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Intresting info on dealer buy price of 90% silver

jdimmickjdimmick Posts: 9,794 ✭✭✭✭✭
Yesterday , i set up at a local coin show, and a few folks walked in with 90% silver coins to sell, I found out that "several " dealers there pay more for silver at a show, but when they get back to thier shops they pay considerably less becuase of no competition. For example one dealer in particular was paying 12x at the show, but then only pays 9x at the store. I personally find this a bit on the unethical side!

Comments

  • PerryHallPerryHall Posts: 46,945 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>Yesterday , i set up at a local coin show, and a few folks walked in with 90% silver coins to sell, I found out that "several " dealers there pay more for silver at a show, but when they get back to thier shops they pay considerably less becuase of no competition. For example one dealer in particular was paying 12x at the show, but then only pays 9x at the store. I personally find this a bit on the unethical side! >>




    Most dealers charge more for coins that they sell at their shop (no competition) than at a coin show (competition). At least that's been my experience. I'll leave it up to others to decide if this is ethical or not.

    Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
    "Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
    "Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire

  • rickoricko Posts: 98,724 ✭✭✭✭✭
    It is called the free market. No ethics question involved. Cheers, RickO


  • << <i>For example one dealer in particular was paying 12x at the show, but then only pays 9x at the store. I personally find this a bit on the unethical side! >>



    It's not unethical at all. It's called supply and demand. If at a show the dealer has to pay more to compete with other dealers, that is was he/she has to do to compete at that particular venue. However, if at their local coin shop they do not have the competition and people still to them then at their lower prices that is their prerogative. However, it is up to seller to know the value of what they have before they sell and to shop all local prices even internet pricing. I pretty much sell all my 90% to the same shop but I call a couple other local shops in town and if their prices are higher I ask my shop to match. 99% of the time they do. The only time they wont is if they happen to be sitting on a large stock.
  • BAJJERFANBAJJERFAN Posts: 31,410 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>

    << <i>For example one dealer in particular was paying 12x at the show, but then only pays 9x at the store. I personally find this a bit on the unethical side! >>



    It's not unethical at all. It's called supply and demand. If at a show the dealer has to pay more to compete with other dealers, that is was he/she has to do to compete at that particular venue. However, if at their local coin shop they do not have the competition and people still to them then at their lower prices that is their prerogative. However, it is up to seller to know the value of what they have before they sell and to shop all local prices even internet pricing. I pretty much sell all my 90% to the same shop but I call a couple other local shops in town and if their prices are higher I ask my shop to match. 99% of the time they do. The only time they wont is if they happen to be sitting on a large stock. >>



    Does dealer John just take your word for it that dealer Bob offered you a higher price?
    theknowitalltroll;
  • pennyanniepennyannie Posts: 3,929 ✭✭✭
    Maybe the dealers like to act like high rollers to the other dealers at the show, or maybe they would be embarassed to pay the same as they do at the store in front of other dealers. lol
    Mark
    NGC registry V-Nickel proof #6!!!!
    working on proof shield nickels # 8 with a bullet!!!!

    RIP "BEAR"
  • Wolf359Wolf359 Posts: 7,663 ✭✭✭


    << <i>Yesterday , i set up at a local coin show, and a few folks walked in with 90% silver coins to sell, I found out that "several " dealers there pay more for silver at a show, but when they get back to thier shops they pay considerably less becuase of no competition. For example one dealer in particular was paying 12x at the show, but then only pays 9x at the store. I personally find this a bit on the unethical side! >>



