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 Replies: 56 / Views: 8,361 |
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Valued Member
United States
228 Posts |
Hi, I wanted to introduce myself and start to get some feedback on my situation and my father's classic coin collection, which my sister and I inherited a while ago now. (I'm not sure if this is the best place on the forum to post, but I do hope to eventually discuss pics of our specific classic coins, many of which I believe are very valuable!) My sister would like me to sell the coins...I don't think she feels too sentimental about them. On the other hand, I remember my father proudly showing me his coins and I'm feeling reluctant to sell. Well, at least I feel that I want to hold on to SOME of the coins in his collection, including some of the best, most interesting, most beautiful, etc. ones. But I am fine with selling a large portion of the collection, as long as I have some cherished examples to keep. From my limited research online so far, it sounds like ebay may be a good idea. The coin collection itself is about 80 individual coins. I wish I knew which of them were my dad's favorites, since I would certainly hold on to those. He does have about ten Morgan silver dollars (four of which are certified and more valuable), and I think he really enjoyed those, so that may be one type of coin I keep. I do have some handwritten papers of his with very limited notes about the coins...unfortunately the notes do not indicate which ones he loved the most. I've looked up the values a bit online, and I'll be ordering the Red Book. I'm not sure if I should order a pack of the "grey sheets", but it seems like a good idea to know the dealer "bid" price. About 20 of the coins look like they are under $100 in retail value, and about 20 of them over $1000, some of them quite a bit higher than $1000. (About 30 of the coins are certified.) The star of the collection looks like it might be an 1800 Gold $5...it isn't certified but his notes say "MS 60 uncirculated?". I'll be happy to share pics of the coins soon when I am able to pick them up...I may have to borrow a good macro lens. Quick question (and I'm sure I will have many more to come): If a coin is in a flimsy plastic sleeve, for example, rather than a slab, do I remove it for the purposes of taking a photo for selling on ebay, and to show you folks on the forum of course? I'm just worried about damaging the coins. Thanks for the help...I'm excited to share the coins here in the near future. I could start listing the coins in the collection now, but I figure we might as well wait until I can take pics. |
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Pillar of the Community
Sweden
729 Posts |
Hello and welcome to CCF. And sorry for your loss You made the right move to show up here before listening to your sister... There are plenty of ppl here willing to help out, so sit back and enjoy the ride. We do demand pictures though ;) I think the first step you need to take is to sort your coins. Figure out which ones you want to keep, which ones you should get slabbed before selling etc. That process is a fun part, at least when the collection isn't huge. The really high end coins should be certified by a TPG before trying to sell them. If you are careful and handle the coins by the rims only, you should be fine. A good price guide is http://www.numismedia.com/fmv/fmv.shtmlor you can register at Heritage auctions, ha.com and get free acess to their sale prices. ebay also works well as a price guide. Again, welcome epikur Edited by epikur
01/16/2015 8:47 pm
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1388 Posts |
 Very sorry for your loss. You'll notice a hyperlink over the word inherited, and that leads to some great info. Also, when posting about the coins themselves, give each coin its own individual topic. They'll get more exposure and input that way. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
7375 Posts |
and sorry for your loss. Yes, removing the coins from the plastic for pictures is recommended. As long as you are careful you'll be fine. The Classic Coin Grading subforum is a good place to post those photos. |
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Bedrock of the Community
Australia
21786 Posts |
Sorry to hear about your news.
Fathers are MUCH more valuable than ANY coin.
Split the value of the collection between yourself and your sister.
She may end up with more but lesser valued coins, you the opposite way around.
She is then free to sell any or all of hers, you the same.
Edited by sel_69l
01/16/2015 10:29 pm
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Valued Member
 United States
228 Posts |
"Also, when posting about the coins themselves, give each coin its own individual topic."
Ah, I didn't realize that...maybe this wasn't the best place to post a "hello" then. So if I want feedback on all of the coins I really make 80 different threads (on the Classic Coin Grading subforum)?
"Split the vale of collection between yourself and your sister.
She may end up with more but lesser valued coins, you the opposite way around.
She is then free to sell any or all of hers, you the same."
