Posted 08/18/2017 09:42 am
If you are seriously considering assembling the 50 piece type set of the classic silver commemoratives, you need to drop the idea of a "price guide" immediately.
That said, the very best idea of past sales is the Heritage listings. They have every single price list in almost any grade from any and all sources displayed together, with the inventory of graded coins- for free.
What you will notice is that all of those different price lists are different for the "same" coin in the "same" grade. When you explore past sales be sure to use the "most recent" filter, otherwise you could be looking at sales from 1998.
If you write down the sold prices for each example in the grade you are considering, and keep them in a PCGS versus NGC column, you will notice the actual sold prices between the two and that should influence your decision of which TPG to purchase.
I do that and list lowest, average, and highest price for each CSS. You will notice that the same coin type in the same grade will have HUGE differences in actual sold prices. Which is why my first suggestion of forgetting any particular price list, followed by information on price lists isn't contradictory.
The real point is that price guides are only marginally valuable because of the huge price ranges for any particular coin type and grade for actual sales.
In essence, the old "buy the coin, not the holder".
Make a list of the 50 and using the information you've gathered on selling prices, compare them (I also put this info in the columns for comparison) to see where there are huge jumps between prices.
I selected the grades range for my preferred grade, and the next grade up from there, to see how much of a jump there is between one and another.
In a few instances, such as the Monroe, there is a big jump in price from the 64 to 65, but it's one of my least favorite CSS and I was unwilling to pay the difference required for a coin I don't like.
In other instances the price difference between grades is very little, making it crazy not to step up to the higher grade. An example of that would be the Spanish Trail. There is such a small price difference between the average selling price between a 65 and 66 that it's nuts not to try for the 66.
Plan your attack. Have your list of preferred grades and prices in one guide that you make up yourself. Be willing to vary from that list if you find a gorgeous example below the grade you considered. If you fall in love with a higher grade coin, grab it if you can afford it.
I've been working on my set for nearly five years and I still have four I need to find. The CSS has been the top priority on my want list, so it's not like I've given up on them. I always save enough funds to buy all four if they became available tomorrow. So regardless of your grade interest I can assure you that this set is a challenge. You learn a ton of history in the process, too.
Where you find and buy your coins is determined by the grades and price range that you are comfortable with. If you want mid range grades Great Collections is a great place to look. Prices are reasonable, but not cheap.
For higher grades Heritage and Stacks-Bowers are both top rate. Be sure to reduce your bids by dividing by 1.2 for Heritage and S-B needs to be reduced by 1.175. Neither of these are scary once you've spent some time using them.
Note that I haven't listed ebay as a great choice. Actual auctions without reserves are few and far between. Good prices are rare. Of the 46 I've found, 3 were ebay and ebay takes tons more time to search, even if you use their email alerts.
Prices are very reasonable right now. 30 years ago only the rich could consider this challenge.
Finally (really) don't get impatient and buy stuff just to fill a hole. You want only one of each type. Make each one special to you.
When you look at your CSS collection you should marvel at the beauty of your collection. Not thinking about the need to upgrade.
That said, the very best idea of past sales is the Heritage listings. They have every single price list in almost any grade from any and all sources displayed together, with the inventory of graded coins- for free.
What you will notice is that all of those different price lists are different for the "same" coin in the "same" grade. When you explore past sales be sure to use the "most recent" filter, otherwise you could be looking at sales from 1998.
If you write down the sold prices for each example in the grade you are considering, and keep them in a PCGS versus NGC column, you will notice the actual sold prices between the two and that should influence your decision of which TPG to purchase.
I do that and list lowest, average, and highest price for each CSS. You will notice that the same coin type in the same grade will have HUGE differences in actual sold prices. Which is why my first suggestion of forgetting any particular price list, followed by information on price lists isn't contradictory.
The real point is that price guides are only marginally valuable because of the huge price ranges for any particular coin type and grade for actual sales.
In essence, the old "buy the coin, not the holder".
Make a list of the 50 and using the information you've gathered on selling prices, compare them (I also put this info in the columns for comparison) to see where there are huge jumps between prices.
I selected the grades range for my preferred grade, and the next grade up from there, to see how much of a jump there is between one and another.
In a few instances, such as the Monroe, there is a big jump in price from the 64 to 65, but it's one of my least favorite CSS and I was unwilling to pay the difference required for a coin I don't like.
In other instances the price difference between grades is very little, making it crazy not to step up to the higher grade. An example of that would be the Spanish Trail. There is such a small price difference between the average selling price between a 65 and 66 that it's nuts not to try for the 66.
Plan your attack. Have your list of preferred grades and prices in one guide that you make up yourself. Be willing to vary from that list if you find a gorgeous example below the grade you considered. If you fall in love with a higher grade coin, grab it if you can afford it.
I've been working on my set for nearly five years and I still have four I need to find. The CSS has been the top priority on my want list, so it's not like I've given up on them. I always save enough funds to buy all four if they became available tomorrow. So regardless of your grade interest I can assure you that this set is a challenge. You learn a ton of history in the process, too.
Where you find and buy your coins is determined by the grades and price range that you are comfortable with. If you want mid range grades Great Collections is a great place to look. Prices are reasonable, but not cheap.
For higher grades Heritage and Stacks-Bowers are both top rate. Be sure to reduce your bids by dividing by 1.2 for Heritage and S-B needs to be reduced by 1.175. Neither of these are scary once you've spent some time using them.
Note that I haven't listed ebay as a great choice. Actual auctions without reserves are few and far between. Good prices are rare. Of the 46 I've found, 3 were ebay and ebay takes tons more time to search, even if you use their email alerts.
Prices are very reasonable right now. 30 years ago only the rich could consider this challenge.
Finally (really) don't get impatient and buy stuff just to fill a hole. You want only one of each type. Make each one special to you.
When you look at your CSS collection you should marvel at the beauty of your collection. Not thinking about the need to upgrade.
