Unsearched Pennies

Hello Crew! Many years ago my Father used to take me to the bank and "buy" a bag of 5000 pennies.(I'd cull a few hundred, add back replacements and talk Dad into doing this this a few times a year) I assure you that these were largely unsearched. Even back then (mid to late 1960's) most of the good stuff was gone. Wheaties were plentiful, but still mostly "mega produced dates from the 40's and 50's". People started stashing wheaties as soon as the Memorial cent's appeared in 1959. I have a dealer buddy who is selling bags of 5000 for around $325.00-$350.00.(last time I asked, no bogus "unsearched" notes attached, even though he buys and sells in bulk and I doubt he goes through them.) Shipping costs are better now that USPS has the flat rate box up to 70lbs. If anyones interested send me a private mail. Mike

tradernick, thats 4 cents retail![:0] What are they paying for them? I think thats about the buy price and retail is about 6 cents.Toast said he paid 13 cents each! I'll have to go bust my dealer buddies chops about this! By the way,that's good news for anyone out there buying, not a downer! I just knew my buddy advertises at about $300.00 per 5K (without shipping) Mike

quote:

---

Originally posted by Mike
What are they paying for them?

---

Most dealers will pay $135 to $150 across the counter. Dealers trade the bags between each other in the $160 to $175 range. They retail for $180 to $200.

Now as Nick stated, 99.9% have been searched over and over. Yes there will be minor things found like RPM's, OMM's. DDO's, DDR's, and maybe some better dates. If you think that you will find the big ones, or believe the stories on ebay, well............

ND, You have to sell 100,000 to make as little as $100.00? (shipping and handling comes in where in this margin?)Oh My oh my the world of wholesale is a nice place to be! Pay up to $175.00 D to D and retail for as low as $180.00? I think lots of 100-200K would be needed to bother with them at all! I wish I was in the market! Mike

ND made a good point. Though there's likely no key dates waiting to be found, each decade has brought more and more minor varities to the scene so there's always SOMETHING to look for.
BTW I bought another 17 bags today...they're already sold at a slight profit. I love quick deals :)
Nick

quote:

---

Originally posted by Mike

ND, You have to sell 100,000 to make as little as $100.00? (shipping and handling comes in where in this margin?)Oh My oh my the world of wholesale is a nice place to be! Pay up to $175.00 D to D and retail for as low as $180.00?

---

Nick, Susan and I have been telling people for a while that not all of this business is gravy. You would be surprised at how many items are sold on a small margin. Bullion is by far the worst as you only make a few cents 20 to 60 on Silver, $10 to $20 on Gold, $25 to $50 on Platinum. (that is all if the the market stays the same or goes up)The biggest difference in being a coin dealer versus most jobs is that you have to have the capital to make money. 100% of my income is derived from what I spend. I believe that the average dealer works on less than a 10% margin over the course of the year. So if you wish to make $100,000 in income, you must spend more than 1 Million. Now you know why there are so few of us out there.

quote:

---

[i]Originally posted by tradernick
It would be nicer if most of the buyers weren't other dealers

---

Another section of the market often overlooked by the average collector. Most dealers trade amongst themselves over and over, buying and selling the same material again and again each time bumping the value just a bit.

Dealers love two things at a show. Pop reports and price guides. They rank right up there with sticking a post it note on your forhead that reads "Take my money please".