Selling Coins at Auction

Sonorandesertrat

In another post, TheBeav wrote, "Unless you're putting up a 30 year old score, the auction company is the only one that makes the money."

For most collectors, they will eat all of the premiums unless they have items the auction house really wants. What is the typical collector to do? How does one emerge with one's financial 'investment' intact? I don't want to hear that its just a hobby--be prepared to lose big time. If the typical coin collector had this attitude, the market for numismatic collectibles would take a terrific hit.

In the past, various Forum members have opined that luck is key (need at least two very determined bidders), or one needs coins that look undergraded (hard to do if the auction house sends items in for regarding), or the coins have to have wild toning, etc. Is auctioning one's collection increasing becoming the least desirable option, vs. private sale or even sale to a dealer? What do you think?

oih82w8

There is a Buy/Sell/Trade on this and other forums. Some dealers will "consign" your coins for you, for less "commission" than auction fees. Breaking it up instead of selling as a whole collection should reap more $$$.

cameonut2011

Auctions make sense for special items that might provoke spirited bidding or even an all out bidding war. For instance, coins with unusually superior eye appeal like monster toning, unusual/rare popular varieties, rare plastic/sticker combos, ultra rarities, coins with very low populations at or near the finest known, sticker condition rarities, or coins that have some other esoteric characteristic, etc., may be worth consigning for auction. Very few coins worth under five figures are worth consigning to an auction house IMHO unless it is something hard to move and you just want to blow it out in a no reserve auction to get rid of it quickly.

For generics and average collector coins, I think you tend to do better selling those yourself. Many can be sold to collectors through the BST or on other websites. If you shop some items around the right dealers (think specialists), sometimes you can do better with a dealer offer. Some well known specialist dealers accept consignments for as low as 7.5%-10% and have followings that ensure quicker sales. I have gone that route for what I couldn't sell myself, and I think dealer consignments represent excellent value if done right (reputable dealer, established presence on the major coin show circuit, web presence, etc.). For generics and more common coins that are CACed, sometimes even a CAC bid can be useful.

Purfrock

If you're talking about selling off a life long collection, there are a few questions that need to be addressed. Different routes will work for different collectors. For example, I have a friend that is a silver hoarder and has been for decades. He doesn't care too much about dates or varieties, just buys them cheap and holds on to it. He's been lucky to find several key coins in large bulk purchases, but that is just gravy for him. When it comes time for him to sell, there are quite a few buyers to unload this material upon, and he really doesn't need help to make that happen. For him, maximizing profit depends largely on the market value of silver.

On the other hand, I have friends who collect by variety, paying very close attention to rarity and die state. They'll sink a lot of money into a coin with an R.5 or R.6 rarity, even when that coin is low grade or has problems. The market is smaller for these people, but there is still a group of diehards that will eagerly buy. The question becomes, have you developed the contacts to reach these other collectors over the years? If not, consignment or auction may be a good option since the common collector won't share your passion for nuance.

You also have those that devote themselves to their their registry sets, looking only for cleanly graded, high number, slabbed coins, and still others that specialize in coins with unique toning, and on and on. A lot depends on how you collected and how many other people have similar tastes.

So to me, what it comes down to is how connected in the community you are. The approximate value you have in your collection, and how specialized it is. When you can answer those, you can move on to the notoriety piece.

I have a few friends that have sold recently that had very robust collections that would generate headlines. They wanted their last act in collecting to be memorable. So they decided to consign to a particular auction house because they wanted their personal story (bio) as well as their high end coins to be on display with a professional catalog. Indeed, they wanted to have their collection honored and remembered in the numismatic community because after all, they spent an enormous amount of their free time reading, studying, and discussing their favorite hobby. Yes, they might have been able to sell their coins privately over time and generated greater profit, but that isn't how they wanted a 30, 40, or 50 year collection to conclude. They wanted to make a greater mark on the community.

So, while others will likely have better, more direct responses to your question, I really believe that each person will have to answer this question for themselves based on their own preferences. resources, and goals. I'm many years (I hope) away from having to answer this question for myself, but when the time comes, I hope to have as much fun with selling as I did acquiring the pieces.

Coinstartled

The downward spiral in most coin categories has magnified the discomfort at the time of sale. Collectors seem to have mixed results on the BST. GC is a wise move on $1000 and over (but not stratospheric,) coins. Under $1000 coins and if you have the time and stomach...Ebay.

Cougar1978

It’s either auction or shop them around bourse if one is not going open online store or shop.

Sadly some are like deer in headlights when it comes playing sell side of ball.

