> Need some advice on coin collecting as an investment.?

Need some advice on coin collecting as an investment.?

Posted at: 2014-12-05 
Coins tend to trade at fairly large bid/offer spreads. If you buy at auction, the auction firm adds a 15% to 17.5% premium. That makes it tough to profit over a relatively short 5 year holding period.

If you really want to pursue this, you must learn to grade coins, not just trust the grade on the PCGS holder. There are books on the topic (ex: ANA grading guide) and some online info (link below). Neither is a full replacement for examining coins in person.

Look at a major auction site like Heritage as a way to see many coins and some idea of prices. They have price history dating back several years.

Don't buy anything until you have some education. I'd also avoid modern coins - not rare, never going to be rare.

Obviously gold and silver coins have a value based on the price for the metal used as well as numismatic value. The only other criteria are scarcity - the less that is minted - the more valuable the coin will be and the other consideration is to avoid coins that are never circulated but stuffed into coin collections immediately. Look commemoratives or proof sets etc. If a coin was in circulation, then the majority of those coins are worn or uncollectible.

Coin collecting is seldom an investment; it's almost always a HOBBY. if you want a legitimate investment, buy something else. Like stock.

I'm looking into investing in coins. I'm familiar with PCGS and NGC I also know the goal is to buy the highest grade possible. However what I need a little clarification on is what type of coins should I invest in right now? I basically would like something stable that could increase in value over the next 5 years but will at least remain stable price wise. Should I look at modern, early 1900s, 1800s? And then what type gold, silver, copper?

I would like to spend upto 3,000 on this investment this year. Should I buy 1 3k coin or smaller value coins?