restrict your purchases to coins selling no more than 3X the bullion value, it still leaves a lot of room to collect.

 

I think that when it comes to silver coins, the metal content is not what has been driving prices higher. But I'm sure it will play some part in the long run.

 

i think i would take $40 and buy silver with it. silver is always going up, so that means so will the profits. buy some circulated morgans, not those fancy silver proof coins you have to keep in a slab. i like to collect the coins you can hold and feel. :thumb:

 

Like others have said pick up some semi-keys, esp. Lincolns ('24D is a great bet and can be had for under $40) or Mercs (extremely low grade '21P or a better condition '31D can be done for that price, easily). Semi-keys tend to go unnoticed and are easier to snag in better grades by cherrypicking. Look at '32D or '32S Washingtons...can't even snag one of those in AG without spending at least $100, but you can grab the semi-key '37S for much, much cheaper and in a far better grade.