To sell, or not to sell?
bccox
Posts: 16 ✭
Hey everyone, I'm brand new to the site and I'm sure you guys get tired of guys like me joining just to ask a bunch of dumb questions and then leaving once I get the answers, but here goes nothing! I recently inherited some silver(coins mostly) and know nothing about them other than most are silver eagles and I have a few GIANT quarters. I heard through the grapevine that silver was pretty high right now, so I started looking into selling these and just giving the money to my daughters to start a savings account. I took these to a pawn shop and the guy offered me 80% of spot price, which I declined. My wife posted them on FB yard sale with no luck as well. I see silver eagles all over ebay ranging in prices and I have no clue why one is worth more than the others. All of mine are in little plastic cases, and I think I have one for every year since 1986 up until 2003? I'd really like to sell these as one whole package, but I just feel like they're worth more than 80% of spot price. Am I wrong in thinking this? Or is this as good as it gets without selling each coin individually? Thanks in advance!
Comments
I would think that if you listed them here, on the BST at spot, they would sell quickly......
You'll never get full value from a pawn shop. Pictures?
Going to a pawn shop or flea market will guarantee the lowest possible offers. If there is nothing rare, and you have enough quantity, you would do well selling to an online place like https://www.apmex.com/sell-gold-sell-silver-overview. There are a number of dealers, as well, who will likely do better as well depending upon what you have.
I'm guessing the giant quarters are the 5oz silver "quarters" from the mint? Most likely you'll be looking at 90-95% of spot price for all of them as they are ungraded. If you have a coin dealer in your area you could visit them and get more specific help. There are a lot of counterfeits out there as well so just be aware.
Good luck to ya!
TurtleCat Gold Dollars
Thank you guys for the quick responses! I will take some pictures tonight and try to post them. As far as the giant quarters, I have no idea. They look like one of the newer quarters on the front and have like 4 or 5 of the state designs on the back. I don't expect any of them to be anything rare, but I'm pretty certain they are all at least real silver. Maybe I will post them here on the BST?
Welcome to the forum brother @bccox 😊
You can sell them but keep in mind that if you use a platform like ebay there are lots of charges plus shipping so even at full spot price you might net less that the 80% you were offered after the fees. I'm not saying you should go for the 80% just keep in mind the whole costs associated with selling yourself. I'm not an ASE collector but I think the 86 is worth more than the other dates, someone will correct me if I am wrong on that.
My Collection of Old Holders
Never a slave to one plastic brand will I ever be.
I am surprised nobody has said this yet:
Selling a physical asset to put the cash in a savings account that pays 0.5% interest at most doesn't make any financial sense. You and your daughter would be better served to hold the silver and cash it in when needed for a specific purpose (i.e. down payment on a car, braces, college tuition, etc.)
I say hold the silver until it is needed.
Speculating on silver lacks diversification. Silver, which could return to $12 per ounce is not necessarily better than a saving count, depending on time scale. There are also mutual fund options.
The problem with precious metals as a "physical asset" is that you are solely speculating on price. They do not have any yield and do not "grow"
These are America The Beautiful 5 oz silver rounds, often referred to as "pucks". The ones before 2013 might have a premium on them. The later ones are better than melt at retail but are often $1 to $2 per ounce over at wholesale.
I do agree that mutual funds are a good option, but the market is currently overpriced. As you said silver could could go to $12 an ounce again and the mutual fund could correct by 50%. Since none of us has a crystal ball it comes down to pay your money and take your chances.
I have pondered on what to do, but as little as I know about them, I'd really rather just sell them and start the girls a savings or something. I know how to manage that much easier than this! lol. I'd really rather these go to someone that would enjoy them, rather than melt them down. I really don't have much interest in separating them either. Hopefully the pictures this evening will provide some more detail and I could possible get some more advice! Thank you all for your help thus far!
Howdy and welcome.
They won't get melted down, so don't worry about that. A pawn shop is generally a poor place to sell something so liquid. However, ebay is also a poor place if you are just selling bullion and then have to contend with their fees. Of course, larger wholesalers/retailers like APMEX always buy, but they often need a minimum amount to make the purchase and you may not have enough to qualify.
Regardless, list the pieces on the BST (Buy, Sell & Trade) board with reasonable prices and they should sell quite quickly and with little hassle. You may need to accept PayPal Goods & Services and might be asked to ship first since you are new to the site, but most transactions are very smooth. Take decent images, look for comparable sold items on ebay to get an idea of price and ask questions prior to listing your BST thread. This will help greatly.
In honor of the memory of Cpl. Michael E. Thompson
I would stay away from pawn shops except as a last resort.
