Tumultuous few years, is it time for me to sell everything?

mrdq

What a mess. Life's good now so no worries but I haven't been doing anything coin related for many years. Lots of stress, I'm a little surprised my account still exists here. De cluttering my life, emptied out the bank boxes, pretty much selling everything I own. Should I sell my coins now or is this a down cycle? Whole collection is worth less than $50,000. A few keys, no coin worth over $3,000 I'm guessing. General thoughts please. No coin dealers anywhere near me, won't go through the expensive EBAY juggernaut. Probably send them all to someone who's still in the business on these forums that I can connect with. No emergencies here, should I do it now or wait for some post COVID days ahead?

Thanks for your advice. Hope you're all doing well. I do recognize a few names from the "old days" lol.

Tom

TomB

I'm glad things are going well in your life.

Truly, none of us knows if this is the best time to buy, hold or sell anything. You are in the best position to know if you need or want to sell now or if you want to wait for some "better" time. Your idea to consign your coins might work very well, but also keep in mind that we still have the BST board on this site. Good luck with whatever you choose.

TurtleCat

You may remember me as nwcs back in the day. Anyway, my first question is the most important one: do you still enjoy your coins and collection?

If you aren’t, I’d say sell. If you’re not sure then you might be ready to sell.

If you’re looking to sell en masse there are a number of dealers here who can assist you. I have a pretty good relationship with DLRC so I’d recommend them but there are plenty of others.

CoinJunkie

Now's as good a time as any to sell coins from my perspective. The market has been relatively strong since the pandemic hit. You might consider auctioning your slabs through Great Collections. No muss, no fuss.

EDIT: You could also list some stuff on the BST here, particularly if you already have or can take decent photos.

MrEureka

The market is good enough that I wouldn't tell you to wait for a better time. You might still want to keep a few favorites, of course.

WCC

If the OP doesn't want the coins now and don't think they will later, I would get rid of it. I also have some coins I don't want anymore, don't want to "give away" and concurrently don't want to be bothered listing on eBay, though the number I have seems to be much less than the OP.

There is usually a trade-off between the amount of effort and return.

Davideo

Of note, I wouldn't necessarily expect more from a dealer than eBay, and perhaps might expect to net less. eBay is not particularly expensive, however, you do have to deal with photography, shipping, potential returns, etc. Great Collections is a good suggestion.

jesbroken

Some good advice has been given. If your coins are slabbed then first try BST and if not slabbed then Great Collections who will get your coins slabbed far cheaper and quicker than you can. Please do give the BST a chance, especially with you keys and nicer coins.
Jim

Walkerfan

If I were you; I'd sell, now. Not due to any market condition but rather due to your lack of enthusiasm. Besides, market seems to be doing well, now, anyway. Why keep money tied up in something that you derive no pleasure from? There are honest, reputable, national dealers who would treat you fairly. Many frequent this site. Sincerely. Good Luck to you!

coinbuf

I would sell now if your in the mood to sell, because of covid and no coin shows auctions houses like Great Collections are booming and buyers have lots of cash and are bidding heavy for anything nice.

yspsales

I am blowing out my baseball card collection and paying off the last of my debt. Debt freedom baby!

Selling myself is ALOT of work.

Will likely take the rest of the year.

It is cathartic.

I would do consignment and dollar cost out.

But selling the entire collection would be a consideration.

MsMorrisine

You may investigate greatcollections. you may try the bst.

good timing? I would be hesitant to say because it may depend upon the type.

291fifth

If the thrill is gone it is time to sell and move on. Who knows what the future will bring in terms of the coin market itself. Personally, I think it is on a very slow downward trend. Others will disagree with that outlook.

BillJones

It’s hard say what to do these days. As retirees who are dependent on investment income, the whole situation is scary. We have kept CD’s that paid a little over 1%. Since the last one matured, it’s down to .15%, which hardly worth the bother. We are buying stocks instead which yield about 4% in cash dividends, but then we are exposed to the over hyped stock market.

Holding too much cash is dangerous because of inflation. The government has gone nuts with debt spending that depends on the Federal Reserve Bank buying its bonds and adding trillions of dollars to the money supply. Does anyone recall Germany in the early 1920s?

You can buy precious metals, like gold, but it goes up and down and pays no cash dividends. I have probably got too much in numismatic gold already.

I have a MBA in finance and an accounting degree, which means I know a bit more than some people, but I sure don’t have pat answers.

BillJones

@291fifth said:
If the thrill is gone it is time to sell and move on. Who knows what the future will bring in terms of the coin market itself. Personally, I think it is on a very slow downward trend. Others will disagree with that outlook.