    Yes, I think so.
  • sinin1sinin1 Posts: 7,500
    I don't think it is unethical


    and am sure the average seller at shows is more astute than the average seller in the store


    and the average seller at the show knows what 90% silver is (no clad or 80% Canadian mixed in)
  • LOL... I've had the opposite happen. Q. "Why are you offering less here than at the store and that is published on your web page?" A. "Because I don't want to carry it on the plane."
  • roadrunnerroadrunner Posts: 28,313 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Of course it's unethical. If the shop is paying less at the store because sellers are uninformed, that is wrong. And it certainly has zero to do with supply and demand at the dealer's shop. Technically the laws of supply and demand are not in effect at local stores when unknowledgeable buyers or sellers come into play. The shop owner can buy silver at 10X, 11X, etc. and still sell any excess silver his customers don't want at a tidy profit to any number of eager local or regional silver buyers. As far as I see it the "demand" to buy 90% at 9X face is "unlimited" as any dealer or numismatist with the cash ready would jump at the chance. Heck, if you didn't have the cash you could make a 10-20% commission just directing another dealer to the deal. I don't judge a B&M dealer's ethics by his "performance" at a monthly or annual coin show but by what he does in the shop every day. Jim is right about the conflict of having two widely different sets of standards. The 9X and 12X dealer is probably a good bet to run for congress someday.

    Actually if the dealer really had ethics, and was generally clueless about current silver buy and sell prices, then proudly maintaining his 9X buy standard at the coin show (and getting zero business) would display MORE ethics than paying 12X just at a show. We can say that it's up to the public to know the price of everything before they go to make a buying or selling decision. But that's a utopian dream. This is why an advanced society tends to lean on expert brokers, dealers, sales people, appraisers, local bankers, etc. to help determine values. Looks at all the major coin collections that go to auction because even knowledgeable collectors can't really determine what their prized coins are worth after being off the market for years or decades. Look at the all the individual coins that are brokered by top notch dealers like Dave Akers because they DO know more than the expert collector and can bring back some additional value. I'd like to hope that anyone selling silver would go on line and find a price somehow or call some local shops first. But it doesn't happen quite like that in most cases. I'd say the majority of the less than fully informed public drives down to their local shop and asks what they're paying. People go into a business establishment and expect to be treated honestly and fairly. That seems to be an ideal that is lost among our times. And here comes Gordon Gecko back for a sequel after 20 yrs. Amazing how things run in such precise cycles.

    roadrunner
    Barbarous Relic No More, LSCC -GoldSeek--shadow stats--SafeHaven--321gold
  • ecichlidecichlid Posts: 1,212 ✭✭✭


    << <i>Yesterday , i set up at a local coin show, and a few folks walked in with 90% silver coins to sell, I found out that "several " dealers there pay more for silver at a show, but when they get back to thier shops they pay considerably less becuase of no competition. For example one dealer in particular was paying 12x at the show, but then only pays 9x at the store. I personally find this a bit on the unethical side! >>



    You have to ask yourself "Why should he pay more than 9x at the shop?"

    Perhaps you don't understand the costs that he incurs by owning a store. Perhaps you don't understand that he has the right, by the very nature of that seller walking into his shop, to offer what he pleases, as he doesn't have to offer anything at all.

    Wolf359 said "Yes, I think so. "
    Do you own a store? I'll bet not. You just run your website from the comfort of your own home. I bet if you owned a shop, you would quickly change your mind. Either that or you would go bankrupt in no time.
    There is no "AT" or "NT". We only have "market acceptable" or "not market acceptable.
  • roadrunnerroadrunner Posts: 28,313 ✭✭✭✭✭
    It comes down to much more than the guy's overhead. It's about greed and laziness most of the time. I don't buy the "overhead" excuse one bit. If you have high overhead then go find another location to work from. Probably more than 90% of shops out there can comfortably work on 10.0X-12X. The ones that work on 3X to 9X are just opportunists who typically size up the "mark" as they come through the door and decide just how low to lowball them. Used and new car dealers work on that same principle. It's no wonder why coin dealers often get lumped in with those guys. Opportunists have been around since markets were invented. The one advantage of these tough times is that shops like that are getting squeezed out of business as they just cannot compete against the ethical shops who treat customers fairly in all scenarios.

    roadrunner
    Barbarous Relic No More, LSCC -GoldSeek--shadow stats--SafeHaven--321gold
  • PerryHallPerryHall Posts: 46,945 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>

    << <i>Yesterday , i set up at a local coin show, and a few folks walked in with 90% silver coins to sell, I found out that "several " dealers there pay more for silver at a show, but when they get back to thier shops they pay considerably less becuase of no competition. For example one dealer in particular was paying 12x at the show, but then only pays 9x at the store. I personally find this a bit on the unethical side! >>



    You have to ask yourself "Why should he pay more than 9x at the shop?"

