Coin Values

[richtips86 24]

Hi all, what areas would people say are currently undervalued? I remember reading somewhere a while back somebody commented they thought George V silver, but can't find that so may be wrong. Why would George V be undervalued but not George VI for example?

Cheers

[Rob 2,998]

I think the concept of groups being undervalued as a whole is a bit of a misconception and more the product of marketing or salespeople trying to talk a market up. Every coin is sold on an individual basis with due regard to its grade, eye appeal etc, so these factors cannot be applied across the board to a whole series. Some sections are always going to be more popular than others, but I defy anyone to say with certainty which ones they will be looking into the future.

Whilst it is possible to identify areas of the market that are overheated on the back of past sale results, it takes quite a stretch of the imagination to assume that those areas which are currently out of favour must be undervalued. These areas are selling at lower prices because they aren't as popular with collectors, but there is nothing to say that they must make up the lost ground in the future.

Alternatively you can turn the argument on its head and consider which areas are currently overvalued due to the herd mentality of people. If they are overheated, by extension we can expect the market to correct itself with price falls, the implication being that the 'currently undervalued' pieces are in fact correctly valued, and so there is no reason to expect any change in the immediate future. Works both ways. There is nothing to say that prices have to keep rising, nor that the weak areas are cheap.

[Paulus 1,942]

If the question is about which coins are undervalued in Spink or CCGB (for example) then that is something else. I trust the market to accurately reflect supply and demand on any given day and location, so, to me, prices achieved are accurate 'by definition'.

[argentumandcoins 70]

That is quite a subjective question, as already stated by Rob.

Lower grade 1905 halfcrowns and shillings seem to be down in price in the salerooms from 2 or 3 years ago. Does that make them a good longterm investment or have they settled at a more realistic price?

If your question is more of an investment type conundrum the old advice is the best, buy quality or rarity but preferably combine both!

[jaggy 528]

If the question is about which coins are undervalued in Spink or CCGB (for example) then that is something else. I trust the market to accurately reflect supply and demand on any given day and location, so, to me, prices achieved are accurate 'by definition'.

While I agree in principle, it is sometimes possible to pick up individual coins at a discount to what they might be worth 'on a good day'. That might simply be because the right buyers were not at the auction or because buyers had been spending their money at a different auction. Obviously, to identify those opportunities requires a good eye, a very good knowledge of the coins in question and the generally prevailing market conditions.

[richtips86 24]

Thanks for your thoughts. I was asking because,I'm STILL struggling to find a focus and was trying to identify other possible options where I may 'get more bang for my buck'. I really like half crowns but obviously these can be prohibitively expensive

[azda 973]

If it's for your own collection then the way I look at it is this, if you like it then buy it, i've gone over the odds several times because I believed the coin I was bidding on (mostly hammered) had either a good strike, eye appeal, rare or a Combined all 3 of those, if you want BANG for your buck then you could be sitting with an empty tray for a long time waiting

[Rob 2,998]

Thanks for your thoughts. I was asking because,I'm STILL struggling to find a focus and was trying to identify other possible options where I may 'get more bang for my buck'. I really like half crowns but obviously these can be prohibitively expensive

Just buy what you like. It isn't a job from which you earn a living, you are supposedly doing it for pleasure.

[TomGoodheart 373]

Thanks for your thoughts. I was asking because,I'm STILL struggling to find a focus and was trying to identify other possible options where I may 'get more bang for my buck'. I really like half crowns but obviously these can be prohibitively expensive

Just buy what you like. It isn't a job from which you earn a living, you are supposedly doing it for pleasure.

What Rob says.

All series of coins will have some dates/types or varieties that are eye-wateringly pricey. But you can avoid those at first until you're sure you want to concentrate enough to fill those gaps. Or collect widely. You don't have to focus on a reign, denomination or even metal.

The key things I think are don't overspend until you feel confident you know those particular coins. Research can really pay off here. You can look at hundreds of coins from online dealers, from searching auction hosting sites such as sixbid, results sites like www.acsearch or grading companies and find what a really top example looks like before spending any money at all. Then buy coins you like.

Yes, bang for your buck is possible. But that really requires you to know those particular coins well. It's spotting the rarer varieties or commoner coins in uncommonly good condition that can provide the bargains. But of course, that only comes into play if you plan on selling ... if you are building a collection then really it's probably more important to feel that you have found an example you are pleased with and haven't been ripped off.

