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 Replies: 16 / Views: 3,697 |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1200 Posts |
I've only been stacking bullion up until now, but presently I'm seriously considering assembling a collection of world silver coins (one representative 1oz silver coin per nation type collection). I'm balking at building a collection because I have one main question about what usually happens to collections when they fall to the collector's heirs.
I don't want to put a lot of time/effort/money over a period of years into assembling this collection (even though I'd enjoy doing it) if the collection would end up being a major PITA for my kids to liquidate (which they'll be doing in 10 to 20 years, or maybe next spring).
So----the question---- With an eye toward harvesting maximum value out of the collection..... When heirs decide to liquidate a collection to harvest its value, do collections that are comprised of low to moderate premium, easily sellable and relatively low-cost silver usually have to get broken up and sold by the piece or are they commonly sold as a whole?
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
1723 Posts |
My thoughts regrading this is a set based on one country can sell as a set. eg. 1988-2012 sml or full set of ASE or kooks, things like that's. When you're getting into a mixture, selling individually is usually better. It also helps to leave instructions on what they are worth or how to value the set appropriately. But like you said, first and foremost, you collect because you enjoy it. Edited by samsnate
12/21/2012 10:41 pm
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2543 Posts |
It is always more profitable to break it up and sell it off in pieces. People are much more likely to bid up affordable pieces than they are an entire collections.
Just look at some of the recent major coin auctions. A collection of every coin minted at Carson City recently went to auction piece by piece, as did a collection of every gold coin minted at Charlotte mint. Auction houses know that you will only have a few people with the means and desire to bid on an entire collection, but hundreds or thousands of people will be interested in the pieces.
Edited by denco7
12/21/2012 9:29 pm
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Valued Member
United States
207 Posts |
Fast cash, may be what your heirs will want. Was at a BM today that had just bought 2 complete Lincoln folders with 1909s vdb and a complete IHC folder. |
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Bedrock of the Community
13014 Posts |
Generally speaking selling piece by piece will bring them the most money, also will take the longest. Sometimes completed albums can bring a premium for the effort of putting it together but theyll have to decide if its worth the extra effort to sell it one by one or just let it go in big chunks
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
20753 Posts |
This subject has come up lots of times. Usually people ask about wills, what to do with an inheritance, someone gave me this, etc. For yourself, collecting coins or bullion or anyting should be for fun, not profit. Of course there are many that do make a profit on collectors but as a collector, I try to do it for fun. Worrying about who gets what and what will happen to it all is just to nerver racking for me. As to this hobby being an investment, for who? If it's for someone you leave it all to, you wouldn't have anything to say about what they do with it all. You could try, but as far as I know, once your gone, you gone.
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
1200 Posts |
Thanks to all for your observations. Regarding my stash and heirs... I have no questions or problems with the usual "who gets what" or "what they're going to do with it" and I have no delusions about my having any role in their deciding what they'll do with it. My only concern/desire was avoiding casting my kids in the role of ebay seller and giving them a pile of unwanted and unwelcome "busy work" in the form of unloading a large number of low-value, low-popularity, obscure world silver coins...one...coin...at...a...time... Since that's what would obviously happen if I do my "coins of the world" thing, I've decided to stick with stacking current, common-mintage, mainstream silver bullion (ASEs, CSMs, Philharmonics, Libertads and bars). I can pursue enjoyment through other hobbies and in the long run, my kids will end up posthumously thanking me for having done so. |
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
1723 Posts |
So you're gonna just collect bullion instead? Thats what I do....That was you know you always have that silver value as a basis to start from. As you aquire higher value bullion, you can always set a premium value on those items that you know hold. Take the guess work out of it for the kids.
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Rest in Peace
United States
2668 Posts |
My collection will make someone in Storage Wars very happy.  |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1200 Posts |
@samsnate--- That's the basic idea. What I leave is nothing fancy, nothing vulnerable to possibly diminished numismatic popularity---just plain vanilla bullion value that can be unloaded with little effort and no need to play annoying ebay games forever. My only departure from the basic idea so far has been assembling a complete set of bullion Britannias, but they'll sell easily as a set. Now---if silver spot would just level out and hold steady, I'd be all set... @parklane64--- Oh, please---not that! Anything but those vultures (and the pickers and the pawnstars and all the rest of those carrion eaters)! If nothing else, at least donate it to the CCF World Domination Fund... Edited by Fat Freddy
12/24/2012 3:11 pm
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Bedrock of the Community
13014 Posts |
Freddy I wouldnt worry about it to much. You can talk to them and see if they like coins or not ect, but unfortunately once their gone theyre going to do with it whatever theyre going to do with it no matter what your plan was. The only real way to make sure your plan is carried out is to sell before you go. No matter what they do with it even if they sell it below value they will still be getting something of value from you which will put them in a better spot than they were before which is the whole idea of what you leave behind anyway
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New Member
Portugal
8 Posts |
Leave specific instructions. Not "Here's what I want you to do" instructions, but "Here's how to get maximum value if you decide to sell this stuff" instructions. Put yourself in their shoes rather than trying to make them wear yours.