    Perhaps you don't understand the costs that he incurs by owning a store. Perhaps you don't understand that he has the right, by the very nature of that seller walking into his shop, to offer what he pleases, as he doesn't have to offer anything at all.

    Wolf359 said "Yes, I think so. "
    Do you own a store? I'll bet not. You just run your website from the comfort of your own home. I bet if you owned a shop, you would quickly change your mind. Either that or you would go bankrupt in no time. >>



    And the seller has just as much right to reject the dealers low ball offer and take his coins elsewhere.



    Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
    "Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
    "Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire

  • Actually yes, I have a long standing trusted relationship with the shop I frequent.
  • ecichlidecichlid Posts: 1,212 ✭✭✭
    PerryHall said "And the seller has just as much right to reject the dealers low ball offer and take his coins elsewhere."

    Exactly. The dealer is not doing anything to intentionally mislead his customer. It's the responsibility of the seller to educate himself.
    There is no "AT" or "NT". We only have "market acceptable" or "not market acceptable.
  • RWBRWB Posts: 8,082
    It's called "capitalism."
  • rickoricko Posts: 98,724 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Roadrunner, I usually agree with your position. However, I think you are wrong about this issue, and only in the respect of ethics. I have studied ethics, extensively. This is not an ethical question. The dealer is not forcing anyone to sell, openly declares what he chooses to pay and adjusts his prices to the venue. If there was any statement indicating he/she was fleecing people, that may paint a different picture. A business person may choose to pay any figure for something he is buying. The market is large. Cheers, RickO
  • derrybderryb Posts: 37,750 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>It is called the free market. No ethics question involved. Cheers, RickO >>



    image

    No Way Out: Stimulus and Money Printing Are the Only Path Left

  • LindeDadLindeDad Posts: 18,766 ✭✭✭✭✭
    I do not see how the cost of operating a shop has any bearing on the issue as the dealer still has the cost of the shop even when doing business at a show. In fact his costs of doing business are higher at a show with travel and table costs on top of the lease/rent and other overhead of the shop that is probably closed while at the show.
    I see this as a completion issue only and ethics’ are not an issue. More completion always forces the profit margins to close. This closing of the profit margin is not only there in the bullion trade but if you check they will be more completive with your collectable coins as well at a show than back at the shop.
  • chumleychumley Posts: 2,305 ✭✭✭✭
    I live in a rural area....prob 100 miles to someone that will buy silver.So they have me by the proverbial short hairs..tho I am finding there may be a connection to civilization thru the BST image
  • PerryHallPerryHall Posts: 46,945 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>It's called "capitalism." >>



    So is price gouging after a natural disaster. Doesn't mean it's ethical though.

    Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
    "Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
    "Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire

  • RWBRWB Posts: 8,082
    Ethical behavior is a separate matter.
  • delistampsdelistamps Posts: 716 ✭✭✭
    I don't think this is a matter of ethics. Dealers at shows also have greater opportunities to market their purchases to other buyers and dealers.

    I unloaded a lot of silver at a Baltimore show last year; I intend to do it again this year. But I have to say that they were not tripping over each other to pay competitive prices. I spent quite a bit of time shopping the floor.

    We have dealers in this area who purchase silver all year round; I know that their prices at their stores won't compete with what I'll get at the show. That's just business.
  • Wolf359Wolf359 Posts: 7,663 ✭✭✭


    << <i>

    << <i>Yesterday , i set up at a local coin show, and a few folks walked in with 90% silver coins to sell, I found out that "several " dealers there pay more for silver at a show, but when they get back to thier shops they pay considerably less becuase of no competition. For example one dealer in particular was paying 12x at the show, but then only pays 9x at the store. I personally find this a bit on the unethical side! >>



    You have to ask yourself "Why should he pay more than 9x at the shop?"

