Coin To Buy For Child's Birthday

Hello Kera and welcome to the forum. If you're looking for a yearly tradition, my first recommendation would be the yearly mint and/or proof sets from the US Mint. These can be found here:

http://catalog.usmint.gov/webapp/wc...ory_rn=10157

I think getting both the sets would be an awesome idea for your newborn. The Ben Franklin is a modern commemorative. While there are new types every year, it is not a guaranteed series like the sets are. I would also suggest the American Eagle UNC or proof coin. I think you can get all three things, the UNC set, proof set, and ASE for under $100. Good luck and feel free to post any and all questions.

My first choice would be to get the Silver proof set and the mint set for each year. The values on these go up it seems every year for even just the sets from 1999 to date. By the time he is in college it could be a sizeable amount of money or it could start a life long love for the hobby of collecting. Either way it would be a wonderful thing for you to share with your son. Good Luck I know that whatever you choose your son will love it!

Steve

I agree with spider and sllyonsjr421, the 1/10 American Eagle Gold and mint sets would be good choices.

If I were you, I'd buy a 20 cent piece for close to $100. That way, in ten years, it will be worth more than silver or gold bullion that the mint sells. It's also a unique and interesting conversation piece too.

If it is something you want to do every year. The I would defently do one of three things
1st Yearly Prood set (deside if you want to do Silver or Clad sets)
2nd Yearly Mint set
3rd American Proof eagle or Gold 1/10 Proof Eagle

So if it were me I would do one of those three what ever you like the best. I personal get a Clad Proof set for my self every year and a Mint set every year. I also bought each of my 3 kids there Birth year set as a Proof set.
I would not go with the Silver modern Commemrative coins though I know last few year they have gone up in value but alot of the time they do not.
But if you are not a coin collector then go with the Proof set. Since those your can order diffectly from the Mint of go into any coin shop and get them.

Nearly forgot. Welcome to the forum!

I think the first thing you need to be sure of is if you're looking for this to be an investment or something to learn from and enjoy. I might suggest an interesting variation of buying a set every year, would be to buy a set every year... from a different country each time. That way it's somethin that has each years date on it, to be a sort a tradition, and it's a way to learn something each year about a new place and get to see a whole wide range of cool and interesting coins instead of the same coins more or less with different dates.

I would just like to thank everyone here who is buying their kids/grandkids/relatives these proof sets every year. You are the ones that make it possible for me to find these proof coins in circulation for face value.

In all seriousness. As mentioned above, the annual proof, mint, and silver eagles are the top contenders to pick from.

I would also suggest getting them something they can physically handle as that is what helps get someone involved in the hobby. Examples that can still be gotten cheap at the bank (but may require visiting a few banks before finding them). Just pick up a few examples and put them in a piggy bank for the day when your kid gets interested in sorting them out and learning about them.

Eisenhower dollars - Banks only have these when someone cashes them in. Some banks have tellers/customers that buy them as soon as they come in, some have them sit for years before someone discovers they are there. Best bet is to use the yellow pages and just go down the list asking, or to ask at your regular bank every time you stop in for the tellers to set aside a couple for you if they ever get them.

Susan B Anthony dollars - Discontinued in 1999, but still very common to be found at banks.

Sacagawea dollars - Mint still produces them, but hasn't released them for circulation since 2001. The federal Reserve is bursting at the seams with these.

Kennedy half dollars - Mint still produces them for mint sets and collectors, but stopped distributing them into circulation in 2001. The federal Reserve is overflowing with these, but Banks don't like them. They are easy to find in small quantities.

$2 Bills - These are a novelty that the BEP still prints and the Federal Reserve still distributes, but not all banks carry them.