Coin collecting is a relatively cheap hobby

tydye

I have been fooling around with some of my other hobbies recently and realized that compared to coin collecting just how expensive they are. Even on a bad buy I can recoup most of my money in numismatics. My daughter and I just expanded our salt water tanks. Spent a sizable sum on corals. Kiss that g goodbye. Even in 1:1 autos which many consider an investment (and i tell my wife that frequently) I realize that after insurance, maintenance, and housing (garages) that i lose.
Numismatics is a fun hobby that with some basic knowledge costs very little in my opinion.

aficoinado

I completely agree. Most anything else to have fun you must spend money you'll never see again. Unless your other hobby is the stock market.

Hyperion

<< <i>I completely agree. Most anything else to have fun you must spend money you'll never see again. Unless your other hobby is the stock market. >>



I can't count how many rounds of golf I've played over the last 10 years...

greens' fees POOF gone.
If I suffered the same depreciation on my coins as I do my gear, Id be looking for a rope to hang myself

well...maybe not that bad..

BillJones

Yes, I agree. I could make money if I sold my collection now.

My poltical buttons are might be worth half of what I paid for them.

My interest in old movies leaves with with DVDs that might be worth a buck a piece

And my HO railroad diarama is worth zip.

Yep! Coins are cheap in comparison. Heck I could even come close to breaking even on my numismatic library!

MidLifeCrisis

<< <i>Even on a bad buy I can recoup most of my money in numismatics. >>


Generally, I think this is true...on a coin by coin basis.

But the market for any type of collectible is unpredictible, even as much as we have tried to standardize the value of certain coins in certain grades so that they would trade "sight unseen".

So, while you may lose only a little on one coin, cumulatively you can lose a lot if you are not very, very careful.

But, as you say, it's all relative...

Hyperion

<< <i>

<< <i>Even on a bad buy I can recoup most of my money in numismatics. >>


Generally, I think this is true...on a coin by coin basis.

But the market for any type of collectible is unpredictible, even as much as we have tried to standardize the value of certain coins in certain grades so that they would trade "sight unseen".

So, while you may lose only a little on one coin, cumulatively you can lose a lot if you are not very, very careful.

But, as you say, it's all relative... >>



Excellent point; but still, it's only a % of the initial investment, no matter what the magnitude of the $$$.

Shoot, dealers LIVE on that small % difference!!!!!

as opposed to the guarantee of almost a total loss in some other hobbies.

fc

i used to have salt water fish tanks and i think your comparison is
faulty.

whenever you buy some object at full retail price it immediately loses
a lot of value. Same goes with coral if you want full size pieces to drop
in right away. One could have bought small fragments of coral for 10
bucks each and watch them grow to larger sizes and then sell of frags
from them recouping your costs. That is if you can keep them alive! ;-)

One could have bought most of their fish tank gear used on craigslist
or ebay too.

Just saying... is all. I/we have been spoiled by an up market in coins
for the past years and one has to wonder if the next several years
will allow people to say the same things down the road.

Anyway... i sold almost all my old coral fish tank stuff at about 40% of
what i paid including the fish and coral which was nice sized stuff. Rather
comparable to coins in a way.

So my point is.. the days of only having a local newspaper to sell your
stuff is gone. You know have ebay and craigslist with people looking
for the stuff on a daily basis. One can recoup quite a bit of money if
you buy quality stuff via those websites! Golf clubs, tanks, etc... all
hold more value then they used too.

Heck, one could say ebay is the saving grace of coin collectors being
able to get more value for their coins today. No more being at the mercy
of local shows or the B&Ms.

Hyperion

I'm no photographer but it seems good lenses and cameras retain A LOT of thier value. Tho, you never hear of someone scoring big cherrypicking a specific instance of camera

soty27

I think your statement may be worded wrong. Coin collecting is a hobby where if you are very diligent you will be able to recoup your cost and possibly make a small profit. However there are several factors that come into play with the cost and what part of numismatics you choose to collect. To state that coin collecting is cheap IMO is incorrect, I could purchase a few homes with what I have tied up in coins, if thats cheap then I dont know what would be considered exspensive.

I enjoy several hobbies including kiteboarding, fishing, boating, diving. When it comes time to sell my equipment for those hobbies I am sure I will lose out but you have to take into account the use of the items. Coin collecting is not a hobby where you use the item, you purchase the coin and there it sits vrs a boat where you get to use it over and over again. I understand what you are saying I just think its worded improperly.

adamlaneus

<< <i>I'm no photographer but it seems good lenses and cameras retain A LOT of thier value. Tho, you never hear of someone scoring big cherrypicking a specific instance of camera >>



The advent of digital cameras rendered "expensive pro film" bodies very cheap.