    Perhaps you don't understand the costs that he incurs by owning a store. Perhaps you don't understand that he has the right, by the very nature of that seller walking into his shop, to offer what he pleases, as he doesn't have to offer anything at all.

    Wolf359 said "Yes, I think so. "
    Do you own a store? I'll bet not. You just run your website from the comfort of your own home. I bet if you owned a shop, you would quickly change your mind. Either that or you would go bankrupt in no time. >>



    I have folks call me and ask prices sir. And I buy at coins shows. Same thing. My price stays the same.
  • BlindedByEgoBlindedByEgo Posts: 10,754 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>

    << <i>It's called "capitalism." >>



    So is price gouging after a natural disaster. Doesn't mean it's ethical though. >>



    PerryHall, there are larger economic forces at play in post-disaster "price gouging" than one might realize on the surface. Higher realized prices being paid ALWAYS bring in more resources, faster, to a disaster area than do items under price control - also, economic equilibrium is reached more rapidly.

    But regarding the issue at hand, if a buyer in a geographic market is consistantly paying under-market prices, a market driver exists to bring in competition in some form - be it a physical store, a targeted mail advert, hotel buyers or even another retail establishment.

    A willing buyer should always be able to offer whatever price, wherevere they want, for privately owned non-regulated goods. The only alternative is regulation - but be careful what you ask your Government to do, because they rarely cede power once that power is granted - even when it is no longer necessary or desired by all of the market participants.
  • SUMORADASUMORADA Posts: 4,797
    It is called the free market. No ethics question involved. Cheers, RickO

    image
  • Absolutely unethical & looking to screw anyone they can (i.e. people walking in to the B&M stores).
  • ConstantineConstantine Posts: 2,369 ✭✭✭
    Free market. The dealer(s) are paying more at the show due to increased demand and competiton in the subset (the coin show) of the bigger market. If a person walks in the store there is less competition and therefore a higher buying price is not necessary to close the transaction.
  • mrpotatoheaddmrpotatoheadd Posts: 7,576 ✭✭✭
    I've noticed nobody has suggested that the seller at coin show was acting unethically by selling to the dealer at a higher price than he would have gotten at the dealer's shop.

    Why is it unethical for a a dealer to ask for more, but not the seller?
  • PerryHallPerryHall Posts: 46,945 ✭✭✭✭✭
    What if Sears had a store in the ghetto and another identical store in the nearby white middle class suburbs and what if the ghetto Sears charged 25% more for the identical merchandise as they sell in the suburban store where there is more competition from other stores. Would that be ethical?

    Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
    "Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
    "Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire

  • mrpotatoheaddmrpotatoheadd Posts: 7,576 ✭✭✭
    Why are sellers who try to maximize prices questioned on their ethics when buyers who try to minimize them aren't?
  • roadrunnerroadrunner Posts: 28,313 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Roadrunner, I usually agree with your position. However, I think you are wrong about this issue, and only in the respect of ethics. I have studied ethics, extensively. This is not an ethical question. The dealer is not forcing anyone to sell, openly declares what he chooses to pay and adjusts his prices to the venue. If there was any statement indicating he/she was fleecing people, that may paint a different picture. A business person may choose to pay any figure for something he is buying. The market is large.