Current market conditions horrible for selling right now. The decrease in collectors a major concern for me.

jmlanzaf

There is no single right answer. It is completely dependent on what you have. Some things are better at auction, some are better private treaty, some are better on eBay, some are better direct to a dealer.

But, even though you don't want to hear it, if they are recent purchases you are going to take a hit in any of those venues on 90% of coins you have. The market has been soft recently for all but the top tier stuff and you were (probably) a retail customer. Even direct sale to another retail customer may lose you money.

ricko

I read all these posts bemoaning the selling side of the market.... I am sure there is truth to this complaint. However, I do not see it reflected in lower prices... at least not in coins I have had an interest in over the last eight months or so... It would appear there is a 'standoff' going on...sellers will not/can not reduce prices, and buyers will not pay the asking prices. Of course, the topic of auctions just makes it worse with the fees charged. JMO... Cheers, RickO

291fifth

The buy/sell margins on coins are such that it is difficult for the retail buyer to actually make any money when he sells. Once all the costs of selling are considered (and many collectors seem to ignore many of these costs) "profit" will disappear on most coins. If you think coins are bad in this regard, try other collectibles where buy/sell margins are even greater.

Sonorandesertrat

One very important point, unknown to most novice collectors, is that selling one's coins is usually much harder than buying them. For this reason, it's important to sell some things along the way to forming a collection. I have met collectors who got creamed (and I include myself, about 11 years ago, even though I was not a novice at the time) because they made a foolish choice in venue when they decided to sell a set or whole collection.

EXOJUNKIE

@291fifth said:
Once all the costs of selling are considered (and many collectors seem to ignore many of these costs) "profit" will disappear on most coins.

This. For example, most collectors don't know that Capital Gains Tax = 28% on collectibles. Yep, after all your hard work to research and cultivate your collection, the government wants 28% of your profit.

Coinstartled

@EXOJUNKIE said:

@291fifth said:
Once all the costs of selling are considered (and many collectors seem to ignore many of these costs) "profit" will disappear on most coins.

This. For example, most collectors don't know that Capital Gains Tax = 28% on collectibles. Yep, after all your hard work to research and cultivate your collection, the government wants 28% of your profit.

About half that on long term gains. I believe that is a year and a half.

ShadyDave

In my opinion it all depends on how much time and effort you want to invest in selling, usually the more time you spend the more $$$ you net. Is your collection organized, slabbed, in books, 2x2s? Do you know what you even have?

There are a ton of venues to sell, and as others have indicated different items do better at different venues. I think that having all these options have helped collectors and have hurt dealers over the years. If one of the options tries to gouge either on selling fees, or buy offers, sellers have plenty of other options to sell at. This is where I have bought and/or sold before and would again in the future:

1. Forums/Social Media- Reddit /Discord /Facebook /Instagram /Craigslist /PCGS Forum. Labor intensive, but selling straight to collectors for solid prices.

2. Coin show- Either set up a table to sell items for an entire day to a targeted audience or ask for offers from people behind a table.

3. eBay- the most time intensive and risky (IMO) with annoying and sometimes scammy buyers. Get a store subscription and sell for a month or so. You can also consign to one of the MANY collectors/dealers who sell on eBay.

4. Heritage- Better have an expensive or large collection, otherwise you wont be able to negotiate the seller fee...

5. Local coin shop- You can gather offers from your local shops or vest pocket dealers.

EXOJUNKIE

@Coinstartled said:

@EXOJUNKIE said:

@291fifth said:
Once all the costs of selling are considered (and many collectors seem to ignore many of these costs) "profit" will disappear on most coins.

This. For example, most collectors don't know that Capital Gains Tax = 28% on collectibles. Yep, after all your hard work to research and cultivate your collection, the government wants 28% of your profit.

About half that on long term gains. I believe that is a year and a half.

@Coinstartled, would you mind elaborating on your "long term gains" statement? I thought it was a flat 28% unless collectibles are inherited....

Coinstartled

My error, Exojunkie. as a seller, I have always done a business return. Thought that the collectors got a long term break same as the equity guys do.

No wonder everyone is piling into AMZN.

savitale

I have come to the conclusion that selling coins at near-retail price is hard. This is not surprising in retrospect since coin dealers work hard and they sell coins for retail prices. If you want to sell quickly, you will not get close to retail. I've sold coins at a local auction - below Greysheet. I've sold coins to dealers at shows - below Greysheet. I've sold coins through Great Collections - below Greysheet. I've sold coins on BST - above Greysheet. I've sold coins on eBay - near retail. The harder you work the more you will get for your coins.