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 Replies: 18 / Views: 6,264 |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
632 Posts |
I am thinking about buying common silver coins as a long term investment. I should of done this years ago, but I am new to the hobby. Anyways is there certain coins I should be looking at? I am leaning toward the Morgan dollars because I like how they look. But because they are older would I be getting a better silver price with a newer silver Washington quarters for example? My initial thinking was to buy worn coins to get the best silver price. Is there anything wrong with that thinking? Or should I be looking at higher grade coins to protect against a drop in silver price? I am worried about counterfeit coins since I am new to this hobby. What are the most popular coins that are counterfeit? What price should I expect to pay? Is there any chance of finding coins below spot? Thanks! |
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Valued Member
United States
368 Posts |
Morgan dollars can be found for a little over spot in very good condition still...for example, my local coin shop sells them for $37 each for common dates. This would be a good start.....but probably the best "bang for the buck" right now is Franklin halves. You can nearly complete a set and expect to pay around $16 to $17 a coin....with melt value being about equal. Maybe it's just my small town though....but good luck with your endeavor!
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1745 Posts |
I would try to get the best condition coins near melt. I agree Morgans and Franklins might be easiest right now. Sometimes, you will find Mercury and Roosevelt dimes for sale under melt. Some dealers don't update their prices with every movement of the price of silver. |
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Valued Member
United States
62 Posts |
Wow willy13 I had all the same questions a couple weeks ago and since reading peoples thoughts on this site and researching online I have decided that I'm not going to buy silver just to buy silver. The coins I need to complete my collections that contain silver already sell above their silver content due to the MS condition I'm buying them in. Semi-key and key-date coin's value will ALWAYS be high and even though silver looks like it's going up forever lol...I just think it's a more solid investment to get the rare dates/mints etc. Of course if I had a lot more money I would be buying some silver just to buy silver, but since I don't I want to be sure my money ain't gonna loose value. Call me crazy but if I had $1,500 to blow right now I'd buy a 1909S VDB penny, not a $20 Double Eagle or in your case 32 ounces of silver. Then again if the country's economy completely comes crashing down and there's rioting in the streets and mass chaos, I'm sure someone would be more willing to trade their pistol for the gold or silver rather than my XF 1909S VDB...even if I told him it was REALLY rare!  I would stick with Morgans but if you don't get them close to spot aka junk condition you might loose money when silver goes up. I'm just thinking because if today you bought a 1881-O for $57 in MS-60 rather than say $40 in G-4 condition...if silver goes up to $75 that 1881-O is now worth only the $57 you paid for it (due to precious metal content) whereas if you bought it for $40 your coin will have increased $17 in value. It can work both ways though since if silver goes down, that G-4 condition coin will drop in value more than the MS-60 condition one will. What I'm not sure about is if precious metal content of a coin can completely eclipse numismatic value of a coin? Depends on grade, mint and year of said coin I would guess... Tough decisions...and as LowLife said, "Good Luck"! |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3184 Posts |
buy BU and proof 90% halves, quarters, and dimes. They can be had for melt nowadays with silver so high.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1081 Posts |
If you're buying just for silver, then I would go with 1964 Kennedy halves, ASE (the bullion version) or junk silver (silver coins in bad shape). I would not go with Morgans unless you can get them for right around melt. |
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Valued Member
United States
314 Posts |
What mkman123 said. Do some looking around, you can find BU items at melt if you look hard enough.
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Valued Member
United States
384 Posts |
For investment purposes, ASE all the way. Also if you want to invest long term, silver has already run up too high too fast, maybe wait for a pullback? (might have to wait a couple of years or more, but I'm just saying what I'd do.) |
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Valued Member
United States
493 Posts |
Put an ad on craigslist, but you better know what your doing, actually, don't put an add on craigslist. I also tell my family to sell me their stuff if they don't want it. I say, get it valued, then call me up and I'll buy it. Does anyone ever .. hang out at the coin & jewelry store? Probably a not good habit, but it's fun to watch people come in and sell stuff, usually they will let you look over it, and you can learn a little something sometimes. Right now these stores might be a little over run. I watched someone cash in a silverware set for over $1300. Lots of people are retiring, getting kicked to funeral homes, and estate sales, foreclosures, bankruptcy, gun sales, metal detectors, whatever, you never know what you'll find. I just had to buy something today, so I only bought the 2004 silver proof set. But, I also picked up an extra 2005s proof Buffalo nickel, even though it's not silver. Sometimes, they have a bargain bin, the one I was looking through today had silver quarters in it, although priced at 8 bucks a piece, at today's prices that's a little below melt, and I was not checking dates, assuming they were not key dates. |
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Valued Member
United States
100 Posts |
Quote:For investment purposes, ASE all the way. Why ASE's? |
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Valued Member
United States
384 Posts |
They are .999 silver, and they are beautiful, and, correct me if I am wrong, but I believe one can also use retirement money towards investing in ASEs. That's why I prefer them.
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Valued Member
United States
314 Posts |
Several forms of silver are IRA eligible. If generic bars are ISO certified, they are eligible. But Using an IRA for metals means a tax deduction, and someone else holding the metal for you. Buying your own physical means creating your own IRA, no tax deduction, and having physical possession of what is yours. I'll take the latter of the two.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3540 Posts |
You only want to invest in silver? When silver is on the upswing?
I don't see the value on the return.
If you want to invest in something long term, within numismatics, invest in the highest grade key and semi key dates of whatever you like. That would be the best long term investment.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3540 Posts |
Forgot - as the others mentioned, also the highest grade silver coin below melt value. But, playing on what the market is doing...can bite your investment. I have ASE's that I will be selling shortly if the market continues as it has....and five AU/BU Morgans/Peace. I see no reason not to turn them into a nice Lincoln Cent that I don't own. Traded an AG grade 1877 Indian cent many years ago for silver. Sat on the silver for 4 months, then bought a nice 1914 D and a super nice 11 S for my collection. Paid 10 cents for the 1877...... |
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
632 Posts |
Quote:
buy BU and proof 90% halves, quarters, and dimes. They can be had for melt nowadays with silver so high. I think I might try this approach. Thanks! |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
632 Posts |
My biggest fear is not silver collapsing, but getting a china fake... I was going to use ebay but maybe I should just go to a local dealer for this reason... |
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Replies: 18 / Views: 6,264 |
Posted 04/22/2011 09:20 am
