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 Replies: 21 / Views: 3,075 |
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New Member
United States
8 Posts |
Hey guys I am working on an estate and we have a massive collection of coins. There's like over 20,000 coins and a bunch of old bills. What is the best way to get an accurate appraisal of them. There's loose coins, gold coins, tons of silver coins, proof sets, mint sets, silver certificates, confederate bills. Just need an accurate assessment of the total value. It's too many and I don't know enough to know if we should just sell it or go through it an pull key dates and what to maybe grade ect...Any advice on how properly handle a huge collection would be greatly appreciated.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4211 Posts |
 With a massive collection like that it would be best to hire someone with experience with coins and currency to do an appraisal. A coin / currency dealer. Most will charge an hourly rate and it's not cheap. See if you have any coin shops or upcoming coin shows in your area. What area of the US are you in? |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
8715 Posts |
to the CCF!  A coin dealer can do an appraisal. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
7613 Posts |
1). Don't clean any coins to try and make them look better. You WILL destroy the value! 2). Organize and inventory what you have using a spread sheet. Protect coins by using high quality PVC-free holders. 3). Once you have an inventory you can decide how best to market the collection to obtain the best results for the estate/owner. Post photos here and ask for advice and recommendations. Good luck! Your gonna need it! |
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Bedrock of the Community
13014 Posts |
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What is the best way to get an accurate appraisal of them. Best way for an accurate appraisal will be to pay a well known shop or dealer and let them know that you will be getting a couple appraisals done and aren't interested in selling anything until they're all done. If you have knowledge of coins the internet can give you good price ranges too. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
7613 Posts |
Not only can a coin dealer do an appraisal for you, they will be more than happy to take advantage of you, too!
Unless you know the dealer very well know exactly what you have BEFORE soliciting an appraisal.
I've been dealing in coins a very long time. They are a few dealers I would trust with everything I own. On the other hand there are dealers I have known 50 years that I would not trust as far as I can see them. That stinks but it is a reality of the world we live in.
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New Member
 United States
8 Posts |
Yeah I was hoping to get some names of people who the community really trusts. I know some about coins. Not to wash or clean them ECT but we really are going to need an expert and people we can trust and I just don't know the best way to begin tackling such a big collection. I guess we could start with doing some kind if inventory. But there's so much I know if we do it we will miss stuff and not be good at identifying the key coins could be worth a significant amount of value.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1475 Posts |
Categorize what you have and describe them at CCF with pictures.
Since most of us will not be buying from you, majority (hopefully all) of us will give you unbiased opinions as to value and course of actions.
Armed with that, you can decide your next step.
Good luck!
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Pillar of the Community
United States
7613 Posts |
If the collection is unorganized and has been for long time then there is no rush to dispose of it. If it takes 3, 6 or 9 months to get it inventoried then that's what has to be done. The object of the game is to maximize the return to the estate.
Most dealers I know will not take the time to accurately grade your coins UNLESS they are being paid huge appraisal fees of $100 an hour and up. If they are doing a free rough appraisal they'll say "this coin is circulated" or "this coin is uncirculated" and this is what I'll pay. The difference of a few grading points in either category can be a huge difference in value. You need to know what you have BEFORE walking in the door with a box full of coins.
Post pictures here to get a feel. There are plenty of eyes on these boards willing to help you....for free!
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4211 Posts |
What part of the US are you in?
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Bedrock of the Community
13014 Posts |
Quote:
eah I was hoping to get some names of people who the community really trusts. I know some about coins. Not to wash or clean them ECT but we really are going to need an expert and people we can trust and I just don't know the best way to begin tackling such a big collection. I guess we could start with doing some kind if inventory. But there's so much I know if we do it we will miss stuff and not be good at identifying the key coins could be worth a significant amount of value. You need a complete inventory to start. Date, type, and mint mark will be okay for that at first. If you have no idea what you have you're asking to be ripped off. Most likely a large percentage of it wont really be worth much but if you don't put in the effort you can miss what would be worth it. Location would have to be revealed for options on who to appraise it. |
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
2843 Posts |
If you are anywhere near me, I would be vary glad to take a look and give my opinion. I probably couldn't look at every single item, but a general assessment could be done. I am in the Detroit Michigan area.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4883 Posts |
Good advice given so far. Despite the size of the collection, the part of the evaluation process that you'll have to take on is preparing the inventory. To keep this manageable, you might start by selecting only a portion of it that seems to you to be the better grade material, but I wouldn't turn over any amount of it to anybody without both parties via a checklist verifying exactly what the lot being appraised consists of. If any dealer(s) you select is potentially going to be afforded an opportunity to purchase the material, there may not be a charge to you to go through it. But be up front and honest about your intentions in this regard. My other recommendation would be to utilize the PNG (see: https://pngdealers.org/ ) to find the sort of dealer in your area that you can have confidence in. Colligo ergo sum
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New Member
United States
8 Posts |
I live in Kensington md but the estate is in Bowie md
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Bedrock of the Community
13014 Posts |
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If any dealer(s) you select is potentially going to be afforded an opportunity to purchase the material, there may not be a charge to you to go through it. You'll almost certainly lose more as they talk down things to buy them cheap |
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Bedrock of the Community
13014 Posts |
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I live in Kensington md but the estate is in Bowie md David Lawrence would be my call. You can sell on consignment with them as well if you chose and they'll know who to dump the common stuff with |
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Replies: 21 / Views: 3,075 |
Posted 03/25/2018 5:59 pm
