Evaluating Overall Collection Value

JJM · January 22, 2007 6:30AM

In general terms......

Lets assume you have a 100 coin collection.....
and that they are all graded properly, slabbed and raw......
PCGS values has it at 10K........

If you had to liquidate all in short notice, what would be a good overall % under Retail you should expect
from a dealer?

Ive always worked under the 65-70% rule and have tried to purchase at that range when possible ...am I off base here?

Any thoughts?

291fifth · January 22, 2007 6:33AM

20-30% below gray sheet bid if they were more expensive coins. Much less than that if they were low value coins.
If the dealer senses you are desperate to sell it may be even less.

Cladiator · January 22, 2007 6:48AM

Auction it at Heritage or DLRC

jdimmick · January 22, 2007 6:59AM

He said short notice, that eliminates Heritage and the other firms. You can figure about 3-4 months minimum on cosigning.

I would guess anywhere from 10-30% behind cdn. Better easier stuff closer to 10, other difficult stuff 30% easily.

Cladiator · January 22, 2007 7:02AM

Ok, sorry I didn't catch the short notice part. In that case toss them on eBay.

mr1931S · January 22, 2007 7:05AM

"If you had to liquidate all in short notice, what would be a good overall % under Retail you should expect from a dealer?

There are a quite a few variables to consider to answer this question specifically. In general, however, the collector should expect at least 50% of retail, however, it can pay the collector, sometimes significantly, to "shop around" for the right dealer to sell to. "Low-balling" can be expected, too.

75% of retail is a good number to shoot for if the coins one is trying to sell on short notice are "nice."

Steve · January 22, 2007 7:09AM

I understand that Coin Dealer Newsletter (CDN) shows their bid prices to represent wholesale value. The PCGS price list shows their prices to represent retail value. The question was what % of retail would a seller expect to get on a collection with a PCGS price value of $10,000. It seems to me that someone who believes such a collection would be worth only 70% to 90% of wholesale bid to a dealer is shortchanging the seller. These represent coins that are PCGS slabbed or worth PCGS value AND they total $10k retail. Probably $8K wholesale is a fair guess IMHO. Steve

291fifth · January 22, 2007 7:21AM

The gray sheet is what really rules the retail market. For many "ordinary" coins CDN bid is retail. If the coin is a bit better ask may be retail.

mr1931S · January 22, 2007 7:32AM

"Probably $8K wholesale is a fair guess IMHO. Steve"

80% of retail then? Good luck.Dealers who consistently pay too much also eat too much hamburger.
Disclaimer: There is nothing wrong with hamburger. Just don't eat too much of it.

The gospel of the grey sheet is to be....whispered..."10 back of bid" is a good number to shoot for according to the gospel of the sheet...
Getting an offer of bid for the entirety would be outstanding and prompt me, if I were the would-be seller, to shop around. It's very likely there is something special in the group if one hears an offer of full bid for a group of 100 coins.

RichieURich · January 22, 2007 7:34AM

Depends on the series, but I would go to someone who deals in that series day in and day out. That person is likely to know the value better and pay more than someone who will have to wholesale the set out to someone else to sell it. For example, if it is mint errors, go to Fred Weinberg, not to a dealer who sells one or two mint errors a year.

RedTiger · January 22, 2007 9:50AM

Using PCGS price guide as "retail" I say half that is a fair estimate. Most collectors look to buy for 20% to 30% back of PCGS guide, except in the few series where the coins are tough to find at that price. Especially if there are post 1964 moderns, the real valuation might be all over the map, and the guide may or may not have any connection to what similiar coins are bringing at auction.

There is no one-size fits all vs. PCGS price guide, but for average classic coins, I'd say half of list is a reasonable "dump" price. Of course there are many series where the variation will be up or down from that.

DaveG · January 22, 2007 12:00PM

It sounds like you have 100 coins worth, on average, $100 each.

I think it really depends on what you have: if you have a lot of ultra high grade moderns, the best place to sell them is eBay. So, just check their realized prices.

If you have classic coins, the I'd see what Grey Sheet Bid is. Many dealers will pay about 90% of Bid or so - more if they can sell the coin quickly, less if they expect to have to keep it in inventory for six months.

Evaluating Overall Collection Value

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