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slab question: benefits of upgrade?

we are all taught as consumers, buy the coin, not the plastic. We are encouraged to buy coins that look better than their actual slabbed grade in the hopes of an upgrade. If a coin barely gets into an upgraded slab, wonderful!
When it comes to sell that coin, won't new buyers stay away from it because it may be at its highest grade posssible now with the possibility of its being overgraded? Just a curious cat and mouse question that I've been pondering a lot lately.
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Comments

  • dorkkarldorkkarl Posts: 12,691 ✭✭✭
    the question arises only if $ is a significant issue. i have zero slabed coins, so it is not an issue for me. this relieves me of a lot of stress that others seem to worry about in deciding their purchases, where the grade on the plastic is all that matters.

    K S
  • coinguy1coinguy1 Posts: 13,484 ✭✭✭
    1907Quarter - you raised a very interesting question.

    ALMOST everyone I know would rather have a coin in a higher grade holder, when it comes time to sell that coin. However, I have seen a number of instances where coins of the same type and date, in lower grade holders, have brought higher prices in auction, than their higher grade counterparts.

    As you noted, if a coin has achieved a maximum grade, it might appear to be overgraded. And, even if it doesn't look overgraded, it might not look very nice, when considering the assigned grade. Many bidders/buyers might simply decide not to bid on such a coin and focus their attention elsewhere.

    If the same coin is graded a point lower, however, it will probably look more appealing and enticing to many would-be buyers, including crack out dealers. A number of people who might not bid at all if it were graded higher, will put down bids and try to buy the conservatively or properly graded piece.

    The interest level, at least on the part of sharp buyers will almost always be higher for the same coin graded lower, than it would be for the identical piece graded a point higher. Sometimes that actually translates into higher prices realized for the lower graded example.
  • RegistryCoinRegistryCoin Posts: 5,117 ✭✭✭✭
    The Peter Principle as it pertains to plastic. Coins will strive to attain a holder one grade beyond their true abilities. image

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