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 Replies: 7 / Views: 958 |
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Pillar of the Community
Australia
1610 Posts |
I know this same question was posted a decade ago so thought I might ask again. Besides ebay and Delcampe (and an odd bid on Trade Me) I have never purchased coins from an established auction house. I did follow an auction lot for a few US coins at Albion Antiques a few years ago and the final bid was about 20% more than what I figured the coins were worth. I regularly get e-mails from the local coin club advertising online auctions so thought I'd take a look at what coins and banknotes Lloyds has to offer. About 50-80% of the lots have bid start prices that are full blown retail price. Given that there is a 16% commission and additional shipping charge (no pick-up allowed) this puts the buy price well above what the lots are worth. The fact that I couldn't see a single bid placed on these auctions also indicates to me that other bidders see these items as having quite overpriced start bid prices once commission and shipping is added. So out of the lots with no specified start bid price, from the experience of others, do most of them go for a reasonable price or do bidders push the prices too high for what you would consider a reasonable price? |
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Valued Member
Australia
491 Posts |
Bricks and Mortar auction houses are like any other place that sells. You will find good buys anywhere and bad buys anywhere as well. That is my take on buying
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Valued Member
New Zealand
140 Posts |
The coin market has changed in Australia and New Zealand and coin prices are starting to exceed coin value this seems to be the current trend at the moment due to a lot more people entering the coin hobby as well as more slabbed and rare coins entering this market.
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Valued Member
United States
157 Posts |
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worth it? Impossible to answer. Every auction is different: sometimes bidding is spirited and people go nuts, sometimes bidding is dead and you can grab a bargain. 16% is a good buyer's premium though, I normally see 20%+. |
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Pillar of the Community
 Australia
1610 Posts |
Quote:
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worth it?
Impossible to answer. Every auction is different: sometimes bidding is spirited and people go nuts, sometimes bidding is dead and you can grab a bargain.
16% is a good buyer's premium though, I normally see 20%+.
I guess when I say worth it I mean time wise. I have given up buying or even looking at coins on Scumtree because 99.9% are way overpriced with many ridiculous listings asking $1000 dollars for a $2 coin that is worth face value of $2. I honestly don't have time to be browsing through thousands of dodgy listing for the odd deal. Likewise, I was surprised there were so many lots on Lloyds that were obviously dealers asking full price as a starting bid and hoping some idiots bid the price higher. I can get those coins cheaper from the dealers at my local coin clubs. I wonder if any Australian CC members buy lots from LLoyds or other auction houses? |
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Pillar of the Community
Australia
1610 Posts |
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Bricks and Mortar auction houses are like any other place that sells. You will find good buys anywhere and bad buys anywhere as well. That is my take on buying
True, but when the bad buys start to massively outnumber the good buys I think it's time to find a new venue or outlet. Does remind me of a fellow at the monthly coin auction in Brisbane. His hand becomes permanently stuck in the air. When I'm interested in an item I'll sometimes bid him above my own set price because I know he'll keep his hand in the air. Just removes a few extra $$ from his wallet.  Quote:
The coin market has changed in Australia and New Zealand and coin prices are starting to exceed coin value this seems to be the current trend at the moment due to a lot more people entering the coin hobby as well as more slabbed and rare coins entering this market.
I agree. I suspect the trend is more for online platforms though and a lot of it is driven by investors rather than collectors. I honestly don't understand the hype and premium paid for slabbed coins. Yes, it makes sense when wanting to confirm the authenticity of a valuable coin, but why slab a 5c proof coin? The slabbing costs more than the coin and the coin is not worth counterfeiting so why pay a premium because the coin is in a slab? A lot of traditional collectors won't even touch the products churned out by the Perth Mint. Edited by David Graham
03/13/2024 01:17 am
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Pillar of the Community
Australia
1039 Posts |
I have used IAG(Gold Coast) the last few years for my better value Coins and very happy,they don't charge the seller,20% buyers premium,but they still get good prices the majority of the time.
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New Member
Australia
40 Posts |
I use Gowans, a local auction house. They auction household furniture, cars, bric-a-brac, tools, appliances, collectibles and almost anything.
I'm an Australian pre-decimal collector and any lot that looks interesting, I go through completely on inspection day, so I know what I'm getting. This way, I won't get saddled with something I don't want.
I've won many lots this way and now have many wonderful coins and stamps very cheaply that others missed because they weren't thorough enough.
Just as an example, I checked one lot which had a mis-strike penny and a 1946 penny. No one else saw these, and after getting home with my prize, found that there were TWO 1946 pennies.
I just love getting wins like that. The 16% buyers commission is minuscule by comparison. Many other wins like that have continued, but only because I take the time to check EVERY coin, even on 5kg lots of pennies. and I avoid other collectors "rubbish".
Naturally,I establish value in the lot before buying.#128526;
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Replies: 7 / Views: 958 |
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Posted 03/12/2024 10:33 pm
