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 Replies: 10 / Views: 1,545 |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3276 Posts |
http://sandiego.craigslist.org/csd/...8884727.htmlThere will be an auction in a week or so a few miles from my house. I was wondering if dealers usually swoop up all of the coins, or if you can actually get a good deal at one of these things? I feel like there would be a lot of competition. Anyone familiar with auctions like this?
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Bedrock of the Community
13014 Posts |
Its really going to be completely unique for that auction in terms of what you can get and what the price will be. No two auctions are alike. Sometimes youll get good prices if people arent looking for coins, other times the price will go way to high since people dont know the value and want something.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3843 Posts |
Several of my relatives are antique dealers and collectors so I have been to many estate auctions. There have been very few instances when the coins went for reasonable prices at them and usually there is fierce competition among non-collectors for worn Morgan dollars and other common silver coinage especially with the recent media attention that has been given to gold and silver prices. Usually the prices realized are far above retail. Not so say that there isn't occasional deals, especially when more expensive rarer coins are involved. Some auctioneers also don't know their key dates very well so I have gotten a few great deals for melt. |
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
3276 Posts |
It's free to look and it's a couple miles away. Maybe i'll check it out anyway, never been to an auction before so at the very least it would be a cool experience and something new.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1721 Posts |
Lots of variables to consider. First, let me start by saying that in my journey through life I have been a jack of many trades. I was a Virginia licensed auctioneer and did many sales. We also managed estate liquidations too. Will the sale be live on line too? This almost always hurts the local crowd. How well is the sale advertised. Bad advetising can lead to a poor turn out. How was the auction advertised? Did they use attractive buzz words like silver and gold coins or rare coins? What tyoe of area is it in? Some of the rougher neighborhoods will not attract certain buyers. Does this auctioneer allow phone bidding? What is the sellers reputation? Has he been known to pull some shady deals or sell fake/damaged items as good? What I like best about an auction is everybody has a fair chance. You just have to be willing to pay more than the other bidders. DON'T OVER PAY. Don't get caught up in the hype. It's easy to do. I've done it as well. Bidding is like gambling. There can be a huge adrenaline rush. Set a price in your mind for your maximum bid and STICK WITH IT. Don't forget about the buyers premium and sales tax too. These two fees can add as much as 20 percent (or more) to your bill. You may get a good deal when the hammer falls but after you pay your bill you may get the short end of the stick (coin)  . |
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
1888 Posts |
Having attended hundreds of similar sales in 40+ years of collecting not just coins, I will offer some very basic rules to follow to keep you from making beginner's mistakes.
DO be sure to get there early enough to allow yourself plenty of time to examine thoroughly any item(s) of interest.
DO NOT trust auction house grading or listing descriptions unless the coins are slabbed. Look them over!
DO NOT be intimidated by potential competition. No one wants to pay more than anything is worth, especially those who will be buying for resale. A collector with knowledge of his area of interest will always have an edge over a dealer at this type of sale.
Thus, obviously, DO know your stuff!
DO NOT buy on impulse. There are seldom any coins offered at sales like this that cannot be found elsewhere at equal or better prices for those who are patient.
DO try to catch a sense of the style and pace of the particular auctioneer who will be selling the coins. Auctions can be fast paced and hard to follow for a neophyte at this type of sale. Also be sure to place yourself in the auctioneer's clear line of sight while bidding because bids get missed and public sales are often hectic, somewhat chaotic and noisy affairs.
Hopefully the tips provided in this thread will keep you from doing something you will later regret. One big plus is that there is no buyer's premium penalty, the term we use out East-! Good luck and maybe you will have something for show'n'tell after the event, or at least a tale of how it all went. You CAN get genuine bargains at this type of sale, but it all depends on subtle circumstances that are not very predictable beforehand. At best you will gain new items for your collection. If not, then you will have vital experience the next time you have an opportunity to attend a public auction.
<edited for typo>
Edited by mysilveryears
11/10/2012 2:17 pm
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3278 Posts |
My wife and I go to several auctions a year. Sometimes you can get a deal and sometimes
prices are out of sight but for the most part you get somewhere between wholesale and retail.
If I were you I would not miss it, don't expect anything, and maybe you'll be surprised.
Fun way to spend an afternoon with the misses IMO.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3540 Posts |
I DO employ the auction strategy, of making people pay. In other words, I bid on lots that I do not want, and bid relatively high. I do NOT bid more than what I KNOW I can sell the item for.
I almost got a superb, old, and LARGE safe, because nobody else had any way of transporting it. I had access to a car trailer, so I had that covered. Cost would have been $20. Easily a $2K safe.
At the same particular auction, GSA CC Morgans were going for $400 and up. These were some of the most bag marked GSA CC's I have ever seen. I was done at 230...but others kept going.
Patience, and do what others above have posted.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3276 Posts |
Thanks for the tips guys, really appreciated. And acloco, what do you mean by you ALMOST got the safe? So I had to go to this antique store a mile or two from my house to register for a number for the auction. I was looking at some coins they had in the shop and it was all over priced. But then I saw 3 folders of silver dimes, they were all marked down from their original price. I ended up getting 154 silver dimes after taxes for $248.90 when current melt is at $363. Woohoo! Gonna sell these bad boys, I was so excited. Their original price was below melt and them being marked down was a bonus. I got 2 complete sets of silver Roosevelt dimes and then 54 different Mercury dimes. So maybe i'll be able to sell for more than melt, who knows. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3276 Posts |
Oh and at that shop I got to look at the coins that were going to be in the auction. Most of the coins are slabbed, I have a few that I have an eye on... But there are a few raw coins that would be nerve racking to bid on. 1877 indian head, 1914 d lincoln, 1932 d and s Washington quarters. I don't like when sales are final on coins that can possibly be fakes, no returns is not fun. Maybe I'll go back in the shop to examine them more thoroughly to see what I think. I didn't pick up any of the coins because I had to run to go to work. I just quickly browsed through the glass. |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
20753 Posts |
As a general rule auctions are not a good place to find anything. True, once in a great while you may find something but chances are not good. If a professional type auction, to many people in the audiance paid for by the auction house to bid on things to get the prices up. Many times small local estate auctions are done by local people but the friends, relatives, neighbors have all been there already. If you have nothing better to do, might be worth the attempt.
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Replies: 10 / Views: 1,545 |
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Posted 11/10/2012 02:40 am