The fact that the 1986-2003 Silver Eagles are in little plastic cases most likely mean they are the proof version of the coins. The 1994, 1995, and 1996 should be sent off for grading if they are indeed proof versions of the coins they are multi hundred dollar to thousand dollar coins in a proof 70 grade. Even in proof 69 grade they are hundred dollar coins. The quickest way to tell if they are proof is to look at the reverse of the coin. The 1986-1992 will have an S, the 1993-2000 will have a P and the 2001-2003 will have a W at about 7 o'clock.
I agree with the prior suggestion of the Buy, Sell, Trade Forum here but with your low post count you may have to ship prior to payment which isn't a problem when dealing with a well established forum member here.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
Which would make cash at 0.5% the better option. Either way, there is no reason to recommend to someone that they hold a non-diversified position in a zero-yielding asset that just doubled in the last couple of months.
@bccox I think you are smart to turn the silver into something you're more comfortable with managing. If everything is overpriced right now, a guaranteed .5% might not be that bad. Also, we talk about your silver being liquid, but it's only liquid if you know what to do with it and how to do it. I'll also agree with folks that BST is a good place to list what you've got. If you live in a decent sized city, there might be a local board you could post them on and maybe avoid shipping/payment hassles, if you're comfortable doing that.
Good luck!
Great advice for what you have, and how to consider selling. I may have missed it but the "giant quarters" (i.e. "pucks") are 5 ounces Silver, and the Eagles are 1 ounce.
I'm all-in for the suggestion for listing on the BST. Ask if the member has references if you are asked to ship first. Then ask a few people in this thread (via PM) if they know the member and their references. That should make for a no BS transaction. We have a great circle or trust here that those in the know would never want to see broken. Plenty of members will help however we can.
As mentioned, the pucks get a buck or two over spot, and eagles can get up to $4 or 5 over right now (I think). Someone is bound to correct me if I am wrong.
Good luck to you and your family!
“We are only their care-takers,” he posed, “if we take good care of them, then centuries from now they may still be here … ”
Todd - BHNC #242
welcome & BST is my suggestion as well.
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Well, millions of people with trillions of dollars in the market say that it’s priced exactly where it ought to be right this second. If the majority of people thought it was overpriced (which they do with routine frequency) the market would be lower tomorrow morning. Current market values are set by the collective (often irrational) knowledge, wisdom, and sentiment of every investor involved.
Not trying to be snarky, but people try to time the market all the time. It’s a fools game to try to predict what will happen next.
That aside, there are LOADS of investment options that would outperform a savings account. Silver (or any commodity) would be pretty far down the list of things recommended by most financial advisors.
Not with this market it is millions of people with apps on their phones such as Robinhood, Acorns, and a bunch more that don't have a clue as to what they are doing. Just look at the 4 -6 stocks that are driving the market Tesla, Apple, Google, Facebook, even the bankrupt Hertz.
So your theory must be buy high and hope it goes higher. Really doesn't make a lot of sense.
When it comes to investing, my theory is to volume cost average and stay for the long play. Timing the market works out great for half the people and is a disaster for the other half. You never know which half you're in until much, much later.
Of course people don't have a clue. That's been true since the first guy traded the first cow for the first pile of shiny shells. Even so, their opinions and beliefs are part of the market. Nobody said they're right.
As for the OP's question, I like the idea of cataloging it carefully, taking good photos, and posting it on the BST here for sale. That's his best chance to get a fair offer.
I sold a lot (500) common date silver eagles recently at $1 over spot at a local coin shop. Some other coin shops I checked with were only offering 50 cents over sport but all were over spot. Note, some eagles dates have much greater value than just the silver value so do some research.
While I don't play with bullion coins. I heard many saying at the show last weekend that silver eagles at retail are at least $7.00 over spot!
That's been about right for 2020 coins. Regional market maker is buying 2020's at $4 over and selling at $6 over. Older dates are cheaper, currently buy at $3, sell at $5
The stock market is currently where it was in March, more or less. Silver is close to double where it was in March. So, why is your advice to buy into silver which has had a huge run-up in price and ignore the market that has trade flat - dramatically flat, but flat nonetheless?
You are right that a handful of stocks are driving the market. That however is not really an argument against the market. As the economy comes back, so will stocks like XOM, Deere, and the banks. You will have sector rotation. There is no need for the market to do anything terribly dramatic.
That said, the OP didn't mention stocks, he mentioned a "savings account" which you argued against in favor of silver after it had a huge run-up in price. That is not objective financial advice but an obvious PM bias.