If you've got items with special value, prepare a detailed list. Identify the valuable items, let your heirs know EXACTLY how to find and identify the coins you're talking about, and state EXACTLY how to describe each of those items to a potential buyer when the time comes to sell.
Edited by KenM
12/31/2012 11:39 am
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
20753 Posts |
Quote:
Leave specific instructions. Not "Here's what I want you to do" instructions, but "Here's how to get maximum value if you decide to sell this stuff" instructions. Put yourself in their shoes rather than trying to make them wear yours.
If you've got items with special value, prepare a detailed list. Identify the valuable items, let your heirs know EXACTLY how to find and identify the coins you're talking about, and state EXACTLY how to describe each of those items to a potential buyer when the time comes to sell. All good advice but that is just what it is, advice. I can only imagine how many coin and/or currency collections have been just dumped to coin stores, collectors, pawn shops. Although many think their life long hobbies or collections will be disposed of properly, in many instances that just doesn't happen. Always try to have discussions with your hiers to see if they really, seriously want your STUFF. And just who and where would you leave all your instructions or suggestions? How many copies are you planning on distributing? Who has a place for those instructions or suggesetions? One coin dealer I meet at coin shows tells me he gets about 10 to 30 Albums, Folders or both each Month from people that inherited them. And in almost every instance they rely on him to come up with a price. |
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New Member
Portugal
8 Posts |
@Carl, I think you missed my point. Leaving a helpful set of instructions acknowledges the fact that your heirs are far more likely to sell your collection than to adopt it as their own. You could enclose your "helpful hints" page in the same envelope as your will, in your safe deposit box with your most valuable coins, taped to the inside of the trunk where you keep your collection, or else hand it to your designated heir when you have the (well-advised) conversation you suggested. In my business (and I don't even deal in collectibles) I regularly get the "I inherited some coins" question and often-times I have no better guess at the nature of the collection after 15 minutes of discussion. In many cases the heir can't even tell me the date(s) or country of origin, never mind the type of coin, condition, etc. I also hear stories about heirs showing a collection to a dealer who "only bought a few of the coins." Can you say "good bye key dates" or "adios gems"? If you are going to leave somebody a valuable inheritance, why wouldn't you provide them at least a few hints as to how they might maximize its value when they decide to sell? |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1200 Posts |
Many thanks for the advice, but I think my only concern has gotten lost in the swirling mists of forum thread evolution... My one and only initial question was "...do collections that are comprised of low to moderate premium, easily sellable and relatively low-cost silver usually have to get broken up and sold by the piece or are they commonly sold as a whole?" I never had any intent of imposing my desires/plans/etc on my heirs. I am in fact fully aware that after I die that I'll no longer be around to make sure everybody does everything just like I want it done. In truth, I couldn't care less what anybody does with my stash after I'm gone. I was just trying to develop a feel for whether or not I'd be setting my kids up with a major PITA project necessitated by selling off an eclectic collection of obscure, low-value, low-premium silver world coins one at a time. I have long since concluded that I would in fact be saddling them with a nasty PITA "now you gotta be an ebay seller" project if I assembled the world silver coin collection I was contemplating. Owing to that, I've also scrapped that idea in favor of sticking with mainstream, common-mintage, low-premium silver bullion (ASEs, CSMs, Philharmonics, Libertads, etc). This stuff will be easy to unload (if that's what they choose to do) and it'll require about 3 paragraphs of simple instructions. So --- thanks for the thoughts about the inadvisability and impropriety of my attempting to impose my demands on my heirs, but no such thing was ever the plan---or for that matter, ever even the remotest of all possibilities. My one and only intent was to minimize and streamline what they'll have to go through to dump my stash to the greatest possible degree---and I'm now on track to achieve that objective. If my kids choose to unload my stash when they get their hands on it, it's going to take them about 10 minutes to read the instructions, about an hour to do the needed internet and telephone research and less than half a morning to do the actual unloading. They may set a new land speed record for completing the process of dumping grandpa's coins. On a closing note---I'm now all set and outa here, but if anybody wants to turn this thread into a general "instructions to heirs" thread, the floor is now yours. Best wishes for the new year... |
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New Member
Portugal
8 Posts |
Well done, Freddy!
And a tip of the cap for a graceful and stylish exit.
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Replies: 16 / Views: 3,697 |
Posted 12/21/2012 9:27 pm
