You must learn to do the math along with the discipline not to do impulsive bidding as in it's only XXX dollars above my max bid. State a max bid price and stick to it even if you loose the coin. The math is easy to calculate. First research what the coin value is ( to you). Ex. PCGS lists the coin at $120.00 so I will bid $100.00 as my max price that I will pay. From the $100.00 max amount that I will spend, subtract the shipping and handling cost. Here I use $7.95 s/h so $100.00 - shipping is $92.05. From this amount divide by your state sales tax. In my case 6.25% so $92.05 /1.0625 tax =$86.635 which rounds up to $86.64. Then divide this number by the buyers premium of 20%, so $86.64 / 1.20% the buyer's premium which equals $72.196 or rounded up to $72.20. This is your max bid amount. I have won many Heritage auctions and after receipt of the item, I have found some damaged holders and holograms that was not disclosed. I contact them and ask what they want to do about my issues. They have in the past re-holder my coin at their expense and you still have the right to return the item for a refund. I hope this helps you and others with the quest to bid on this auction site. A side note. Great collections does not charge state tax at this time. So a big item bid can save you some good money that you can use to buy other coins. Best of Luck
@ms70 said:
Heritage's fees are unjustifiably exorbitant in my opinion.
Indeed, to say the least! 20% juice, inflated shipping fees, additional fees to use a CC for auction wins, extended wait times to receive your auction lots. You know what.... Heritage can keep their coins. I now use Great Collections, other auction firms and buy at shows and I don't miss Heritage not not even a little bit.
Your hobby is supposed to be your therapy, not the reason you need it.
@pointfivezero said:
After several recent purchases, I tend to agree with the consensus in the thread. For example, one cannot bid at the same level for the same coin on eBay and Heritage. Now that eBay charges taxes for California residents, the playing field is a bit more level but the Heritage BP and shipping costs still tend to favor ebay. If one keeps those fees included in their bidding strategy, there are still good deals to be found at Heritage.
There are intangibles described above such as image quality, reputation and customer service that keeps me returning to Heritage. Lauren and Lori have always been pleasant, responsive and extremely helpful. Ebay customer service? Don't get me started....
How does EBay charging sales “level the playing field”? Doesn’t Heritage also charge sales tax? Just curious about your comment
Heritage was charging sales tax in many states long before eBay added sales tax to transactions. Thus, for equivalent items, if you weren't going to pay use tax on an eBay purchase, the eBay purchase was cheaper by the cost of the sales tax. Of course, use tax should have leveled that, but most folks weren't paying it. Once eBay started adding sales tax, the purchase was apples to apples--an item selling for $X on either platform (on Heritage, $X includes the buyer's premium) would have the same net cost to the buyer.
For California resident such as myself, ebay purchases were tax free until last year. This meant ebay had a distinct advantage when comparing the final out of pocket costs with Heritage for coins under $1500 (at which point coin and bullion purchases become tax exempt).
Isn't that exactly what I said? Except for the slight distinction where your eBay purchases weren't tax-free, you weren't charged tax. You still owed it when you bought on eBay, it just sounds like you didn't pay it, so you perceived a tax advantage buying on eBay versus Heritage.
I’ve got some very nice coins from them in the past before they changed a few years ago then it got very expensive and the pieces I’m interested in they don’t seem to be anymore it’s to bad it use to be really fun to bid online in a live auction
To all of those that posted in this string that they choose to not bid in Heritage auctions, a big THANK YOU! Additionally, for those that have read through this string, and feel the same way but chose not to post, thank you too! It'll help me when I place my bids (probably on four lots in the upcoming Central States auction in Dallas) having fewer competitors bidding against me by those who would otherwise love to own the coins I'll be bidding on!
Thanks, stay safe, and enjoy the weekend.
A day without fine wine and working on your coin collection is like a day without sunshine!!!
