WikiCoins:Don't Sell Your Coin Collection Until You Read This

When you get you ready to sell your coin collection, you want to get the largest amount possible, right? There are some things you should and shouldn’t do, to avoid leaving money on the table. Some tried and true tactics for getting the most for your coin collection follow; don’t sell your coin collection until you read this article!

Don’t rush the process. In other words, don’t allow coin dealers to get the impression that you are looking for a quick sale or a forced sale. A coin seller who is in a hurry will usually get 20% to 30% less. Plan on the process taking up to 30 days, or possibly longer, if you have a very large, rare or complex collection. Consider marketing the coin collection to more than one coin buyer and give them sufficient time to fund their purchase.

Sell at optimal times. Traditional coin-selling seasons include January, when numismatists gather at the FUN (Florida United Numismatists) show in Florida. The ANA (American Numismatists Association) is usually held in July or August and will be in Chicago in 2013. The idea is that you can usually get more for your collection when buyers aren’t overly distracted with other matters but instead have coin collecting on their minds.

Consider having your graded coins certified by CAC. If you happen to have professionally graded coins in your coin collection and want to increase your chances of a high payout, you might want to send your higher end coins (within each grade) to Certified Acceptance Corporation (CAC). Non-CAC coins don’t typically sell as for as much as those which have CAC stickers, since the organization’s strict grading standards certify higher end or premium coins within each grade.

Polish the presentation. Any coin that’s in a beat-up holder will not appear to be anything special, and it won’t inspire buyers to pay top dollar. It’s very possible that presentation can make a big difference in the amount of profit you get from the sale of your coin collection. If your coin is in a certified holder from PCGS or NGC, consider sending your coin in to have it re-slabbed.

Consider certifying the coins in your collection. You would feel like a schmuck if you sold your coin collection for little to nothing and later found out it was worth tens of thousands of dollars or more, perhaps because of the rarity and/or condition of one particular coin. A good option is to have your coins professionally graded and certified by one of the leading third party grading companies, such as Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (NGC), if you aren’t familiar with how to grade the coins yourself.

Leave instructions for your heirs. It’s not unusual for someone to receive a valuable coin collection as an inheritance and then sell it for far below its value because of a lack of knowledge about coins. Whether your coin collection is specifically intended as an inheritance or simply in the event of your unexpected demise, take some time to write in detail whatever information will help your beneficiaries get top dollar for your coin collection.

Consider selling your coins online. If you have difficulty finding a local coin dealer who is interested in your collection, don’t lose heart. It can take time to find the right buyer. Consider selling your collection to an online coin dealer or a coin dealer that conducts business through the mail. Just be sure to check the coin dealer’s standing with the Better Business Bureau before entering into a transaction.

Whether your coin collection was your labor of love or someone else’s who passed it on to you, there is money to be made in selling it. The more you understand about the value of the individual coins in your collection, the more confident you will be as you formulate an asking price for selling your coin collection. All of the above tips can help, but perhaps none is as important as taking the time to get it right. Atlanta Gold & Coin Buyers