Health Of Collecting Canadian Coins, What's Wrong?

Macdon do not get discouraged. What era are the coins you offered that you would get an offer like 17 per cent ? I am willing to bet modern post 1952 issues.
The market is not fantastic but for classic coins is still pretty good. If I was offered a properly graded lot of Victorian Edwardian and George V coins, the offer is certainly going to be way better than that 17 per cent. Had a discussion with Joe at JandM in Vancouver and he would pay 45 per cent for ICCS stuff.

17%? That's simply horrifying!

Macdon, I just want to say this, you've mentioned your dilemma in the past and it continues to remind me of my situation as a much younger person. My dad was a very wonderful, honest, practical person and much like you, wanted to do everything possible to make it easier on family members once he passed on. That included him prepaying funeral arrangements so nobody would be financially burdened with the cost (he also left $1000 in his safety deport box in an envelope marked "funeral expenses"). It wasn't as if he was suffering from ill health but he was in his early 70s and this was the sort of conscientious person he was, making sure everything was always looked after. That included him carting his coin collection to my house one day "here you have it!" He was also disappointed with what dealers offered him for it and he told me I could do anything I wanted with it, maybe it would be worth more years down the road. He indeed lived several years longer, when I cleaned out his house I found more coins, he had started another small collection. It sort of made me smile, the coin collecting bug just never really leaves once it begins......

But as a child in my late 30s at the time when he first began his prearrangements, my head was unable to process life without him. Thinking back, I have to admit that his pre-planning for death made me extremely uncomfortable, so incredibly uncomfortable that I blocked it out to the extent I'm sure it appeared to him that I was disinterested. It's difficult to describe my emotions at the time, but only as I've gotten older have I come to appreciate the fact that his motives were that of kindness and caring. (Especially knowing the opposite, many stories involving awful family situations - no wills, no pre planning, fights over assets, families torn apart...)

As for his collection, it felt like it was something that was not rightfully mine while he was still alive - a physical reminder of his practical preparations at a time when I had great difficulty accepting the natural concept of growing older. It was as if his collection was a part of him and if that collection remained intact, it was a irrational way of honouring/keeping him with me. It took me almost 20 years before I came to the point to where I could truly appreciate what he gave me.

Not all children are the same, but if they might appear uninterested - I know I did - it may just be because it's difficult to accept the fact that their loved one is not going to be here "forever"....just something to think about.

That's a real shame. I can only draw assumptions, but based on the coins that I've seen macdon post they were mostly in that king George vi and before range, so if an offer like that came across the table, I'd feel darned insulted, and it most certainly wouldn't make me want to go out and add to my collection, unless I was getting them for 20-40%. Maddening to hear this.

You should have asked the dealer what kind of prices they'd sell similar coins to you for?

My grandfathers estate is still a hot mess four months later. Him and his wife who passed away five years before him made out a will that just said to divide the assets and possessions evenly along the seven kids without any thing stating what was worth what or what to do with one of the shares if one of the kids died. Which happened inbetween their passings.

It's just became a slugging match now and it's so sad. They didn't leave behind barely anything besides possessions so they were going to auction them off in family. However one of them decided secretly before Christmas that he needed the furniture more then the others and went in and took out all the expensive bedroom suits to add to his home without an auction. I doubt that my grandfather would had wanted that because he sadly had a restraining order against him the last few years of his life.

So definitly you need to provide as much guidance as possible in a will, unless it's proceeds from the sale of like land or dividing finances. Oddly that's the one thing that hasn't caused a fight.

I want to make it clear that I am not bashing dealers they have to make a living and I get that but its not a source that any of my family will resort to in event I pass away being any of them, there are good and bad in every type of business. I don't frequent LCS all that much anymore like I used to and the times I did make purchase for what I wanted I did not mind when the first thing reached for off the counter was a copy of Trends for them to use as a price guide to show me why they were asking 90% to 100% but when I try and sell what I think are a good selection of high quality coins some of which I may have purchased from same dealer to be told that I'm lucky if I get 20 - 30% for them and even less it is very disconcerting and seeking advice from more experienced members on this forum is the best investment a newcomer can make before leaving the dock. If I cant get what I think is reasonable no big deal they will be put to rest and passed on to not much I can do about that.

I don't have a lot of modern silver dollars and those that I do have are used for birthday gifts mostly. I have a few nice Landon red cents which I intend to keep for awhile along with a bit of gold coins I may take with me when its time to go The lot I was hoping to get a decent offer was a good mix of silver dollars and other denominations but only a few PL coins. e.g two 48's and a couple ex Belzberg coins which are nice to have and some nice red cents in high grades. Anyway, no big problem if I don't sell they are still welcome in my home until I decide what to do.

Trends , guide books , Charltons and related coin and paper money books and magazines do not buy coins or sell them.
People do . The variables are innumerable and what it comes down to for price is between a willing and knowledgeable buyer AND seller. You need both.
As stated earlier in this thread , some people have sold stuff for a song or paid way over percieved catalogue value to acquire something they wish to buy. Prices are NOT set in stone . Knowledge is power in numismatics and that is why a fellow like JJ Pittman who had a regular job was able to amass an incredible collection. Sure he took chances and indeed mortgaged his house once, but he had an incredible gift for numismatic knowledge.
Most people who collect coins , not all by any means , never take the time to become a numismatist. Heck most do not even have more than a single numismatic book. In four decades of being a coin dealer I have seen most everything you can imagine when it pertains to our great hobby. A lot of it is NOT pretty.

Even with 1948's in there? you'd think they could turn those over and pay for everything else 2 or 3 times over. Unreal.