__To all of those that posted in this string that they choose to not bid in Heritage auctions, a big THANK YOU! Additionally, for those that have read through this string, and feel the same way but chose not to post, thank you too! It'll help me when I place my bids (probably on four lots in the upcoming Central States auction in Dallas) having fewer competitors bidding against me of those who would otherwise love to own the coins I'll be bidding on!
Thanks, stay safe, and enjoy the weekend.__
+1.
By the jt88, I'm still waiting for your proof........
One more point I want to point out is HA always has its secret reserve price that HA never show you. So many times you think you are biding ageist another bidder, you are wrong you are actually bidding against HA. HA will keep pushing the price up until you hit their secret price. So always set your max price and forget it if you can't get by your max price. Dont let HA sucks you to buy.
“One more point I want to point out is HA always has its secret reserve price that HA never show you. So many times you think you are biding ageist another bidder, you are wrong you are actually bidding against HA. HA will keep pushing the price up until you hit their secret price. So always set your max price and forget it if you can't get by your max price. Dont let HA sucks you to buy.”
Jt88- is your point that Heritage bids on most lots in their sale and, hence, supports their own auction?
Wondercoin
Please visit my website at www.wondercoins.com and my ebay auctions under my user name www.wondercoin.com.
@jt88 said:
One more point I want to point out is HA always has its secret reserve price that HA never show you. So many times you think you are biding ageist another bidder, you are wrong you are actually bidding against HA. HA will keep pushing the price up until you hit their secret price. So always set your max price and forget it if you can't get by your max price. Dont let HA sucks you to buy.
This is false. Lots rarely have reserves, but when they do, they are all posted at the same time, I think around two or three weeks before the auction goes live. When this happens, the bid for those items jumps up to directly below the reserve price, because of course they do - there's no point in continuing to bid below the reserve - and it clearly states that the reserve has not been met. It's not a secret.
There's a lot of misinformation and misunderstanding in this thread.
@jt88 said:
One more point I want to point out is HA always has its secret reserve price that HA never show you. So many times you think you are biding ageist another bidder, you are wrong you are actually bidding against HA. HA will keep pushing the price up until you hit their secret price. So always set your max price and forget it if you can't get by your max price. Dont let HA sucks you to buy.
The coins I bid on had no previous bidders. In an auction, a reserve number does not affect the bids. IF a reserve is set, the only way you find it is when a bid hits it. Many auctions with reserves never make reserve.
I have won several coins from Heritage and I think the experience has been great. They had great customer service and fast shipping. The prices have also been very competitive. I’ve also won auctions from Stacks, Great Collections, Goldbergs, David Lawrence and Legend. I’ve thought the service from all of them has been great.
Once I bid on a online auction on ha, couple days after the auction ended I received an email from ha saying they canceled the auction because many bids did not enter. That’s because they forgot or failed to enter the secret bids. This was a line bid only auction no floor or telephone bid. Where is the bid they talked about failed to enter due to technical issue? Think about it. Can you believe this, ha canceled the after it ended because the price result is not good.
@jt88 said:
Once I bid on a online auction on ha, couple days after the auction ended I received an email from ha saying they canceled the auction because many bids did not enter. That’s because they forgot or failed to enter the secret bids. This was a line bid only auction no floor or telephone bid. Where is the bid they talked about failed to enter due to technical issue? Think about it. Can you believe this, ha canceled the after it ended because the price result is not good.
No, I can't believe that, and that's a big accusation/assumption you're making.
It is OK to bid on HA as long as you do your research, set you max price and stick to it. I am still bidding on HA but just a lot less than before. Generally speaking I fund HA price is higher than SB price. HA try to be a retail store so they offer weekly and monthly auction for normal items. They push a lot on those weekly and monthly auctions.
Here is part of the email that HA sent to me after I sent in the payment in regard to VOID the auction result, I took out the day and auction number.
