What's driving the premium on modern gold Eagles?

I would suggest that the problem is that too many people are slaves to price guides.

There are some dates that carry a premium.

There are also dealers who can't realize the premium and just lump them all together. How do you know the problem isn't your dealer and not the auction prices?

Some of those 90's dates in quarter oz and half oz (BU only) are quite scarce in nice condition, and commands premiums, not as much as when gold was 2k, but still more.

Modern proof gold right now, based on calls to two wholesalers we deal with are under spot for buying price.

@jmlanzaf said:
As for your friend's estate, keep in mind that the net price to you matters and not the hammer price or total sale price.

Even at GC, you're going to pay over 10% in fees. If you don't net a sale price in excess of that cost, you're losing money. There is risk at auction. You will sometimes see pieces barely get to melt and then you are losing 10%.

There is no seller's fee for coins that sell for more than $1,000 at GC, which the OP's quarter ounce gold Eagles will sell for. You pay just the $3 listing fee, and no minimum bid if the minimum bid is $99 or less. So the net proceeds to the seller would be the hammer fee less $3.

People are loading up on them for investment. Modern World Gold a super way to go.

For me would retail that material from my table at a show (if selling that material). For Mkt value I consult CDN CPG.

@P0CKETCHANGE said:
Why do people sell bullion on GC at all? If an ounce of gold sells for $4400, the seller is taking home $4k after backing out the 10%. They’d realize more taking to a local coin shop. What am I missing?

Perhaps these sellers do not have a local coin/bullion shop, it's more convenient to add them to a pile of other more distinct coins they're already consigning, or they just don't want to deal with the hassle of doing the work of selling them themselves.

There are shops in my area but I don't want to deal with them in person. I have sold bullion through GC for the other two reasons. Yes, I might get some extra money by selling them myself, but I value my time and the simplicity of the process more.

@Cougar1978 said:
For an auc house item I reduce my bids by the auc house juice. However individuals may put in a nuke bid.

When I'm sleepy, I go to bed. However individuals may stay awake even when tired.

@jmlanzaf said:

@bammbamm said:

@jmlanzaf said:
As for your friend's estate, keep in mind that the net price to you matters and not the hammer price or total sale price.

Even at GC, you're going to pay over 10% in fees. If you don't net a sale price in excess of that cost, you're losing money. There is risk at auction. You will sometimes see pieces barely get to melt and then you are losing 10%.

There is no seller's fee for coins that sell for more than $1,000 at GC, which the OP's quarter ounce gold Eagles will sell for. You pay just the $3 listing fee, and no minimum bid if the minimum bid is $99 or less. So the net proceeds to the seller would be the hammer fee less $3.

Yes and no. The buyer pays 10% and that will be figured into the bid. Only a moron doesn't reduce their bid by 10%. And you will note that the OP included the BP in the price they mentioned. Hammer prices on bullion are almost never full melt.

Have you seen what collectors pay for coins in online auctions? Take a look at past sales of similar coins at GC and Heritage. I've sent three consignments to GC this year, and each time I am astonished with what some of my coins have sold for. Far more than any dealer offered to me at coin shows.

@cinque1543 said:
Let me summarize what I think has been said so far in this thread in response to my original question.

Individuals are willing to pay $1700 ($1400 hammer + $300 BF) on MS69 common date, quarter-ounce, AGEs because a price guide (PCGS, NGC or other) suggests they should, or because they think gold will move up higher. The fact that my LCS is selling slabbed MS69 common date quarter-ounce AGEs at $1175 (7% above spot) is likely a marketplace anomaly. Sound right?

FWIW, here are my take-aways from this thread:
~ not every high-grade, $10 AGE is "common";
~ select years of $10 AGEs carry a premium in higher grades due to relative scarcity;
~ and, you might want to search the estate coins for the years that carry a premium.

@cinque1543 said:

@MetroD said:
FWIW, here are my take-aways from this thread:
~ not every high-grade, $10 AGE is "common";
~ select years of $10 AGEs carry a premium in higher grades due to relative scarcity;
~ and, you might want to search the estate coins for the years that carry a premium.

Thank you for your response. What are “estate coins” please, and where do I see their premiums?

In the OP, you stated you were helping a friend settle an estate that included some quarter-ounce gold Eagles. When I used the term "estate coins", I was referring to these coins.

@MFeld said:

@cinque1543 said:
Let me summarize what I think has been said so far in this thread in response to my original question.

Individuals are willing to pay $1700 ($1400 hammer + $300 BF) on MS69 common date, quarter-ounce, AGEs because a price guide (PCGS, NGC or other) suggests they should, or because they think gold will move up higher. The fact that my LCS is selling slabbed MS69 common date quarter-ounce AGEs at $1175 (7% above spot) is likely a marketplace anomaly. Sound right?

I don’t see where any respondents said that buyers would pay large premiums for common date examples.
And the price guides don’t typically assign large premiums to common dates.

The OP may not be the best person to advise on the estate.

To the OP: Not all dates are "common" (1995, for example) and there are numerous actual common dates in MS69 that you won't find being sold on Heritage or any other auction site for much of a premium over gold.

Your local coin shop also isn't the only buyer in the country.

What is the black looking stuff on the Obverse?