Collecting Versus Investing

Most dealers have beautiful personal collections so the argument that:

"But what about those who buy coins with the sole intent on reselling to make a good profit? I don't think of these people as real coin collectors; I think of them as investors."

does not hold true to me.

Almost every dealer that I know, knows 100 times more about numismatics than the average collector.

If your intention is to invest, it follows that whatever you buy is to eventually to be sold for a profit, over and above the inflation rate. By definition, the growth of your collection must be somewhat limited.

I am a collector. I try to buy well, but there is no intention to sell later on.
For a lot of my purchases, I have made quite substantial 'paper' gains. Even then, I am not tempted to sell.

If you plan to buy well, it definitely pays to keep your mind open to the whole of numismatics, not just American or Australian coins. That requires reading and studying of the whole of numisamtics.

That is my lifetime commitment to numismatics, which I have followed for more than 4 decades. My numismatic library reflects this, with over 100 reference books and perhaps 200 research papers in all areas of numismatics.

Consider four types of coin people 1) Accumulator who hoards common coins obtained at face value, 2) Investor who buys most anything for liquidity and future profit, 3) Dealer who buys most anything for immediate turnover, and 4) Collector who lives at the end of the rainbow buying special coins that make them happy. I think you can describe folks as having a primary and secondary style from among these four categories such as the collector-investor or dealer-collector.

As mentioned by others, I also think there are many 'types' of 'collectors'. Many are dual types, and even those groups can be separated with various percentages.

I consider myself a 99% collector and 1% dealer. Almost all of the items I buy I intend to keep forever. There are a few times where I've bought coin lots where I've gotten multiples, and those I've tried to sell/trade to get some of the expense back.

My one friend says he's a collector too, but he hasn't saved more than a handful of all the coins he's obtained over the years. His main reason for buying coins is to resell them for a profit. When I complete sets, the first thing he asks me is if I'm going to sell them. To me, they are trophies of my efforts to acquire said sets; and I'll keep them for as many years as I have left. I put my buddy as a 98% dealer/2% collector.

My other friend buys coins too, but only silver coins. He doesn't care so much as to what grades they are or which type or mint-mark; just that he has silver that will escalate in value one day. I'd say he's a 95% investor/5% collector.

I'm sure there are plenty out there who are midrange (50/50, 60/40) coin 'collectors'. Many might also be 3-tier coiners (investor/dealer/collector, etc.).

I think you will have collectors, investors, and variations in between.

I am really a collector. I do not buy coins to make a profit someday and the only time I sell something is to clear out duplicates and generate funds for buying more coins.

I just finished an interesting book about baseball cards called Mint Condition. At some point, baseball cards became more about the investing aspect than collecting; it drove out many of the true collectors (including kids), collapsed and maybe permanently ended it as a hobby.

The book mentioned a similar boom in coins as investments in the 90's that also drove up prices which then eventually collapsed, but I don't think it was to the same extent. A lot of parallels though.

Maybe you should focus on what you like to do yourself rather than trying to put labels on other people. Sorry if this sounds harsh, but I feel the entire discussion has no value.

I'd like to see someone try to justify coins as anything more than a wildcard investment.