We want to express our sincere apologies for any bidding inconvenience experienced in XXXX evening's weekly Internet XXXX Auction #XXX. We had an unfortunate system failure, which resulted in multiple bids not posted.
In order to be fair to both our consignors and bidders, Heritage has decided to void all sales associated with auction # XXXX. We will reoffer the lots in the weekly internet XXX auction starting XXXXXXX.
We appreciate your business and patience as we try to sort through this matter.
@jt88 - Thanks for the clarification. That system failure was not intentional, and was probably a "rarity" (no pun intended). Just a quirk, and IMHO should not be held against them. I remember just a short time ago Great Collections had a little computer glitch, as did Legend Auctions. Those occasional/rare glitches are NOT intentional, and should not be held against them in any way.
As far as the new additional auction offerings by Heritage, I personally think it's great! As I noted above in one of my post's on this thread, I recently started putting together a 50 coin Silver Classic Commemorative Set, and these occasional monthly offerings of narrow types of coins is of great interest to me, and helpful for my collection, and obviously, many other people as well. If you have no interest, just ignore it, but please don't criticize them for offering things that others may want.
Stay safe, and enjoy the weekend.
A day without fine wine and working on your coin collection is like a day without sunshine!!!
I am not criticize them for offering things that others may want. In fact I agree with you it is great but what I am trying to say is they do push up a lot on these auctions. Last week I bid on some items I did not win because my price are too low. After the auction ended I tried to check the auction price on those coins but can't find them in my bid history. HA removed them because it did not sell. If they don't have secret reserve price why it did not sell? Some people criticized people made accusation/assumption on HA but how many times those people did actually bid on HA. If you bid weekly for couple years you will catch lot of things.
Every closed item I bid on, or tracked, is still showing up in My Heritage profile. Unless one other person comes here and says they also can not see recent closed items they either bid on or tracked, then one person alone is still not sufficient. Also, since I am not an expert with HA, can someone point out how we know if there is a Reserve on a item? From what I read, I though that the reserve is not posted until 3 or 4 days into the cycle, but before the final "live" close out.
@isaiah58 said:
Every closed item I bid on, or tracked, is still showing up in My Heritage profile. Unless one other person comes here and says they also can not see recent closed items they either bid on or tracked, then one person alone is still not sufficient. Also, since I am not an expert with HA, can someone point out how we know if there is a Reserve on a item? From what I read, I though that the reserve is not posted until 3 or 4 days into the cycle, but before the final "live" close out.
Unless something has changed that I’m unaware of, in “Signature” sales, reserves are posted a week before the sale starts. And the lots in weekly internet-only sales are unreserved.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
Comments
Good luck with your decision. Iowa is s great place to raise a family as i’m sure you know
Yes! But I'd phrase this as: A DEFINITE concern for the consignors or sellers when the buyers do the simple mathematics on their bids!
Great transactions with oih82w8, JasonGaming, Moose1913.
You must learn to do the math along with the discipline not to do impulsive bidding as in it's only XXX dollars above my max bid. State a max bid price and stick to it even if you loose the coin. The math is easy to calculate. First research what the coin value is ( to you). Ex. PCGS lists the coin at $120.00 so I will bid $100.00 as my max price that I will pay. From the $100.00 max amount that I will spend, subtract the shipping and handling cost. Here I use $7.95 s/h so $100.00 - shipping is $92.05. From this amount divide by your state sales tax. In my case 6.25% so $92.05 /1.0625 tax =$86.635 which rounds up to $86.64. Then divide this number by the buyers premium of 20%, so $86.64 / 1.20% the buyer's premium which equals $72.196 or rounded up to $72.20. This is your max bid amount. I have won many Heritage auctions and after receipt of the item, I have found some damaged holders and holograms that was not disclosed. I contact them and ask what they want to do about my issues. They have in the past re-holder my coin at their expense and you still have the right to return the item for a refund. I hope this helps you and others with the quest to bid on this auction site. A side note. Great collections does not charge state tax at this time. So a big item bid can save you some good money that you can use to buy other coins. Best of Luck
Kennedys are my quest...
