Have you ever bought another coin in order to save money?

lkeigwin · April 20, 2010 9:52AM

It's happened to me a few times now. I buy another coin to save money and then end up spending more.

I live in CA and if I buy from a CA dealer then sales tax is assessed unless the the total purchase exceeds $1,500.

It doesn't make a lot of sense to spend $1400 and then pay, say, $120 in sales tax. So I end up trying to find something I like that will bump the bill to $1500. But I always find "that something" costs much more.

This happened to anyone else?

Maybe I should have named this thread "Do CA dealers like the sales tax law?"
Lance.

Unknown · April 20, 2010 10:15AM

This content has been removed.

LanLord · April 20, 2010 10:25AM

<< Yes, also in CA. I think I once bought $800ish in coins from a dealer I often bought from, had him write up an invoice for $1000, and paid $1000 and had $200ish in store credit that I used later (back when $1000 was sales tax exempt). >>

Why didn't you just buy 2 $100 from his cash register along with the $800 coin(s) you bought?

messydesk · April 20, 2010 10:32AM

Did that in Texas once.

ChrisRx · April 20, 2010 11:07AM

Yea, purchase some $100 bills from the dealer too

adamlaneus · April 20, 2010 11:09AM

Yep. I've pushed a bill over $1500 for this reason many times.

notwilight · April 20, 2010 11:15AM

I've done that for years. In fact, that is what got me back into collecting in the mid 90s when I was buying gifts, I started buying type coins for myself to get to the tax number which was $1000 then. That is how I bought my avatar (vf25, OGH, S-61 R-4) for about $700.

Now as a seller I offer that on ebay or off ebay to any CA customers. I'll sell them other coins or bullion to get them to $1500. Many take me up on it.

--Jerry

COALPORTER · April 20, 2010 11:15AM

<< Yea, purchase some $100 bills from the dealer too

>>

Is a piece of paper a bullion related item?

LanLord · April 20, 2010 11:26AM

<< 

<< Yea, purchase some $100 bills from the dealer too

>>

Is a piece of paper a bullion related item? >>

It's "broadly" numismatically related. It's probably about as legal as making a Uturn in front of a firestation, but ...

ChrisRx · April 20, 2010 1:18PM

<< 

<< 

<< Yea, purchase some $100 bills from the dealer too

>>

Is a piece of paper a bullion related item? >>

It's "broadly" numismatically related. It's probably about as legal as making a Uturn in front of a firestation, but ... >>

morgandollar1878 · April 20, 2010 1:34PM

Nope, there is no sales tax on coins and currency here in Missouri.

GoldenEyeNumismatics · April 20, 2010 1:35PM

I was buying from a B & M in Palo Alto one time and had to buy about $130 in 90% to tip myself over the $1500 mark. I didn't even bother to look at the silver until I got home. Turns out about half the pieces were BU 1953-S Franklins!

RYK · April 20, 2010 1:39PM

I have never had to do so. It sounds like throwing good money after bad.

pennyannie · April 20, 2010 4:16PM

Most of the dealers i deal with do not add the tax as long as you have the cash. Write a check or use a credit card and suddenly most of these dealers want the tax. I would be more intersted in how much of the tax money actually gets mailed in to the state from this same group of tax collecting dealers the OP speaks of.

I would put Heritage at the top of the Honest list and the rest of the dealers below.

robkool · April 20, 2010 4:27PM

Here in So.Cal $1500 is no problem... Just buy plenty of gold.

illini420 · April 20, 2010 4:28PM

Haven't ever had a dealer charge me the tax, either they had it built into the price or just weren't collecting it.

I have bought an extra coin on Heritage before though just to put me over the $1000 (now $1500) CA exemption threshold. Makes a lot of sense to me. Spend $1400 on a coin and pay $125 or so to the state; OR spend $1400 on one coin, $125 on another and pay nothing to the state.

For dealers in shops or at shows, if you're selling a $500 coin, why can't you just add another $1000 coin to the invoice and then have the "buyer" come back later, maybe 5 seconds or so later and resell it to you for the same amount?

Have you ever bought another coin in order to save money?

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