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 Replies: 22 / Views: 2,890 |
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Valued Member
United States
291 Posts |
I have been reading a number of threads recently about the reality of selling your coins, and it is putting a black cloud over my enjoyment of the hobby. I have plenty of money, so I may never need to sell my collection. However, that likely means my heirs will get the shaft if and when they go to sell.
Why can't coin sales be more like real estate, where the dealer makes his 6% and everyone is happy. Or like stocks, where the broker makes his commission, and the collector's risk of loss is based on fluctuations in value based on supply and demand, rather that whether he is lucky enough to avoid the many vipers who are waiting to take advantage.
Why are coins different? Obviously you can put in the time and effort to avoid getting cheated, but why is it the default that the investor/collector will get the short end of the stick? Why have we as participants in this hobby allowed the industry to do this? Edited by usc96
07/14/2014 10:52 pm
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Pillar of the Community
United States
7840 Posts |
Supply and demand. The supply seems to be there, but not the demand.
I am finding this especially true when trying to sell/auction varieties. Those type of collectors are a very rare and selective breed.
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Moderator
 United States
14463 Posts |
I think, the biggest difference in your analogy is real estate and stocks have a value that is generally agreed on. Coins are a bit more fluid in their value.
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Valued Member
 United States
291 Posts |
How about classic cars? Artwork? Wine?
Maybe I am looking at it all wrong? I am in a small southern town collecting coins with a higher than average price tag. I am trying to apply the brick and mortar dealer/pawn shop model of coin purchasing/sales to my situation when I should be applying the auction house model. I have never purchase through a heritage type auction company, but maybe that's what I should be thinking for my heirs as the way they can liquidate with the least risk (20% commission I believe).
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Valued Member
United States
156 Posts |
"Why are coins different?"
The coin market is a percentage of either the stock market and real estate market in terms of daily transactions in dollars on the order of something exponentially small, like 10 to the power of minus 8 or less. If there were as much trading in the coin market as there is on the stock market on a daily basis, we wouldn't be having this discussion. 99.99% of all coins available to collectors are not rare, and could be purchased entirely by a very small percentage of the stock market capital.
Edited by judd1552
07/14/2014 11:10 pm
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Moderator
United States
14463 Posts |
Classic cars and artwork, do seem to be closer to coins in regards to the values being fluid.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1234 Posts |
You know I wish the Lotto was a lot more like coin collecting.... I buy $20 worth of lotto tickets on the same day as I buy a cull Morgan common date for the same price... and you know what... ... 12 months later the lotto tickets have been in the land fill for 11 months 3 weeks... as for the Morgan... it's worth $22  Go figure *I don't actually buy lotto tickets but I was thinking last year around this time that strange luck might strike on...  7-11-13 I almost did buy a lotto ticket* |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
898 Posts |
judd1552 said it best. Coins/real estate have so much money flowing through them on a day to day basis where you will be able to make a living as a broker/agent.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
7375 Posts |
Get rid of that cloud. Why assume that your heirs will get the shaft? You could just as easily assume they will sell them wisely and do very well. The market is the market. As long as one doesn't do something foolish, they should get market value or better.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2815 Posts |
For goodness sake, enjoy the hobby. I mean that in the nicest way possible. Life is too short to worry about this sort of thing. Be happy that you have plenty of money. I never have that!  Edited by Darth Morgan
07/15/2014 01:16 am
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Pillar of the Community
968 Posts |
Gotta agree with Darth. Enjoy life, who cares what happens when you die? Save enough money elsewhere so that your family will be perfectly well off without any coin funds.
I've drilled it into my wife over and over and over that if I die, she is to call Heritage Auctions and have them send somebody out to check things out. Unless I die in the next 5-6 years, it'll be worth their cost to send somebody out for a day and check things out.
Assuming I make it to retirement age and nothing insane happens with the country, I should have around $2.5m (adjusted for inflation) in my retirement account and a coin collection worth an upwards of $500k (also inflation adjusted). That's about the most you can do... leave the rest in their hands, what can ya do if they squander it? You put the tools in their hands to create success and financial stability.
Edited by chasingtailbar
07/15/2014 01:23 am
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Moderator
United States
56855 Posts |
usc96, Let me ask you what are you collecting at the moment? What mind set are you using going in to the coin hobby? If you are collecting as an investment for the future you are going to collect different coins then if you are collecting for fun and enjoyment of the hobby. John1  |
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Valued Member
440 Posts |
I collect VAMS. The best way to make a million dollars in VAMS is to start out with 10 mil. I collect what I like and am not out to make a profit. If my collection appreciates great, but I will enjoy what I do otherwise why bother.
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Valued Member
United States
291 Posts |
Posted by Edweather
"Get rid of that cloud. Why assume that your heirs will get the shaft? You could just as easily assume they will sell them wisely and do very well. The market is the market. As long as one doesn't do something foolish, they should get market value or better."
The best way to describe what was bothering me is I read multiple threads across the net saying that, foolish or not, your heirs are likely to get taken advantage of by the current system.
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Moderator
United States
188770 Posts |
I collect because I enjoy it. Coins are a terrible investment, so I am not doing this for my heirs. My only hope is that they enjoy what I am passing down as a part of my legacy. If not, their getting the shaft is better than me haunting them.  |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4416 Posts |
Collectors who view coins as commodities and "invest" in all the modern issues that are prevalent on TV, coin mags and the like often do end up losing money. Losses are also to be expected by those who fail to "buy the book" and learn about coins.
Many of the large auction houses don't even charge a commission for rare coin consignments, and the buyers pay the freight. Low end material tend to draw high bids from uneducated,impulse buyers that attend antique auctions. To my experience, these higher prices realized typically offset the 15-20% commission a consignor may pay. Another option is to join a coin club and sell items in that venue. If one has some dealer friends who attend larger shows, they may take material on consignment; this, which nullifies their cash outlay and enhances their stock. Set up at a club meeting or show. Put a free ad in the Local Shopping Network, LSN online. IMHO, there are simpler avenues to liquidate coins than is the case with stcoks or real estate.
Personally, I've experienced more looming clouds in both mutual funds and real estate that I ever saw in coins!
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Replies: 22 / Views: 2,890 |
Posted 07/14/2014 10:56 pm