Indeed, to say the least! 20% juice, inflated shipping fees, additional fees to use a CC for auction wins, extended wait times to receive your auction lots. You know what.... Heritage can keep their coins. I now use Great Collections, other auction firms and buy at shows and I don't miss Heritage not not even a little bit.
Your hobby is supposed to be your therapy, not the reason you need it.
Isn't that exactly what I said? Except for the slight distinction where your eBay purchases weren't tax-free, you weren't charged tax. You still owed it when you bought on eBay, it just sounds like you didn't pay it, so you perceived a tax advantage buying on eBay versus Heritage.
I’ve got some very nice coins from them in the past before they changed a few years ago then it got very expensive and the pieces I’m interested in they don’t seem to be anymore it’s to bad it use to be really fun to bid online in a live auction
https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/quarters/washington-quarters-major-sets/washington-quarters-date-set-circulation-strikes-1932-present/publishedset/209923
https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/quarters/washington-quarters-major-sets/washington-quarters-date-set-circulation-strikes-1932-present/album/209923
Yes, HA changed a lot. I used to like HA a lot but not any more.
To all of those that posted in this string that they choose to not bid in Heritage auctions, a big THANK YOU! Additionally, for those that have read through this string, and feel the same way but chose not to post, thank you too! It'll help me when I place my bids (probably on four lots in the upcoming Central States auction in Dallas) having fewer competitors bidding against me by those who would otherwise love to own the coins I'll be bidding on!
Thanks, stay safe, and enjoy the weekend.
My collecting “Pride & Joy” is my PCGS Registry Dansco 7070 Set:
https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/type-sets/design-type-sets/complete-dansco-7070-modified-type-set-1796-date/publishedset/213996
__To all of those that posted in this string that they choose to not bid in Heritage auctions, a big THANK YOU! Additionally, for those that have read through this string, and feel the same way but chose not to post, thank you too! It'll help me when I place my bids (probably on four lots in the upcoming Central States auction in Dallas) having fewer competitors bidding against me of those who would otherwise love to own the coins I'll be bidding on!
Thanks, stay safe, and enjoy the weekend.__
+1.
By the jt88, I'm still waiting for your proof........
Member ANA, SPMC, SCNA, FUN, CONECA
One more point I want to point out is HA always has its secret reserve price that HA never show you. So many times you think you are biding ageist another bidder, you are wrong you are actually bidding against HA. HA will keep pushing the price up until you hit their secret price. So always set your max price and forget it if you can't get by your max price. Dont let HA sucks you to buy.
“One more point I want to point out is HA always has its secret reserve price that HA never show you. So many times you think you are biding ageist another bidder, you are wrong you are actually bidding against HA. HA will keep pushing the price up until you hit their secret price. So always set your max price and forget it if you can't get by your max price. Dont let HA sucks you to buy.”
Jt88- is your point that Heritage bids on most lots in their sale and, hence, supports their own auction?
Wondercoin
This is false. Lots rarely have reserves, but when they do, they are all posted at the same time, I think around two or three weeks before the auction goes live. When this happens, the bid for those items jumps up to directly below the reserve price, because of course they do - there's no point in continuing to bid below the reserve - and it clearly states that the reserve has not been met. It's not a secret.
There's a lot of misinformation and misunderstanding in this thread.
Gobrecht's Engraved Mature Head Large Cent Model
https://www.instagram.com/rexrarities/?hl=en
The coins I bid on had no previous bidders. In an auction, a reserve number does not affect the bids. IF a reserve is set, the only way you find it is when a bid hits it. Many auctions with reserves never make reserve.
I have won several coins from Heritage and I think the experience has been great. They had great customer service and fast shipping. The prices have also been very competitive. I’ve also won auctions from Stacks, Great Collections, Goldbergs, David Lawrence and Legend. I’ve thought the service from all of them has been great.