It's also important to remember that coin collecting has fashions, just like anything else. When I first started over a decade ago rare types and varieties were quite popular. Now? Very few people seem interested unless those coins are also in good condition. Grade and eye appeal are the main thing, at least for what I collect. And I admit to following the market, in that I have become much fussier more discerning. This year I have bought just 5 coins (3 of which I now slightly regret and am hoping to sell!)

Having started buying enthusiastically and filling gaps where possible I have then spent almost as long weeding out poorer examples and upgrading. Eventually, I hope to be happy with every coin in my collection. It would have been easier if I'd known what I know now at the start and bought more carefully. But then nobody (apart perhaps from Rob) does that, do they?

Edited September 20, 2015 by TomGoodheart

[VickySilver 775]

A funny thing that has already been alluded to: if a price of a coin is determined by supply and demand, then a catalogue should reflect somewhat of an average if it is accurate. For various reasons these numbers can be very hard to derive, especially with coins that are rare, since there will be infrequent sales that are determined by the buyer and seller. The problem is that these transactions may not be "tested" in a well publicised environment such as a big international auction.

And the price may or may not reflect underpaid/overpaid as it is the price. Another sale of the very same coin right away might yield a price higher or lower or similar. If a coin does not sell at St. James for lack of reaching reserve, it may pop up at Heritage, etc.

Of course, all this especially on less rare coins is determined by quality and grade of the specimen as well.

There can be different 'environments' of the sale, with it being person-to-person, the seller might be pressed to raise funds, it might be part of a multi-coin deal, or trade, etc....

[scott 129]

William III copper errors..

people pay more for W+M washers then low grade errors.

[copper123 1,352]

Coin values in a certain part of the market may be subdued but only because of a lack of collectors , in otherwords it does not matter if your coin is rare as hens teath if no one is interesting in collecting it the item WILL NOT SELL AND ITS PRICE WILL ALWAYS BE LOW.

This is why for instance halfpennies are alway sold at a very reasonable price considering their rarity and the ever popular pennies and farthings lead the market.

I imagine that the only way to profit from this might be if you had inside knowlege over a book coming out in a particular sector , though most new info in the numismatic world appears online now .

And HURRY UP with that farthing variety book colin!

[copper123 1,352]

LOL at scott refering to W and M washers

[richtips86 24]

Thanks everyone for your really helpful comments. I do like robs suggestion of buying what takes my fancy.

I think my 'problem' goes back to when I was about 12, I was into stamp collecting. I went to a stamp club and presented my collection and quite literally got told off for not having a theme (eg flowers / militaria) and that's stuck with me! It also put me off stamps!

[azda 973]

No themes here, just buy coins

[jaggy 528]

Thanks everyone for your really helpful comments. I do like robs suggestion of buying what takes my fancy.

I think my 'problem' goes back to when I was about 12, I was into stamp collecting. I went to a stamp club and presented my collection and quite literally got told off for not having a theme (eg flowers / militaria) and that's stuck with me! It also put me off stamps!

On this forum we just like coins. And the prettier the coin (eye appeal) and the better the condition, the more we like them. While my main area of interest is sixpences, I will also buy other coins just because I like'em. And even if a coin is not in my area of interest does not mean that I am unable to appreciate it.

The only thing this forum tends to be hard on is grade. This is a pretty conservative (small c) crowd.

So follow your instinct and collect whatever takes your fancy.

[Mr T 169]

Coin values in a certain part of the market may be subdued but only because of a lack of collectors , in otherwords it does not matter if your coin is rare as hens teath if no one is interesting in collecting it the item WILL NOT SELL AND ITS PRICE WILL ALWAYS BE LOW.

This is why for instance halfpennies are alway sold at a very reasonable price considering their rarity and the ever popular pennies and farthings lead the market.

I'd agree with this sentiment that the unpopular denominations are undervalued, but being unpopular they're probably going to stay undervalued.

[pokal02 43]

I think if Spink etc catalogues took average auction prices for the year, the values would be a bit lower (and more realistic). I don't know if they include dealers' average prices, the problem with this is that all the ridiculous over-grading and silly asking prices (£600+ for a 1927 crown, anyone) get factored in to the average. A lot of even not-very-rare coins would only turn up once a year or not at all though (when's the last time you saw, say, a 1669 crown, or even a Henry VIIi 3rd coinage York groat, in VF) so I suppose there's a lot of guesswork involved.