    I can understand the other side of the argument. But having seen all sorts of abuse in our hobby since the 1960's I always err on the side of consumer protection in our hobby. That's just the way I am. There's no reason why there has to be a "learning curve" in our hobby, even for precious metals. I'll walk a mile to help someone avoid the pitfalls or tell them where to get a fairer price if I cannot offer it myself. If this was your grandmother going to sell silver at the local B&M how would you want her to be treated? 6X face? I've seen elderly people go into my B&M and get offered 30c on the dollar for rare MS64 gold coins (that one deal was worth $80K wholesale and they got about $25K! Free market huh?

    roadrunner
    Barbarous Relic No More, LSCC -GoldSeek--shadow stats--SafeHaven--321gold
  • secondrepublicsecondrepublic Posts: 2,619 ✭✭✭


    << <i>What if Sears had a store in the ghetto and another identical store in the nearby white middle class suburbs and what if the ghetto Sears charged 25% more for the identical merchandise as they sell in the suburban store where there is more competition from other stores. Would that be ethical? >>



    Yes. There are many reasons why the store in the bad neighborhood might need to charge more. Maybe they have more shoplifting, more need for store security, higher property taxes, etc.

    Even if none of that were true - and the operating costs were the same - they are still free to charge more. That's capitalism. Others are perfectly free to set up shop in the same neighborhood and sell for less.
    "Men who had never shown any ability to make or increase fortunes for themselves abounded in brilliant plans for creating and increasing wealth for the country at large." Fiat Money Inflation in France, Andrew Dickson White (1912)
  • TevaTeva Posts: 830
    As a seller you have the same options as a buyer
    to quote Nancy Reagan"just say no" I do not see this as a problem
    just sell your silver at a show. Try asking your dealer if they will buy by weight instead of face and you may get more money.
    Give the laziest man the toughest job and he will find the easiest way to get it done.
  • BlindedByEgoBlindedByEgo Posts: 10,754 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>What if Sears had a store in the ghetto and another identical store in the nearby white middle class suburbs and what if the ghetto Sears charged 25% more for the identical merchandise as they sell in the suburban store where there is more competition from other stores. Would that be ethical? >>



    Logically fallacious. Different premise, and using an emotionally charged subject. I cry foul.image
  • Why can Burger King charge more for a whopper at the airport? That is the question I'd like answered.
  • PerryHallPerryHall Posts: 46,945 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>Why can Burger King charge more for a whopper at the airport? That is the question I'd like answered. >>



    They pay much higher rent for space at the airport would be my guess.

    Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
    "Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
    "Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire

  • ConstantineConstantine Posts: 2,369 ✭✭✭


    << <i>

    << <i>Why can Burger King charge more for a whopper at the airport? That is the question I'd like answered. >>



    They pay much higher rent for space at the airport would be my guess. >>



    That and a captive audience. You can't leave the terminal security. Same thing at a music concert. I paid recently $12 for a 24 ounce can of beer. Why? I wanted beer and there was no alternative. I also bought two. Why did I buy two? I drank the first one quickly and wanted another beer. I vowed never again!
  • PonyExpress8PonyExpress8 Posts: 1,670 ✭✭✭
    9x to 12x seems like a very big spread. There are a couple of other factors however not mentioned which might account for a bit of a difference.

    Small quantities are typically bought for a bit less. The end buyers of 90% pay the highest amount for half dollars in bag amounts of $1000 face. Many lower the price paid for 90% for amounts under $1000 face, $250 face, $100 face etc. Most also pay a bit less for dimes or quarters as it takes more time to count and handle. This may account for some of the difference if a seller walks up with a few hundred $'s face versus someone that walks in with $3.85 in face. Buying the small amount increases holding time risk as a dealer holds this until they get up to half a bag at least.

    Also, what if a dealer has $1890 face back at the shop and is ready to sell that off, has a buyer but would like to get the deal done upon return to the shop the first of the week after the show. Maybe by offering the highest price to push his total holding over the $2,000 mark he will pay 12x to get it done and generate the cash for operations. Keeping liquidity high can be a motivating factor as well.

    Also, there may be a buying dealer of 90% at the show the dealer can off the 90% too immediately, not have to lug it back and forth, and be done with the deal.

    There can be a lot of things going on from the dealer's perspective that could create a difference although 9% to 12% seems a bit much.

    The End of the Line in the West.

    Website-Americana Rare Coin Inc

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