Are People Tired Of Collecting Coins Or Is It The Economy?

There are some real deals out there right now. IMHO a few factors...

1) For some, if it's not going up in value right away then it's not fun anymore.
2) Lost of people are liquidating to cover groceries, gas etc. if they still have a job it doesn't cover costs like it used to.
3) People scared that prices are going to go down selling.
4) People scared that prices are going down, not buying.

ahh I REALLY want that coin, you got a decent deal, most of them I see today are $200+...which is still not much over the issue price. I actually think the opposite, people are starting to invest more into "safer" things, such as bullion, coins, money markets, GIC's and so on. Its May, and the "sell in may and go away" saying has proven very true on the markets. That, on top with the whole eurozone mess, people are not to eager to make any kind of investment in stocks (presenting a great buying opportunity for some big US and CAN stocks). I think that what happens a lot of the time is people get UNLUCKY selling their coins online, or they just price the coin wrong...or they dont care.

Plus people hate Toronto. I was born in and still live in Toronto and I hate Toronto!

buy RCM coins == lose money

ok?

I think it's important to distinguish between classic circulation coins and the modern non-circulating legal tender (NCLT) coins in which category the referenced Toronto coin is included.

Classic scarce and rare coins, especially those issued during the time of silver coinage, remain in demand and enjoy an active buy/sell market. They will likely always have a strong following and their market value will only have the most minimal connection to the intrinsic value of their precious metal. In contrast, common coins from this same era, while having some demand, are far more impacted by the changes in spot prices of precious metals.

The large number of modern NCLT issues by the RCM (and other mints around the world) has created a different collector market than that seen for circulation coins. There are so many types, denominations, themes, metallic compositions, shapes, etc. being issued, it is essentially impossible to collect them all -- though some try! This means that collectors pick and choose individual coins vs. collecting full series (for example, specific 50-cent coins vs. all 50-cent coins issued) and so future demand for a particular coin is often unpredictable. I've said it before here on CCF, what's "hot" with today's collector might just be ignored tomorrow.

The unfortunate reality is that the aftermarket selling price of most modern NCLT coins -- regardless of issue price - eventually rises and falls with the value of the precious metal they contain. That's why it's important to heed the advice offered here by others -- don't collect modern NCLTs for investment purposes, collect them because you enjoy their designs or the history behind them. Maybe you'll make a few bucks on them in the future, maybe you won't -- but if you buy what you like for the sheer enjoyment of it, you'll always come out ahead.

I don't completely agree with you commems. I agree that classic circulation coins have a stronger, less flimsy base of collectors. But, the value of precious metal-containing ones, which consist of the vast majority of the lot, still rises and falls with the value of metals. They just have an added numismatic value above it. I bought an 1907 Canadian Half 4 years ago for $20. The same coin in the same condition now fetch $40, and that's not because it became rarer or more collectible in these 4 years. Of course ultra-rare numismatic coins will keep their value regardless, and much better than modern NCLT, but for the majority of the lot spot price still dictates pricing.

As for the value of NCLTs, I feel that we still have a ways to go before we can see how well they hold. It's true that most NCLTs trend towards price of metals, but the NCLTs that do trend down are the ones that are mass-produced. It was not until very recently (~2008), that the RCM started squeezing back average mintage figures to below 10,000. Not very many pre-2008 RCM NCLTs number less than 10,000, and those that do still do quite well. e.g. 2007 baby rattle dollars, 2003 hologram silver maples, 1998 10oz silver maple, 1989 proof silver/gold/platinum maples, and all 1oz platinum coins, 1kg silver coins, etc.


On the Toronto Map coin:
RCM didn't mint these. They were contracted out to PAMP SUISSE. PAMP SUISSE botched the capsules, producing capsules that were too thin and that rubbed against the reverse of the coin. RCM then negotiated with PAMP SUISSE to fix the problem mid production, delaying shipment of the coins at first, and finally backing out of the order. The Toronto map coin never sold out, but that's because it was pulled mid-production. It will be interesting to see what the final mintage on the coin is, because it should be no where close the advertised 7,500.