The thrill has never left for me. The question is am I stupid to still be buying coins?

marcmoish

Good luck Tom, whatever you do , GC is a good suggestion just don't call it the sunshine collection.

mrdq

I forgot about BST, thanks.

GRANDAM

@mrdq said:
I forgot about BST, thanks.

Post a list with prices or "Take Offers"

Pricing them is usually better as some buyers won't mess with "Best Offers"

1630Boston

Glad thing are going good now @mrdq

cameonut2011

The BST is free.

cameonut2011

@BillJones said:
It’s hard say what to do these days. As retirees who are dependent on investment income, the whole situation is scary. We have kept CD’s that paid a little over 1%. Since the last one matured, it’s down to .15%, which hardly worth the bother. We are buying stocks instead which yield about 4% in cash dividends, but then we are exposed to the over hyped stock market.

Holding too much cash is dangerous because of inflation. The government has gone nuts with debt spending that depends on the Federal Reserve Bank buying its bonds and adding trillions of dollars to the money supply. Does anyone recall Germany in the early 1920s?

You can buy precious metals, like gold, but it goes up and down and pays no cash dividends. I have probably got too much in numismatic gold already.

I have a MBA in finance and an accounting degree, which means I know a bit more than some people, but I sure don’t have pat answers.

Inflation is likely greater than 1%. I'd buy inflation adjusted T bills.

Edited: Inflation is predicted to be 2.2% in 2021.

jesbroken

One other thing about the BST, not only will you be selling your collection as you wish, but you may be helping someone else to fulfill theirs. WIN/WIN
Jim

RYK

I have purged a few times, including during a similar decluttering phase about five years ago. And here I am, five years later, building the collection again. I highly recommend doing the same. The market is strong, but it does not mean that it is strong for your material. Half dimes, IIRC?

BST and Great Collection are both good suggestions. If you had some good dealer connections in the past, where you bought your coins, this is often the best place to sell them, too.

coinsarefun

I’m in a very similar situation. But, have been collecting all along. Now I want to retire so I went through
everything and am realizing I have over 300 coins, tokens and medals. I decided to slab all that are worthy which will take time......the last order at ngc and pcgs took 3 months.
I’m in the process of putting aside 4-5 pcgs boxes and the rest will go to market
After long consideration I’ve sort of decided what will go to which auction venue, then there will be
some I will offer to member’s direct and a few might go to the bst.
.
After I’m done building a second home on the back of my property I’m selling and moving(downsizing)
and the rest is going into my existing stocks and bond investments. If all goes well I hope to retire in 2 years an still have money to obtain a few that. I have really wanted.
.
Good luck in what you decide and nice to see you return.

divecchia

I think in general the market is doing well for collectibles sales. Over the last 5-6 months I have been selling my Nolan Ryan PSA graded collection and have gotten more money for it than I thought I would. If you've lost interest in your coins, I would sell now. Selling the collection yourself will likely net you more, but the extra time and some headaches may not be worth it.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

Donato

vplite99

The market is strong now, but I personally believe the long trend is down, as we older collectors age and liquidate.

I just don't see the interest by younger people. I have often been wrong.

jmlanzaf

@BillJones said:

@291fifth said:
If the thrill is gone it is time to sell and move on. Who knows what the future will bring in terms of the coin market itself. Personally, I think it is on a very slow downward trend. Others will disagree with that outlook.

The thrill has never left for me. The question is am I stupid to still be buying coins?

You will only know in hindsight.

savitale

For better coins auctions are currently very strong. Depends what you have though. A $50,000 collection could be 50 really nice coins or 5,000 difficult-to-sell coins.

jdimmick

I sold mine, not because I needed funds, just good timing with auction prices realized quite good on most stuff.

I sell on ebay daily , but used GC for mine, and was pleased with the results. only two coins didnt do as well as I had hoped, but not the fault of gc. market pricing had change drastically on one, the other I just paid way too much retail for less than a year ago.

mrdq

As I look through them today I can see a couple that I had over paid for. I won't live long enough to recoup, so MOVE ON hehe.

coinsarefun

@mrdq said:
As I look through them today I can see a couple that I had over paid for. I won't live long enough to recoup, so MOVE ON hehe.

.
.
I have had too many of those that I care to remember.......I sold them as soon as I realized it so I move on and don't get hung up on my mistakes.

Swampboy

I'd reach out to greatcollections.com.
They can arrange to get coins holdered and they get lots of eyeballs following their auctions.
I've been happy with the results when I've sent sent them coins.

I hope you can stick around too.

ricko

Welcome back @mrdq... Glad to hear things are going well now. Great Collections has an excellent reputation for selling coins/collections. I would recommend the BST as a relatively easy venue for self disposition. Good luck, Cheers, RickO

lkenefic

I sold off my collection a couple of times now. Each time I seem to get more directed when I start back up...