So, when you record the cost of your coins, are you

Bochiman

an "optimist" or a "realist"?

I was thinking about this as I was recording some coins and making adjustments to their "costs".....ie, slabbing/shipping fees, cac fees, etc.
It certainly does make it a bit harder to show a profit on some coins, and it would be easier to ignore those costs and leave the prices lower so that, when I do sell, I would feel better about myself for making money.

Now, with the added costs, particularly for some lower value coins, I wouldn't make a profit.

So, I know that some/many do add all costs, as when you go to sell, you want to have all accurate numbers so that you aren't paying taxes on profits that aren't really profits. However, I can imagine that some newer folks may not think of that, and maybe some of us like fooling ourselves so we do feel better.

howards

If you want to be complete, don't forget to include the cost of your coin insurance every year updated into the cost of every coin.

I don't do that, but I do record accurate records of what I've got in each coin. I'm not into self-deception.

greghansen

I put in all direct costs including shipping, grading, cac, etc. But I don't get too shook up if I sell a coin and don't show a 'profit' based on those direct costs. My spreadsheet also has a colume for 'market value' and I'm usually much more interested in keeping that reasonably accurate. I try to value stuff at what I could sell it for if I had to sell it in the next 30 days. That keeps my market values conservative.

BAJJERFAN

<< <i>an "optimist" or a "realist"?

I was thinking about this as I was recording some coins and making adjustments to their "costs".....ie, slabbing/shipping fees, cac fees, etc.
It certainly does make it a bit harder to show a profit on some coins, and it would be easier to ignore those costs and leave the prices lower so that, when I do sell, I would feel better about myself for making money.

Now, with the added costs, particularly for some lower value coins, I wouldn't make a profit.

So, I know that some/many do add all costs, as when you go to sell, you want to have all accurate numbers so that you aren't paying taxes on profits that aren't really profits. However, I can imagine that some newer folks may not think of that, and maybe some of us like fooling ourselves so we do feel better. >>



If you were a business, you would certainly want to recover those costs. As a hobbyist if you are paying taxes on your coin sales profits, you would certainly want to use as many expenses as you are allowed in order to reduce your taxable profit. Maybe some folks get those services for free.

MrHalfDime

If one were to carry this argument to its logical conclusion, there would be many other additional costs associated with the acquisition of each of our coins. For my own record keeping, I have found myself wrestling with these concepts when I enter the 'cost' of each coin into my database. Although I have never submitted any coin to a TPG for grading, and I certainly would not submit one for a football sticker, I wondered if I should include the annual cost of the safe deposit box, pro rated for each coin? How about the air fare to fly to the ANA or FUN shows to acquire these coins? And while I am at it, how about meals and ground transportation while at the shows? And it would seem logical to also include the annual dues for ANA, JRCS, and LSCC, which gave me the knowledge to identify which coins to purchase. Obviously, this kind of argument, while possibly valid on an accounting basis, would seem cumbersome and possibly even misleading for recording the costs of coins. I have found it to be much more appropriate for me to list only the direct actual cost of each coin in my records, and relegate all of the other indirect costs to education, and to the fun of pursuing this wonderful hobby.

BryceM

Bochiman,

You could ask if you ask if you approach coin collecting as a business or as a hobby. I would guess most coin-related businesses keep pretty good track of overall income and expenses, but not necessarily on a per-coin basis. As a hobbyist who doesn't mind making a few bucks or losing a few bucks, I try to keep it simple without sticking my head in the sand too much. I include auction juice, shipping, taxes, and grading fees in my records, but accounting for travel, books, photography equipment, SDB, and the like is beyond the scope of my hobby. Making a profit was never the primary motivation.

LindeDad

Excel is your friend when it comes tax time, and yes even the cost of the bubble pack mailers are added in.

MidLifeCrisis

You could try to keep things as simple as possible.

Buy and sell directly at shows to avoid shipping costs...or buy from and sell to dealers who will pay for shipping both ways.

Buy only coins that are slabbed by a top tier TPG and already have a CAC sticker.

If no CAC sticker, learn to be ok with that and don't worry about getting one.

You may still want to pay insurance and will have to factor in those costs. Even if you don't get insurance, you should include SDB fees, or the cost of a home safe if you have one.

What about auction catalogs and reference books? Those are part of the costs associated with the coins.

coinbuf

Not really in the past but with the tax man now looking at paypal for info yes I am now adding in these indirect costs also. I keep the direct costs on one sheet the indirect costs on another and then a totals sheet in my coins excel workbook. Yes it is some extra work but I have an accounting degree so not really that difficuilt for me.

RYK

I add the cost of grading (if I paid it) and CACing to the cost basis of my coins. I also add shipping costs, if I pay them, for the coins I sell. Anything else is piling on, IMO.

ricko

Other than some British Gold, I have never sold a coin. However, if I were a dealer, certainly I would include slabbing/shipping/stickering costs when it comes to sale prices. Of course, with inventory, much of that can be balanced - providing there is good inventory turns. Those with inventory that does not cycle are incurring 'hidden' losses. That, of course, is business, and many do not fully understand the finer points of commerce. Cheers, RickO

michiganboy

I add up all costs for coin including shipping and grading and anything else that might cost me money. This is just so I know how much I have into each coin.

ldhair

It's smart to keep track of every penny. Wish someone had told me this 40 years ago.
I didn't even save invoices in my early days and that's a real problem today.

SeattleSlammer

I'm a bit of both. As you know I'm solely a collector. I don't mind paying a dealer's 'optimistic' price for especially eye appealing coins. But when I sell I tend to fall into the 'realist' category pretty quickly depending upon the current market and how much I want to move the coin along. Still, if I've only learned one thing in all these years it's that especially eye appealing coins always find strong buyers eventually.

Lakesammman

I keep track of every penny spent in acquiring or selling a coin.