I presented this as an option to my sister as well. My worry is that she wouldn't put in the time to really get the value out of the coins. (And it's difficult to figure out the value for the ungraded coins, but I guess that is where the forum might be helpful!) Also, I really need to review the collection and think about how many I want to keep...it might end up being a small portion of the collection, in which case it probably makes sense to sell the rest and split the money. The remaining coins I keep would be jointly owned by us both, in case they were ever sold. I don't foresee that being an issue in the future.
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Valued Member
United States
228 Posts |
One other follow up question regarding: "The really high end coins should be certified by a TPG before trying to sell them." When you say that, what value amount do you have in mind? |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4409 Posts |
to the Community Another note is not to clean any of the coins as that will decrease the value of them. TPG, or third-party grading, would be beneficial for coins whose value is over a certain threshold or if a key date that is known to be highly faked (e.g. 1916 D Mercury dime). Some collectors feel if it's worth over $250 to have it slabbed, others $300. It really depends on what you personally decide. The 1800 Gold $5 would be an excellent one to get certified since it has a higher value. -MV |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3540 Posts |
Welcome! A date/mintmark/denomination AND pictures will help tremendously. #1 - Do NOT clean any of the coins....in any way. #2 - leave all in the current packaging they are in. Do not handle any of the coins with bare hands. Sorry for your loss. I would HIGHLY recommend keeping as many as you can. The ebay idea can work, BUT, it IS becoming rather expensive to sell/ship/insure/track AND there is becoming quite a few unscrupulous buyers out there - caveat emptor! Let's see what you have and the members here will help you maximize what you may realize in terms of selling, maintaining, and other avenues you may wish to explore. |
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Valued Member
Canada
79 Posts |
ebay is not the way for YOU to sell your coins as you do not know enough about them and about selling them properly. I don't think you would get the most value for your father's coins and that would probably be what he would least want(I don't want to put words in his mouth, but most avid coin collectors would be upset to hear that their hard work of putting their collection together was then picked apart by cheap buyers on ebay). It sounds as if your father's collection could be worth $20,000+ meaning that some legitimate auction houses would be better able to help you maximize your return. You won't sell them quickly, but you will get the most for your coins and at the same time honoring his hard work.
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Valued Member
United States
245 Posts |
Welcome! If you do post 80 threads, try to spread them out a little bit, and do some research in between posts so that you can have more specific questions/goals in mind. Best of luck, and I am sorry for your loss. I am in a similar situation and decided to simply keep all of my dad's guns :).
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Pillar of the Community
United States
506 Posts |
Another idea about splitting the collection with your sister, you can sell the less valuable coins for her and give her or split the money. That way, you aren't afraid of her selling it for too little and she still gets the value (and maybe more than what she would have gotten selling them herself)
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Valued Member
United States
172 Posts |
Edited by KevinH
01/16/2015 11:48 pm
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3843 Posts |
Quote:
Some collectors feel if it's worth over $250 to have it slabbed, others $300. It really depends on what you personally decide.
 Sorry for your loss. Pictures will definitely help. Post each coin individually under it's own topic. |
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Valued Member
United States
228 Posts |
"leave all in the current packaging they are in. Do not handle any of the coins with bare hands." Some folks said that removing coins (carefully) for the purpose of taking pictures was OK. Now I'm worried again heh. " ebay is not the way for YOU to sell your coins as you do not know enough about them and about selling them properly." Well, I figure I am a long ways away from actually selling the coins there. First, I need to do research and learn from you all! "It sounds as if your father's collection could be worth $20,000+ meaning that some legitimate auction houses would be better able to help you maximize your return. You won't sell them quickly, but you will get the most for your coins and at the same time honoring his hard work." It was my understanding that I'd have to pay a large % in fees at an auction. Since I don't mind putting in the time and I'm not in a huge hurry, wouldn't an option like ebay get me more for the coins? |
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Pillar of the Community
3772 Posts |
There are places which can give you a reasonable valuation/estimate for the coins - maybe one of the members here can give you a place in your area which does it for a reasonable fee. Knowing that you can decide if and how many you want to sell or if you just go ahead and buy your sister out and keep all the coins. |
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Replies: 56 / Views: 8,361 |
Posted 01/16/2015 8:31 pm
