Time To Start Collecting Modern Commemorative Half Eagles?

I will preface my post by stating that I don't own any Gold Commemoratives, but I do own a few silver ones and as of today that vast majority of the silver commemoratives are trading for bullion value. There is no extra premium to buy them. Several LCS next to me get the comm's and they pay spot prices or less and sell for spot plus a few dollars. I picked up a few as pure bullion with the case. In a majority of cases the silver commemoratives have very low mintages (under 200K).

Now compare the average comm (for example the National Park Service Comm) which I picked up for $25 in the OGP.

Mintage was 21,003 (very very low)



Compare that to the 2019 S-ERP which the mintage was 29K (very very low, but 50% higher than the NPS comm)




The national park is today selling at my LCS for $25-$30 while the 2019 S-ERP is selling for $1250.

The reason is collectibility. Commemoratives are the black sheep coins (on average) from the US mint. There just isn't any appeal, they are wholesaled for bullion plus a dollar or 2.

Eventually they may be worth more than spot prices but you and I will long be dead. I expect the same for the Gold Comms.

Just at the President Spouses gold series coins, some have mintages in the lows 2000 and they are worth just melt.

The time to have started a collection of the modern gold half eagles was 5+ years ago. The spot price of gold was significantly lower then and many of the modern gold issues could be purchased for very near melt value.

As time travel isn't possible, keep a few things in mind if you start collecting the modern gold series now:

1. A very high percentage of the mintage of modern coins survives in high grades (never being removed from their mint capsule). Comparing their mintage figures against gold coins of the classic series to try and ID rarities to target is not a sound strategy.

2. As a collector, don't be lured in by "Pop Top" or other grade rarity claims used in an attempt to justify a high price on a graded example. Almost all of the coins issued will grade either "69" or "70" if sent to a TPG.

3. The difference between a "70" and a "69" can often not be seen (or at least not without high-powered magnification). Every collector needs to ask themselves if an incredibly minor (and often subjective) difference between a "69" and "70" is worth the premium charged for many "70" coins. (I've asked the question of myself...my answer has always been "No!")

Indeed. I purchased a number of $5 gold commemoratives between 2010 and 2017 but haven't since due to price (other than the Apollo $5 in 2019 because... Apollo).

Thus my vote is a write-in: "No, wait for gold spot to come down and buy for melt or under on the 2ndary markets."