Approximately $5,000 In Change Ugh!

Sorry for the loss of your father.

Can you give an approximate idea of what dates are present and what sort of condition they are in? Scan through the RedBook and get an idea of what varieties are worth significantly more than face, e.g. $10 or more. Separate all the circulated coins from uncirculated, but check those dates for varieties that would still be worth a lot in circulated grades. If it isn't uncirculated or a rare variety, roll it up to deposit.

Uncirculated coins can be worth as much or more than silver coins, depending on the year. Hardly anybody collected or put back clad coinage from 1965 until about the time the State Quarters rolled out. Gem uncirculated coins, especially from the 60s and 70s, are harder to find than most realize, and are worth a lot more than face value to a dedicated collector.

IMO, since the coins clearly meant something to him, I would buy an album for each denomonation he collected and fill it with his best coins. It will fit nicely on a bookshelf, and you can still get most of the face value by bringing the rest to the bank.

1964 and prior dimes, quarters, and halves were made with 90% silver. Silver is a precious metal that has value independent of the coin, approximately 11 time the coin denomination (their "face value") as of today. If you were to cash those in at a bank you'd get only 1x rather than 11x, so you'd lose a bunch of money.

Except for specially made collector versions, dimes are quarters dated 1965 and later, halves 1971 and later, contain no silver. Of those dates only individual coins that are in pristine condition will be worth more to collectors than than face value. Maybe only 1% or less of typical newly minted coins will be of such high quality. Being able to separate these high quality coins from the ordinary ones is a skill that takes time to learn.

Let's say of your $5000 in coins, $4000 is in the newer, non-silver dates. You can bring them to a bank and get $4000. Or you can spend perhaps 1000 hours learning how to find the best examples, and selling them, which might net you $1000 more than the bank route. Your pay rate would be $1 per hour of learning. So IMO don't go the learning route unless you enjoy the hobby aspects.

Another very general rule is that coins dated before 1934 are worth more than those 1934 and later. This is because coins before 1934 were minted in lesser quantities than those after. Any you find dated 1933 and earlier are likely to have a collector premium above their silver value. There are exceptions to this general rule, of course, but for quick sorting keep that year in mind.

And of whatever older coins you find, do not clean them in any fashion. Most cleaning will drastically reduce the value to collectors.

to the Community!

Some great ideas mentioned above. I like the suggestion of purchasing an album and filling it with coins from your collection. I did the same from my grandfather's collection after he had passed in 1976. I always have fond memories when I pick up those albums and browse the coins. If your interest is in getting maximum dollar value, the suggestions above on date ranges and silver content would be a start and perhaps open a small ebay business to sell the nicer coins. Don't even bother going to a local coin dealer as they will not give you maximum dollar.

If you wanted a path to seeking out highest value coins in that hoard, consider saving anything that appears to be in uncirculated condition. The collector market for coins that were intended for general circulation but still have that uncirculated look with virtually no visible wear is where the big money is at. Finn235 referenced that above but you are not going to find that type of info in the Red Book. Too much to discuss on that topic for this post as grading in this higher-end uncirculated space is a tricky area. I can tell you that I plucked a 1968S Nickel (MS66-FS) out of one of my grandfather's rolls which sat in my house for 35+ years -- I had no idea until 9 months ago when I got it professionally graded!! That nickel has a book value of $4,750 but that is because there are only 3 others known to exist at that uncirculated grade level.

It's possible your father may have been aware of this higher-end grading. If you see any coin rolls or boxes marked as UNC or BC, take a closer look at those. UNC is common lingo for uncirculated and BC is common for Brilliant Uncirculated. They generally mean the same but depends on the collector who made the note.

I would recommend looking for at least a few varieties that IMO are worth the effort to seek out:

Cents:
- 1960 small date
- 1970 S small date
- 1982-D small date in copper
- 1983 in copper
- 1992 Close AM
- 1998-2000 Wide AM
- Any 2009 doubled finger variety

Nickels: Not really anything too special after the 50s. Check all your nickels for full steps until the mid 80s!

Dimes: Not much of note. Keep your eyes peeled for a 1996-W, but you are unlikely to find one.

Quarters:
- Wisconsin "Extra Leaf" on the corn ear

Halves:
- Check 70s dates for missing FS

Dollars:
- Check all 2000 Sacagaweas for "wounded eagle" and especially "Cheerios dollar" variety; e.g. extra detail in the feathers.

In my years of searching, the only "good" varieties I have found in change were a handful of 1998 and 2000 Wide AM cents; worth a few dollars in nice grade. Cheerios dollars, 1982/3 transitonal composition errors, and 1992 Close AMs are extremely rare but IMO always worth checking because they are worth several hundred or thousand bucks each, and large, older hoards stand a chance of containing one.

I'm on team T-Bop on this one. Save the obvious stuff he listed; your chances of finding anything else in the rest is very very small and probably not worth it if you aren't otherwise interested.

to CCF and condolences for the loss of your father.