Key Takeaways
Becoming a coin collector isn’t always a decision you make. If a family member or close friend wills their own collection to you, you may find yourself thrust into the world of numismatics without ever meaning to do so.
If that sounds familiar, welcome! We’re glad to have you join. However, you may not know what to do with your newfound assets.
We’re here to help. Let’s walk through an action plan to help you figure out how to handle an inherited coin collection.
If you’ve just come into a coin collection, avoid cleaning or tampering. Just lay everything out and get a sense of what you’ve got. Take stock of each piece so you know what you’re working with.
These are your first steps:
As you begin to sort and catalogue your new coin collection, pay special attention to anything that seems out of the ordinary. This includes coins with unusual dates, engravings, or foreign origins. You could have a few rare coins in your hand. Mark them for further research or appraisal, as the rarity of a single coin can dramatically impact the overall worth of your collection.
Once you’ve done the above, step back and ask yourself: does this collection mean something to you, or is it all about the market value? Whether you decide to keep, sell, or donate, make sure you do your homework. If selling is the plan, seek out pros who specialize in coins, get more than one expert opinion, and brush up on any tax details before you cash in. You’ll want to consider the following regardless of your plans to keep or sell.
The first thing to do is to get your collection evaluated by a professional. Coin collecting is a matter of small details, and even the most innocuous of features on your coins could translate into tremendous value.
The best way to find a professional is simple enough. A quick web search for coin dealers near you should reveal a list of options.
Now, the list you receive should also come bearing reviews of the dealer’s services. Before you choose your dealer, make sure you look at three different elements of the reviews.
The first is the quantity of reviews that a dealer has received. More is always better, because it indicates longer experience and a track record of serving a broader array of customers.
The second element, however, is the quality of the reviews. Specifically, you should be quite wary of overly positive sets of reviews.
Nobody is perfect, and even the best companies have poor customer experiences from time to time. So, be sure to look at the negative reviews and see how they’ve fallen short.
Bear in mind, though, that customers aren’t always perfect themselves, and some malcontents are bound and determined to spew their unfounded woes wherever they go. So, be sure to read the negative comments and use your common sense about their claims.
If the dealer has a reputation for fair dealing and accurate assessments, it’s probably not a big deal if they are a bit gruff or their shop isn’t particularly impressive. The red flags are claims that the dealer has acted less than honorably before.
Finally, be sure to sort the reviews to show the most recent reviews first. As time goes by, the service and expertise at a shop may get better or worse, so you should give greater credence to newer reviews as evidence of the current status in the store.
After the evaluation/appraisal, you have a couple of options for each coin. You can either keep it or sell it.
If you decide to sell all or a part of the collection, your first place to explore is the very dealer that appraised and evaluated it. However, if you want to maximize the value you receive for each coin you sell, you’ll likely get better offers online because online coin and precious metals dealers (like JM Bullion) are in constant competition with one another. When there’s always competitive pressure, the consumer invariably benefits.
You can also keep any portion of the collection that you like. Truth be told, most investors and dealers are going to prioritize certain pieces in the collection over others as potential purchases, so you might decide to keep some of the lesser pieces for sentimental reasons.
We want to stress that there’s no ticking clock on this plan. You can sell all, some, or none of your collection at any time, and you can always change your mind whenever you want.
However, if you decide to keep your coins, it’s important that you understand how to care for them properly.
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Even though you didn’t choose the coin life, the coin life chose you. So, embrace it. There are coin collectors’ clubs across the world, and these allow you to rub shoulders with the most experienced collectors in your area. If you’re looking to sell your coins, these are potential buyers – but, at the very least, you’ll have a whole new group of friends.