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usleere
Posts: 4 ✭
I have been a long time coin collector and have liquidated a number of coin collections from estates. I really enjoy the hobby and it would be a bonus if I could either improve my personal collection for free / low cost or make some extra money buying wholesale coins and reselling. Does anybody know where dealers purchase their coins from? Does anybody have experience with Collectors Internet or Coin Happy? I suspect you have to spend a certain amount to get close to dealer pricing. Thank you!
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There is no simple answer to that.
It's less about sources and more about knowledge. I buy coins in major auctions bidding against "collectors" and then resell them for profit. How? I know values and understand the market.
You could buy wholesale and lose your shirt if you don't have an outlet for what you're buying.
I mean this kindly. If you are asking the question, you don't know enough about the market to be dealing.
Craigslist maybe?
Thank you jmlanzaf, I appreciate the comments. Any suggestions for getting started or gaining more knowledge?
Years of research. Lots of interactions with collectors and dealers. No quick way or everyone would be doing it. Welcome
🎶 shout shout, let it all out 🎶
This is probably the best answer to the OP's follow-up question.
To the OP:
You might start with a niche or area of interest. It is harder to be a generalist, although some knowledge of commonly encountered things like 90% silver, wheat cents, Buff nickels in bulk is worth knowing. Knowledge is power.
You need to identify sources of coins. There is no magic wholesale warehouse where you can buy and be guaranteed to make money. You can buy from dealers, auctions, estate sales, coin shows, coin clubs, FB ads, garage sales, etc.
Everyone thinks that dealers will always charge retail+ and leave no money on the table. This is rarely true. If you want to buy $20 gold eagles from a dealer, you aren't going to get a deal because they are too liquid and easy to sell. [There is also no margin on $20 eagles to make them worth your time in all likelihood.] But there are all kinds of items that a dealer has no easy outlet for or would take too much time for him/her to deal with. They will gladly sell those items at a reasonable wholesale price so as not to deal with them. It helps to have good relationships with dealers.
There is also an obvious conflict between the idea of upgrading your collection and "dealing". Dealing requires buying things that you KNOW where to SELL them. If you are a niche collector, you probably know these venues on both the buy/sell side. For more general material, you need to develop a rolodex (digital, of course, LOL).
I work full time as a teacher. I also spend 20+ hours per week perusing auctions, dealer sites, etc. Focus has to be on legitimate market value in each venue. Just because Stack's got $400 for a Civil War token doesn't mean you could sell the same item on eBay for $350, for example.
It does help to actually buy and sell a few things. It is also extremely helpful to lose money a few times. It is a tough, low-margin business. You need to buy competitively or no one will sell to you. You also need to sell competitively or no one will buy from you. That leaves a fairly small margin for most items.
You need to do a lot more homework before even attempting to get into coin dealing. Frankly, you are very late to the game and are probably best advised to look elsewhere for ways to make money.
Knowledge will get you great deals.
Bad deals will give you knowledge.
Go for it.
Thank you for all the responses, this has been very helpful. I do work full time but am looking to expand one of my favorite hobbies into some part time income. I enjoy going to coin shops / shows, looking around, trading and having discussions. I appreciate this forum.
Welcome To The Forum.
Good advice above. I would first of all, stay here on the forum and learn. Gobble up the tons of information and education you'll need to become that good coin dealer. When I say, "good". I mean honest, knowledgeable, profitable, popular, very resourceful and a fun to visit shop. Good Luck in all your endeavors.
Don't be a stranger here. Post often and have FUN! -Joey
"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.@usleere... Welcome aboard. Good advice in the above posts. Good luck and stay active here, lots of knowledge available. Cheers, RickO
I think that your answer is in your original post.
"I have been a long time coin collector and have liquidated a number of coin collections from estates. I really enjoy the hobby ..."
You are not a beginner and everyone is answering you as if you are totally new to this. Maybe estate collections would be a good source since they have been a source for coins in the past. They may not always be available for purchase but seeking these out are great sources for fresh new material for dealers. You've sold by liquidating to dealers, so you have experience buying and selling already. Maybe you should think about how to increase the activity with the methods that you have already used.
Does anybody…. Anybody?? Experience?
You have experience… you say it’s from 2007
https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/comment/13102493/#Comment_13102493
Lol
Seems a bit spammy, doesn't it?