Dip into your savings or sell your coins?

tresgatos

I've been talking to a few folks who are worried about having to dip into their savings
as the recession grinds on. So as a coin collector what do you do? Sell your coins to make ends meet and keep
your savings in the bank for as long as possible or live off your savings and hope your finances improve before you have to liquidate your prized numismatic possessions?
As a single guy my choice is somewhat easy; I'll exhaust my savings accounts before I sell my most cherished and valuable coins.

lkenefic

It depends... If I can sell something and turn a profit, I'd do that before dipping into savings. Is the "savings" just a traditional bank savings account at 1.5-2% or is it in a CD at something more than that? This could figure in as well as penalties for early withdrawls could wipe out any profits from interest... L

jdimmick

sell the coins, although this is probably not currently the best market to sell into!!

MidLifeCrisis

There are too many possible variables to give you any answer other than "it depends".

Cam40

i,m sure theres two schools of thought on that one.

some may say, i,d hate to try and sell part, or all of my collection
after having just burned through all my savings.
you might be too willing to take crazy low-ball offers just to
keep the lights on and stomaches from growling.

tmcsr69

What recession? Have you lost your job or living beyond your means?

yellowkid

If you are getting that close to getting by, you should think about selling a few pieces, now when it's optional and you can hold out for your price, not later when you're selling them for what you can get. Twenty or so years ago I was in a union that went out for a lengthy strike. I was pretty well set with savings but when I thought the strike might go through the winter, I took a couple of my antique toys(that was my vice then) to the Allentown Show and got top dollar for them. It turned out I didn't need the money but my point is that I sold them when I wanted too for my price, not maybe later in the year when I would have taken anything because I was cash strapped.

OregonCityGold

IMO, collectors are happiest when they only spend disposable money on coins. I only spend money that I can afford to never see again.

If I were one of the folks you're talking about, I would consider selling some coins now, while I can afford to take my time selling them. That way, if my financial situation doesn't improve, I won't be desperate to sell my coins. Buyers can smell a desperate seller a mile away, so if I wait until I need to sell my coins to pay my mortgage, I probably won't get as much money as I would if I put them up for sale when I can afford to hold out for the price I want.

BAJJERFAN

<< <i>It depends... If I can sell something and turn a profit, I'd do that before dipping into savings. Is the "savings" just a traditional bank savings account at 1.5-2% or is it in a CD at something more than that? This could figure in as well as penalties for early withdrawls could wipe out any profits from interest... L >>



I think you need to move your decimal point one space to the left. I seriously doubt that any traditional passbook account is paying anywhere close to 1 percent. The money market interest on my 401K cash balance is about 0.6% Even with a substantial cash balance, the interest is less than $200 per month. I'd sell the widget coins that could still be sold for a profit. Fortunately the employment outlook is good.

RYK

This is not an answer to your question, per se, but I have decided to further sell down my collection to pay off my mortgage. In this economy, I no longer feel comfortable with a sizable coin collection and other financial obligations (with the house payment being the largest). I could have dipped into savings or other investments, but selling the coins seemed for me to be the right thing to do.

When times are good again, I can easily ramp up the coins.

TennesseeDave

I sold my coins in 2001 after 9/11 and the loss of my job.I really didn't have a choice.A person can't eat coins.This time around,I am going thru the recession a lot better.

LindeDad

Sell the coins first while there might still be buyers out there.
And if your one of the sky is falling types convert the savings to gold and silver and buy ammo.