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HA Buyers Premium now 22%

This is being discussed on the US forum, but the HA buyers premium is also increasing to 22% for world coins starting in 2026.

Yes, we all say it doesn't matter, but in actual fact, it does.

Comments

  • bosoxbosox Posts: 1,620 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited December 12, 2025 1:08PM

    It will soon be at 25%, IMO.

    I wonder if they think they have an opportunity because overseas buying is more expensive due to carriers charging tariffs, even though it is not supposed to be that way

    Numismatic author & owner of the Uncommon Cents collections. 2011 and 2025 Fred Bowman award winner, 2020 J. Douglas Ferguson award winner, & 2022 Paul Fiocca award winner.

    http://www.victoriancent.com
  • DanB1962DanB1962 Posts: 36 ✭✭✭

    ON a related note, TCNC in Canada, has a buyers' rate of 21.5% ( I think)......there is an auction now with a bunch of gold bullion lots.....so I'm curious if these bullion coins will go for a 21.5% discount, or if someone is willing to pay a 21.5% premium.......I'm not 100% sure about the TCNC rate, but it;s getting excessive.

  • pruebaspruebas Posts: 4,948 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Between the high auction fees, metals, TPGs, and travel costs, the “hobby of kings” is reverting back to only being affordable to kings (or billionaires).

    The prima donna actions by TPGs isn’t exactly helping either.

  • 7Jaguars7Jaguars Posts: 7,861 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Baldwin auction just closed at 23%....Race to the top.

    Love that Milled British (1830-1960)
    Well, just Love coins, period.
  • AbueloAbuelo Posts: 2,010 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited December 12, 2025 5:59PM

    Well, if I have 100 dollars for a coin, I have 100 dollars irrespective of who keeps the money. I cannot bid more than 100, incluiding juice. As a consigner that is another story. Because clearly if buyers have 100, I would get less money. I'm sure they have reasons to increase the fees, yet if they were viable business at 15%, 22 sounds excessive.

  • AbueloAbuelo Posts: 2,010 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I guess the solution for the consigner is to consign a quarter million dollars so can negotiate terms. But for us mere mortals, this means less money if you are selling coins.

  • johnnybjohnnyb Posts: 76 ✭✭✭

    There are several forums we can sell on. It’s up to us to determine which is best. But 22% buyers premium plus a sellers premium requires explicitly premium service and implicitly higher sale prices. Maybe the market supports it, but it’s fair to ask “what am I paying for / what are you giving me that cheaper options aren’t?” I think it comes down to what you’re looking to sell. If they want more numismatic rarities and less 1/4 ounce generic gold coins, maybe this is the strategy.

  • jt88jt88 Posts: 3,362 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited December 12, 2025 6:57PM

    I don't really care or pay attention to the BP because I have been paying 25% in other categories already. Plus BP is out of my control so I pay more attention to my price. I only put in the price I want to pay. I try to stay away from live auctions so I will not get excited and overbid.

  • pruebaspruebas Posts: 4,948 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @johnnyb said:
    There are several forums we can sell on. It’s up to us to determine which is best. But 22% buyers premium plus a sellers premium requires explicitly premium service and implicitly higher sale prices. Maybe the market supports it, but it’s fair to ask “what am I paying for / what are you giving me that cheaper options aren’t?” I think it comes down to what you’re looking to sell. If they want more numismatic rarities and less 1/4 ounce generic gold coins, maybe this is the strategy.

    @johnnyb you should never be paying any sellers fee. As a consignor, you may or may not get some of the buyers fee rebated to you, but any sellers fee is a total non-starter.

  • jgennjgenn Posts: 782 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited December 12, 2025 7:27PM

    Hmm, just my luck to consign a bunch of coins to Heritage as this increase starts. At least it's easy to get 0% commission with them. For those that track cost basis for tax purposes, you add commission and buyers premium to your cost basis. I'll be taking long term capital losses on most of my coins.

  • bosoxbosox Posts: 1,620 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited December 12, 2025 7:40PM

    Long term capital losses on collectibles mean you do not pay gains taxes. Beyond that, they are not deductible for collectors, only "investors" and dealers.

    Numismatic author & owner of the Uncommon Cents collections. 2011 and 2025 Fred Bowman award winner, 2020 J. Douglas Ferguson award winner, & 2022 Paul Fiocca award winner.

    http://www.victoriancent.com
  • SimonWSimonW Posts: 1,384 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I guess I don’t shop at Heritage anymore

    I'm BACK!!! Used to be Billet7 on the old forum.

