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 Replies: 22 / Views: 4,176 |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1018 Posts |
Has anyone here ever sold their entire collection? If so, how was the best way to do something like this? Dealer sale? Consignment? Auction? What has worked and not worked for you? I'm going out on a limb and saying there is about $80K in items that will be looked at for selling.
I am going to be relocating for work and Ive pondered the idea of "selling it all" to get a substantial amount to put down on a house. Thanks,
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
3049 Posts |
With that kind of money I thin looking at which auction house that will serve your best needs is the best way to go about it.
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Valued Member
United States
415 Posts |
I did on a much smaller scale in college. I collected coins growing up, but completely stopped as I got into high school then college, and they were just sitting in a box collecting dust. I did a bit of research on ebay to get an idea of their value, then I went to an LCS and they actually offered me more than I would have gotten putting them all on ebay, so I took it. Wound up getting about 700 bucks for my collection. If you can find a reputable dealer who will give you a fair price, I would try to go that route. You get eaten alive by fees going the auction route, and it's more of a hassle. Now you very well could make more from auction than from a dealer, but you just have to weigh the fees and time committment on your part. |
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Moderator
 United States
23522 Posts |
As a generality, the longer you're willing to spend in the process, and the further down towards individual sales you're willing to go, the greater your return. You could likely extract almost every cent of potential retail if you were willing to spend a few months and a fair amount of labor in the process.
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
1949 Posts |
It all depends on the 'type' of coins in the collection- For instance, your best option will vary depending on if it, say 80 $1,000 coins, or 800 $1,000 coins, or 8,000 $10 coins
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
1018 Posts |
Yeah, Ive considered it all. Even if I sell it myself over a long period of time, I still have to deal with fees. Ebay/Paypal, Auction house, consignor fees to name them all. If I get full retail on ebay and have to give 15% to ebay/paypal, I would rather find a little quicker way to sell them for a little less money back. With Stacks and Heritage, bidders bid back about 20% of retail then the seller gets hit with more fees after that. I have heard of people getting 103%-105% of hammer price, but my collection won't qualify as I'm sure thats reserved for the best of the best. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
5818 Posts |
I would keep a few that you cherish and sell the rest.
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Valued Member
United States
415 Posts |
Raider, it seems like selling them to a reputable dealer is your best bet. As time consuming and expensive as moving for a new job can be (been there done that multiple times), going the auction route would probably be more trouble than it's worth for you.
If you have access to multiple dealers, try to gauge what they are willing to pay and take the most you can get. You'll make less than selling them at auction, but after fees and the time you will have spent, you will probably wind up coming out pretty close to the same.
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
1747 Posts |
If you have some time, why don't reach out to local coin clubs, see if you can sell there, also putting an ad on craigslist. Being careful about where and when you meet people.
If you sell 50 to 75% by yourself for decent pricing you won't feel the pain of selling to a dealer. Although if you sell off all your key date high value stuff, the dealer may not be interested in the rest.
Good luck
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3151 Posts |
you can also try selling to collectors on this site and save the commissions.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3210 Posts |
I have sold coins for a collector friend who is elderly. I have sold on Craigslist once the other times people just jerk you around . I have been selling his stuff on ebay the last few weeks with really no issues. Also ebay doesn't take 15% between ebay and PayPal it is roughly 9.3%. Do what's best for you |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
632 Posts |
If you have 80K worth of coins to sell then I would recommend doing the community a favor and post some on here. It's been a long time since I've sold stuff on this site, and I guess there has been a few changes and re-changes to the process since I last did it, but my previous experience was that this community of collectors here usually lists for fair prices and are willing to pay fair prices especially for nice examples.
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Bedrock of the Community
Australia
21786 Posts |
Most of us will have to consider the liquidation of our collections, even if they are out of our estates. It would be a good idea to give serious consideration as to how you would like to see your collection liquidated, and so instruct your executors before you die. In my opinion, the best way to sell really high valued individual coins is to consign them to a leading public auction. Lesser valued coins could be sold on commission through a dealer at prices to be agreed upon before sale, if he is attracted to this idea. I liquidated most of my first collection in this way to raise money for my house, just before I married. Thousands of dolars were raised; that was 39 years ago. Your executors may not wish to ebay your collection, particularly if they don't fully understand your collection, or do not wish to put in the considerable time and effort. If your collection is to be liquidated using ebay, I think it is far better to do it yourself, and have fun doing so. Your collection could be sold to a number of dealers in smaller specialist job lots. Coin shows could be a good venue to see many dealers in one day, and to arrange for follow up later. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1911 Posts |
With that amount of coins I wouldn't mind taking a look if you ever did decide to post some of them on CCF. :) But like others have mentioned, the fees are annoying so you might as well get some back fast. Or maybe try a few parts of your collection in a few different ways.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
593 Posts |
My advice would be to apply the Pareto Principle. It's not always 80-20, many times it's closer to 90-10 in collectibles. Find the 10% of your collection that comprises 90% of the value. Evaluate the options for selling that 10% and determine the best course. The remaining 90% will take care of itself.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1839 Posts |
I'd look into Great Collections. Depending on the final value of your auctions the seller fees are low to none at all. They're 0% for coins that realize over $1,000 or 5% for coins $1,000 or under. And the buyers only pay a 10% buyer's fee meaning the hammer price is usually higher than Stack's, Heritage, etc. The hammer price is what you take home. Also they will send your coins to CAC for you if you think some are worthy. CAC approved coins have sold on average about 15% higher at auction than non CAC coins over the last few years. http://www.greatcollections.com/main-sellI sound like a commercial for them, but I think their business model is tailor made for your situation. Oh, and they also get your proceeds to you way, way faster than the likes of Stack's and Heritage. Edited by Tbone
05/12/2015 01:20 am
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Replies: 22 / Views: 4,176 |
Posted 05/11/2015 7:22 pm