You could end up being right. If any of us had a crystal ball, we'd be too busy scolding the butler to spend a lot of time on this forum.
How are you doing,sir? Welcome to our forum. I'm very surprised that nobody has mentioned that you should purchase a "Red Book"? Read the coin book, then notice all the prices (not always accurate) and check out more about the American Silver Eagles, then maybe you can decide on what you want to do?
However, all advice given above is very helpful.
"Jesus died for you and for me, Thank you,Jesus"!!!
--- If it should happen I die and leave this world and you want to remember me. Please only remember my opening Sig Line.When someone wants to sell bullion, there's really no point in sending them to the Red Book.
I posted that just in case he would be interested to learn more about his Silver Eagles.
"Jesus died for you and for me, Thank you,Jesus"!!!
--- If it should happen I die and leave this world and you want to remember me. Please only remember my opening Sig Line.I understand that a lot of posters like and recommend the Buy, Sell, Trade forum. And it can be a great option.
However, depending upon what you’re selling, it can be more efficient to sell to a dealer and you might end up netting about the same amount, anyway.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
This is especially true when the bid/ask spread is $2 per ounce. If you only have 30 ounces or so, it's not going to be worth the risk and effort to squeeze out another $20 or so net.
I would suggest an eBay store and be in control.
"Either/or". There is no "and", grasshopper.
Here’s a pic of all of the silver I have. I’m going to make a post on BST and see what happens!
The large quarters look like generic silver rounds (not the 5 Oz ATB quarters). The Australian Lunars in the right corner have a decent premium over spot (check ebay recent sales and deduct 10% for fees and 3% for PayPal).
I’m not sure what you mean by “generic” but they are stamped .999 fine silver on the edge of the coin. I know I’m clueless about coins, but they appear to be something from a US mint?
What Year and Mint Mark is the coin (Liberty Walking Half Dollar) on the viewer's far left, near the top? Right next to the Oversize Quarter? I'm curious? The Mint Mark would be located on the Reverse side (Eagle) of the coin. At the 7:30 Clock position.
You have some nice Silver coins there! Including all those regular size Washington Quarters, on the upper right side of the picture. Concerning the Silver Eagle's, do you have the 1996? That one has a very LOW mintage.
"Jesus died for you and for me, Thank you,Jesus"!!!
--- If it should happen I die and leave this world and you want to remember me. Please only remember my opening Sig Line.He's saying that they are NOT U.S. Mint products. A lot of marketers made similar designs and sold them. I think he's correct, the Washington Bust is not correct.
As a generic silver round, you are likely looking at $0.50 under spot price per ounce on those.
If you have a legitimate coin shop in town (not a pawn shop) that is probably the better way to go. For all of the bluster about BST around here, those folks don't want to pay retail because they could pay retail at home. So, you might get wholesale+ but have to eat 3% in PayPal fees plus $20 in shipping costs.
@bccox.... Welcome aboard... I know you are looking for a market for your silver, and are not a coin collector. If you have any friends that are collectors, they can help..... Otherwise, for a bulk sale, a good coin shop (not a pawn shop) could help. Even on the BST, you will need some better pictures of the individual coins. Good luck, Cheers, RickO
I do have a 1996!! I have them in order by year in the photo. I skipped a spot on the second row because I'm missing the 1991, I'm also missing the 2001. So I have from 1986-2003 minus those two. Hope that helps!
It is a 1986, I'm not seeing a mint mark?
Lol. No, this coin.
"Jesus died for you and for me, Thank you,Jesus"!!!
--- If it should happen I die and leave this world and you want to remember me. Please only remember my opening Sig Line.He’s saying that is a 1986 Silver Eagle (and it does look like the same size as the other silver Eagles and not like a walking liberty half dollar).
Oh... my bad. I see now, same size, duh.
Thanks
"Jesus died for you and for me, Thank you,Jesus"!!!
--- If it should happen I die and leave this world and you want to remember me. Please only remember my opening Sig Line.Yes I did mean privately made non-US Mint products for those giant quarters.
I mostly agree that a local coin shop could be the best way to sell the items as shipping and PayPal fees will likely eat up any additional amount gained from the bst.
The only items I’d not go the coin shop route, are the 7 below. The Australian (especially dragon, rabbit, and horse) trade well over spot (but the local shop usually doesn’t value them), the random round (can’t tell what that is from the photo but could be something), and possibly Canadian Maple (can’t tell if it’s a better year or not from the picture).
Also take a look at the dates/mintmarks of the pre-1964 Quarters (they are probably common but you never know without checking).
And as mentioned, the 1996 silver Eagle holds a premium and could be one to also consider going the bst route vs the coin shop.