  • scubafuelscubafuel Posts: 2,009 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @SimonW why not? The auction fees really only affect the seller, despite the misnomer “buyer fees”. (Named as such to make consignors feel better)

    As @abuelo said, if the coin is worth $100 to you, you can still set your bid to pay that much all-in. The only difference is how much of that $100 goes to the consignor and how much goes to the auction house.

  • 7Jaguars7Jaguars Posts: 7,861 ✭✭✭✭✭

    You as consignor don't need to sell $ 1/4 mill coins to get a part of the buyers premium which on 5k+ coins I have gotten usually 5% - so I would get 105% of the sales price.

    HOWEVER this increase in buyer's premium also works as something of a psychological ploy in that at least some of us calculate it ahead of time but sometimes when pressed (as I was last week when I almost missed a "White Whale" coin) may somewhat forget to enter that into our bid calculus. I did get the coin at more than I wanted to pay, cursed the infernal underbidders under my breath and ponied up...

    Love that Milled British (1830-1960)
    Well, just Love coins, period.
  • BoosibriBoosibri Posts: 12,542 ✭✭✭✭✭

    This is on a path to 50% over the next 20yrs

  • @Boosibri said:
    This is on a path to 50% over the next 20yrs

    How about a 50% "Transaction Premium" which applies to both Buyer and Seller.

    Hammer $50,000
    Buyer Pays: $75,000 = $50,000 + 50% TP
    Seller Gets: $25,000 = $50,000 - 50% TP
    Auction House Gets: $50,000 = Hammer

    Buyer and Seller both get "Wiped" by the TP.

  • AbueloAbuelo Posts: 2,010 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @SimonW said:
    I guess I don’t shop at Heritage anymore

    If I stopped buying at HA I would likely miss on some serious coins. Sure I can survive it, but I do not think I want to do it.

  • pruebaspruebas Posts: 4,948 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @Abuelo said:

    @SimonW said:
    I guess I don’t shop at Heritage anymore

    If I stopped buying at HA I would likely miss on some serious coins. Sure I can survive it, but I do not think I want to do it.

    And if you backed the 22% BP out of all your bids, you would never win anything. I know that is true for me.

  • RexfordRexford Posts: 1,340 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @pruebas said:

    @Abuelo said:

    @SimonW said:
    I guess I don’t shop at Heritage anymore

    If I stopped buying at HA I would likely miss on some serious coins. Sure I can survive it, but I do not think I want to do it.

    And if you backed the 22% BP out of all your bids, you would never win anything. I know that is true for me.

    Well obviously, but the BP is part of the bid. You don’t pay 22% more because there is 22% BP, you bid 22% less than you would if there were 0% BP. If there were 100% BP the coin would not sell for double what it does now, the hammer price would just be lower.

    If you’re paying 22% more for coins because the BP is 22%, then I would like to sell you some coins for 22% more than retail. Maybe I’ll even make it 15% above retail - that way you’re saving money!

  • Is it only me that's missing auction feed like 15-18%? Started collecting around 2015 and have heard that some decades before it used to be even lower?!

  • 7Jaguars7Jaguars Posts: 7,861 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited December 16, 2025 4:48AM

    Indeed, 10-15%. BTW, have you ever heard of the Great Siege of Candia?

    Another point to ponder: at what point does the rise of "premiums" start to defray demand?

    Love that Milled British (1830-1960)
    Well, just Love coins, period.
  • SametsSamets Posts: 304 ✭✭✭

    For me personally, I've had some good luck finding coins I need in the European action houses but it gets tricky...
    Conversion from € to USD, surcharges, shipping and handling fees...

    I threw a bid on above 1883 Hawaiian dollar at €651 which is roughly $770. For a nice AU example, it's a very fair price but then the auction house added: €157.54 ($185) for Surcharge and VAT, shipping and handling €42 ($50) and I ended up paying over $1,000

    VAT is also not waivable for out of country bidders since the VAT is calculated under the margin scheme. This means that VAT is applied only to the services, not to the lots themselves. Because this is a specific VAT scheme, it applies worldwide, regardless of the final destination of the shipment.

    I failed to realize how much "extra's" are added and will now bid accordingly...

  • jt88jt88 Posts: 3,362 ✭✭✭✭✭

    In this month’s HK auction, HA auction result is 42.1 m so 20% fee is 8.4 m for ha, 22% would be 9.24 m.

  • @7Jaguars said:
    Indeed, 10-15%. BTW, have you ever heard of the Great Siege of Candia?

    Another point to ponder: at what point does the rise of "premiums" start to defray demand?

    Yeap, one of the biggest siege in history! Coins played also a vital role in it. But that is a subject for another topic.

    Personally speaking, I think that anything below the "psychological barrier" of 18-19%. Above that point, it gets kind of extreme from of auction houses side.

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