I can’t say they bid on most but I am pretty sure they do bid on some. If you bid a lot on ha and watch the auction result you will know.
You have much better chance to find better price on eBay than on ha.
Once I bid on a online auction on ha, couple days after the auction ended I received an email from ha saying they canceled the auction because many bids did not enter. That’s because they forgot or failed to enter the secret bids. This was a line bid only auction no floor or telephone bid. Where is the bid they talked about failed to enter due to technical issue? Think about it. Can you believe this, ha canceled the after it ended because the price result is not good.
No, I can't believe that, and that's a big accusation/assumption you're making.
Gobrecht's Engraved Mature Head Large Cent Model
https://www.instagram.com/rexrarities/?hl=en
It is OK to bid on HA as long as you do your research, set you max price and stick to it. I am still bidding on HA but just a lot less than before. Generally speaking I fund HA price is higher than SB price. HA try to be a retail store so they offer weekly and monthly auction for normal items. They push a lot on those weekly and monthly auctions.
Here is part of the email that HA sent to me after I sent in the payment in regard to VOID the auction result, I took out the day and auction number.
We want to express our sincere apologies for any bidding inconvenience experienced in XXXX evening's weekly Internet XXXX Auction #XXX. We had an unfortunate system failure, which resulted in multiple bids not posted.
In order to be fair to both our consignors and bidders, Heritage has decided to void all sales associated with auction # XXXX. We will reoffer the lots in the weekly internet XXX auction starting XXXXXXX.
We appreciate your business and patience as we try to sort through this matter.
@jt88 - Thanks for the clarification. That system failure was not intentional, and was probably a "rarity" (no pun intended). Just a quirk, and IMHO should not be held against them. I remember just a short time ago Great Collections had a little computer glitch, as did Legend Auctions. Those occasional/rare glitches are NOT intentional, and should not be held against them in any way.
As far as the new additional auction offerings by Heritage, I personally think it's great! As I noted above in one of my post's on this thread, I recently started putting together a 50 coin Silver Classic Commemorative Set, and these occasional monthly offerings of narrow types of coins is of great interest to me, and helpful for my collection, and obviously, many other people as well. If you have no interest, just ignore it, but please don't criticize them for offering things that others may want.
Stay safe, and enjoy the weekend.
My collecting “Pride & Joy” is my PCGS Registry Dansco 7070 Set:
https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/type-sets/design-type-sets/complete-dansco-7070-modified-type-set-1796-date/publishedset/213996
I am not criticize them for offering things that others may want. In fact I agree with you it is great but what I am trying to say is they do push up a lot on these auctions. Last week I bid on some items I did not win because my price are too low. After the auction ended I tried to check the auction price on those coins but can't find them in my bid history. HA removed them because it did not sell. If they don't have secret reserve price why it did not sell? Some people criticized people made accusation/assumption on HA but how many times those people did actually bid on HA. If you bid weekly for couple years you will catch lot of things.
I have no problem with HA offer any auction but I just want them to play by the rules especially the rules are set by themselves.
In my very extensive experience, Heritage has ALWAYS played by all of the rules!
My collecting “Pride & Joy” is my PCGS Registry Dansco 7070 Set:
https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/type-sets/design-type-sets/complete-dansco-7070-modified-type-set-1796-date/publishedset/213996
Every closed item I bid on, or tracked, is still showing up in My Heritage profile. Unless one other person comes here and says they also can not see recent closed items they either bid on or tracked, then one person alone is still not sufficient. Also, since I am not an expert with HA, can someone point out how we know if there is a Reserve on a item? From what I read, I though that the reserve is not posted until 3 or 4 days into the cycle, but before the final "live" close out.
Unless something has changed that I’m unaware of, in “Signature” sales, reserves are posted a week before the sale starts. And the lots in weekly internet-only sales are unreserved.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.