Ever since I started collecting old/historic coins, I haven't been able to get a handle on what constitutes a "good price" for them. I know there are a lot of factors involved - quality of the coin itself, rarity, etc. - but I've seen such huge differences between various dealers, both online and offline, for the exact same types of coins, that I'm left confused. I've looked at coinquest.com but, as the author notes, the catalogue prices seem to be inflated; otherwise I can't imagine I could have bought a Nicholas II silver rouble in nice condition for 25 dollars when, according to the catalogue price, it should have gone for between 60 and 100 dollars. Numista is a great resource too, but it only gives me mintage figures and bullion values. Are there any other reliable sources for coin prices out there, or does price simply depend on the dealer?
If you are talking world coins, most start with the Krause catalogs, knowing their prices are usually inflated. If you wish to collect world coins, the Krause catalogs really are required, since every dealer lists his stock by their KM number. This is the best GENERAL source for world coins from 1600 on. Its not perfect, but a good start.
"Where to find "standard" prices for old coins?" There is absolutely no standard price for any coin, ancient or modern. You shop around and haggle until you and a dealer can agree on a price. If you can agree on a price that you are willing to pay and the seller is willing to accept, you've found a fair price.
But Rick, if he is talking a world coin, why would he NOT want to know the Krause value? What if a dealer is asking $800 for a coin Krause lists as $40? Yes, there is nothing preventing the dealer from charging $800, but if a buyer knew KM lists it at $40 they may be flagged they can get a better deal most likely elsewhere, right? While prices guides are very troublesome, (you can read all kinds of threads here why), I have no problem with them since they at least can get a beginner in the BALLPARK of relative value of coins. One quick look and you can see if its a cheap coin of an expensive one, and hopefully not dramatically overpay.
To totally discredit price guides in general is a real shame. This was how most people got a baseline for the value of their coin and currency before the advent of the internet. It's a great source for generalized pricing, and that's it. Saved a lot of people's rawhide from paying $100 for a $2 coin. Although I think the uneducated use the Red Book to price out their coins on Craigslist.
Right. Sorry, I missed that. While what I said is true, price guides, such as Krause, are a valuable tool, but are not to be relied upon to be a standard.
I would also say that searching completed listings on ebay is a good resource. You seem to get a pretty good idea of the "going rate" of a certain coin that way, and you also see which didn't sell (perhaps because they're overpriced, or other reasons).
That brings up an interesting question...or maybe not too interesting. How many of us have our smartphones with us when we go shopping at a dealer or show? I usually have mine on hand to check finalized bids on eBay and Heritage if I have a "gut feeling" about a coin I'm interested in.
It is a valuable tool, I became so disillusioned back in the hey day of numismatics when these guides were the "wish list" makers. I can distinctly remember the 1921 high relief Peace dollar was the one coin I wanted but couldn't get because of the supposed rarity. And when internet and eBay launched, boy does it expose how many are out there and the variance in price. And it showed just how irrelevant the printed "figures" became. Unless some folks have been living under a rock, there's no way to keep your blinders on for long with the digital world upon us.
I generally rely on Krause, knowing that a coin I buy or sell probably won't end up at the exact price that Krause says. But when you start to specialize in a certain country or series you also develop a feeling for if the Krause values are high or low for those coins. I buy a lot on eBay, and after bidding on a lot of auctions or watching completed listings, I can tell how popular something is. For example, Greek, Spanish and Portuguese coins I've bid on tend to go below the Krause values. So do most Mexican coins, with some exceptions. Irish and New Zealand coins tend to go above their book value. What it comes down to is that if Krause says a certain coin is worth $10 and you are constantly bidding $15 and losing the auction, then that country or coin seems to be trending upwards. But there's no absolutes either. It can just depend on what buyers are online at that time.
The problem with Krause is that some prices are way too high and some are way too low. And there really is no way to determine which is which unless you immerse yourself in the market and do the necessary research. That means sorting through realized auction prices, and no I don't mean ebay. It's the same thing with world coins on ebay that it is with US coins - there are too many stupid people out there paying stupid money for coins. It's a lot of work to find out what a given world coin is actually worth. And it's harder to do than it is with US coins because there is less research material. Unless you research European auction records. But then you run into a similar problem that you have with ebay. Collecting has exploded over there and there are a whole lot more companies and web sites holding auctions, and a lot of those people are new to the game. So you will find many harshly cleaned coins selling for the same price as problem free coins. You can find many fakes being sold. And unless you know your coins well enough to sort the good from the bad - well, you're kind of stuck. And the vast majority of coins sold in Europe are raw, you don't have the advantage of the TPGs to sort the coins for you. So tarantella if I were you I would start searching the Heritage archives of world coins. You can also use these guys - http://www.coinarchives.com/ and these guys - http://www.mcsearch.info/index.html Other than that you will be restricted to using specific auction records from specific auction house web sites.
Wouldn't hurt to use ebay's completed listings to see if any similar coins were sold in the past. Yes, some will rant about prices are out of place etc but it's not bad to use it as a pinch of salt.