Try computers as a hobby. Your money buys equipment which is guaranteed to be junk in 5 years.

tahoe98

......."Coin collecting is a relatively cheap hobby" the main thing is it's FUN!!!

DennisH

"Relatively" is one of those words that leaves the door enormously wide open for interpretation, debate, etc.

I look at people who collect proof gold and think, "That's insanely expensive!" And for me personally that's an absolutely correct statement, because I can't possibly afford to do it myself. Then I look at folks who collect out of pocket change and think, "It doesn't get any cheaper."

It's all a matter of context and time perspective, isn't it? If we try to collect beyond our means then coin collecting is expensive. And if we take the intellectual rationalization of saying, "But over time the value of a carefully assembled collection is likely to rise", then it demeans the real-world pain and suffering (cash flow) that is part of the process of getting there.

It's philosophically fair to ask, "How much is the enjoyment of collecting worth?", but it too ignores the out-of-pocket challenges that go with being a collector.

Just my 2¢.

cornbread

I owned horses for many years. When I am done looking at my coins, I can put them away and they don't require feeding and turnout. I have never had to have the vet out to take care of one of my coins that has injured itself in the pasture. My coins do not age and pass away . On the other hand, I can't go and hug my coins after I've had a bad day.

lkenefic

<< <i>I'm no photographer but it seems good lenses and cameras retain A LOT of thier value. Tho, you never hear of someone scoring big cherrypicking a specific instance of camera >>



I don't know about this one... I think it might have to do with the camera gear in which you invested. My wife purchased me one of the best auto-focus SLR Nikons over 10 years ago and I don't think I could get 1/10th of the money spent on it. Had I kept all of the junk silver I sold ~7 years ago I'd have made ~300-400%.

PerryHall

Coin collecting is a lot less expensive than Tiger Woods hobby.

Hyperion

<< <i>

<< <i>I'm no photographer but it seems good lenses and cameras retain A LOT of thier value. Tho, you never hear of someone scoring big cherrypicking a specific instance of camera >>



I don't know about this one... I think it might have to do with the camera gear in which you invested. My wife purchased me one of the best auto-focus SLR Nikons over 10 years ago and I don't think I could get 1/10th of the money spent on it. Had I kept all of the junk silver I sold ~7 years ago I'd have made ~300-400%. >>



10%?! that's not good..

tjkillian

One of my other hobbies is making reproductions of 18th century furniture. Even after you consider the cost of tools and raw materials, I make out like a bandit with the increase in value of the raw materials which turns into cool Chippendale and Queen Anne furniture.

Just as I don't feel it is a waste of time to look at my coins, I don't feel it is a waste of my time to make cool furniture. I discount both of those tasks to $0.00 per hour of labor.


Other hobbies include travel and bedroom activities, both of those cost a dear fortune that you can never recover.

lkenefic

...yes.. Nikon N-60. retailed for ~$500 around 10 years ago. I just found one (new) for $95, used for $79... I could probably pick one up on ebay for ~$60 if I tried hard. They're next to impossible to sell too. They're fairly bulky for a film camera... and... it's a film camera with all the associated processing, costs, ect... I've been picking up extra lenses and equipment for my Minolta X370... totally manual SLR that I shoot B&W film with.

Justacommeman

It could be cheap hobby if you hold your coins for an awfully long time to recoup the 20-25% you usually start in the hole the moment you buy the coin.

However, coin buying could keep you from other "vices" that have a zero sum game return. So the pi$$ing away of money on other "hobbies" is detered if you are putting that moola into coins instead. At least with coins you should recoup something in the end..

One should also factor in the enjoyment one garners from collecting whether it be as a lone wolf or through new friends made. Personally no price can be put on the outstanding friendships this hobby has provided me. I'm indeed grateful...................MJ

lkenefic

<< <i>One should also factor in the enjoyment one garners from collecting whether it be as a lone wolf or through new friends made. Personally no price can be put on the outstanding friendships this hobby has provided me. I'm indeed grateful...................MJ >>



Enjoyment shuold be factored into any hobby... otherwise why would one engage in it? I've climbed off and on over the last 25 years in addition to other hobbies. My climbing partners have been some of my closest friends. Climbing and mountaineering is perhaps THE "money pit" of hobbies.. at least of the hobbies I've done. The gear needed to engage in this sport can be truly mind blowing and pricey. The real "pay-off" in climbing is in the camaraderie forged among climbers.

mirabela

Totally. Net-net, I never spend very much on it. Sometimes I rent a coin from the universe for a while, and sometimes I'm paid to be its caretaker, but I tend to come out at least even and often a little better.

I compare that with, say, skiing ... where it seems like I've spent more than $100 this season on wax alone ... see-ya!

greghansen

And my HO railroad diarama is worth zip.

...but I bet it is cool.

Moldnut

Yes, I forgot about the N scale railroad