Poll: how often do you get carried away?
RedTiger
Posts: 5,608 ✭
Let me clarify that I'm not talking about paying over sheet price, or guide price, but over current fair market value. If most auction results for coins of similar quality are for 2x sheet, paying double sheet isn't an example of what I am asking about.
Last night during the coin club auction, I got carried away and bid strong on a 1878 CC Morgan. I had not examined it, just heard Morgan CC and that was enough to get me going. The coin was VF details cleaned with other problems.
Another example I can remember, was for the last coin in a set. After several months of shopping found a coin that appealed to me, but to most others was an average looking coin. I got carried away and paid 50% over fair retail for what is a relatively common coin. The dealer seeing that he had a fish on the line, tried to sell me several other items in his case.
So how often does that happen to you? Either at auction, online, or purchasing at other venues? How often do you pay more than fair market? Again, I'm not talking about paying more than the sheet price, or paying up for toning, but really paying more than the coin is likely worth. In the case of the recent auction, if I had not been a bidder, the coin would likely have sold for 25% less money. In the last coin in the set example, an objective person would say I paid about double the fair wholesale price for that coin, 50% over current retail for a relatively common coin. If I had not bought it, it would likely have never sold at the asking price.
/edit to add:
Would anyone like to share their stories or their perspective?
Last night during the coin club auction, I got carried away and bid strong on a 1878 CC Morgan. I had not examined it, just heard Morgan CC and that was enough to get me going. The coin was VF details cleaned with other problems.
Another example I can remember, was for the last coin in a set. After several months of shopping found a coin that appealed to me, but to most others was an average looking coin. I got carried away and paid 50% over fair retail for what is a relatively common coin. The dealer seeing that he had a fish on the line, tried to sell me several other items in his case.
So how often does that happen to you? Either at auction, online, or purchasing at other venues? How often do you pay more than fair market? Again, I'm not talking about paying more than the sheet price, or paying up for toning, but really paying more than the coin is likely worth. In the case of the recent auction, if I had not been a bidder, the coin would likely have sold for 25% less money. In the last coin in the set example, an objective person would say I paid about double the fair wholesale price for that coin, 50% over current retail for a relatively common coin. If I had not bought it, it would likely have never sold at the asking price.
/edit to add:
Would anyone like to share their stories or their perspective?
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Comments
Rare items bring higher prices.
I cannot see any reason to overpay for generic items, like a ms63 81-s $ that was brilliant. If it was beautifully toned, that then becomes a more unique item.
I firmly believe in numismatics as the world's greatest hobby, but recognize that this is a luxury and without collectors, we can all spend/melt our collections/inventories.
eBaystore
<< <i>I have found that the less frequently an item has been offered, then I almost always have to pay more than I thought I would at public auction. >>
Me too.
Here was the last time I got carried away. This Hard Times token, Low #57, HT #76, is the finest example I have ever seen of this variety by 30 or more grading points. Most examples, when they show up a all, are ugly and damaged. It is rated as an R-6 with an estimated population of 13 to 30 pieces in all grades. And to top it off this was the last piece that I needed to complete my (reasonable) objectives among the HTTs that have political themes. ("Reasonable" = There is an anti-slavery HTT with a knneeling male slave on it with the slogan, "Am I not a man and a brother." There are three known examples of that one so it is not "reasonable" for me to expect to own one.)
This piece came from the John Ford auctions, and I paid about double what it went for there although I did not realize it at the time. First I can't understand why the piece went for so little given a catalog price $3,500 in EF. Second I couldn't believe it when I saw that this was only example of the variety offered in the Ford sale. I thought that he must have had a couple more.
None the less I paid a "carried away," but I doubt that I will see a better one in my lifetime.