What is a fair price for a coin shop to pay retail customers?

TheNumish

In an earlier thread someone mentioned they were in a coin shop and the dealer was offering 10 cents on the dollar for an old ladies coins. Said he had to leave from disgust.

Here is an interesting question. If you owned a coin shop that made it's money from what you buy over the counter what is a fair price to pay? Let's say the coin is worth $200 wholesale and the seller would be just as happy getting $10 as getting $150. When I worked the counter I'd pay $150 and either spook the seller and they wouldn't sell it or get my boss mad for paying too much. He let another guy do the buying and he'd get it for the $10.

itsnotjustme

For a properly graded coin (raw) 70-80% of Grey Sheet Bid. One coin shop I went to gave this regardless of quality. I had 4 badly toned clad proof sets. 70% GSB? OK!

Placid

As above but it depends on the individual coin shop. If you have alot of buyers and few sellers then you could pay more than if you have few buyers but many people looking to sell.

shirohniichan

This is a trickier question than meets the eye. If it's a single coin, it depends on how much risk the dealer is taking. If the coin isn't popular, the offer will be low. If he could turn it over quickly, a 15% to 20% profit is fair (even less if it's an expensive coin). Most bid boards charge 15% to use the board, and even then the coin doesn't usually get full retail.

If, however, it's the matter of a collection, it's a bit different. Sometimes dealers have to buy a lot of junk that they'll have to turn around and wholesale just to get one decent coin. In situations like this it's sometimes dangerous to offer a separate price for the good coin. Buyers and sellers can be so weird sometimes. If you offer $500 for the set they'll take it, but if you offer $450 for the one good coin and $50 for the rest of the junk they'll keep the good coin.

presleyh

boy am i gonna get my faced slapped on this one. i buy and sell things all the time. not coins, i do that for fun, never sold one. but when i am trying to make money in my business i buy as low as possible, and sell as high as possible and let the market set the prices. often i am the only outlet to dispose of an item and i often pay 10 cents or less on the dollar. i let the seller decide if he wants to sell it to me at my price. i also give them options such as "run an add in sundays paper, if it doesnt sell call me back." am i a bad person? nope. i generate $9000.00 per year in property tax on my buildings, and $30,000.00 per year in sales tax. i create jobs and recycle items that might otherwise become hazadous waste. all that comes from the difference between the buying price and the sellling price. been doing that 18 years

cointagious

coin shops buy everything at the 'common' or 'generic' price - as a rule of thumb. for example, if you were to darken the doorway of the average coin shop - as a non-collector - seeking to sell a stack of circ silver dollars, you could expect the dealer to seperate the coins into 4 stacks by grade. he would pay you about a $1-$2 less than what he could wholesale those common dates. this offer would be in line with nearly any coin shop nearby and you would likely sell. only then would the dealer pull any better and key date material aside. that small pile is were the dealer is going to earn the rent.

michael

from my limited experience in the coin game from what i have seen buy low and sell high and the other half of the time i have seen buy high and sell low that is what makes a market

in a perfect world it would be very nice if everyone got a fair value for their items based on the current market and that all buyers got a reasonable coin at a reasonable fair current market price, and markets change!!!!!!!
but from my experience in the coin game this rarely if ever happens and this i think will never change

sincerely michael