Torched
Private
Updated:
4/24/2025
Views: 157
This collection is my first dedicated attempt at putting together a mint state set of coins. My other collections consist of proof coins including Lincoln cents, Jefferson nickels & Kennedy half dollars.
One of the attractions of putting together those collections has been the expense. You can get a really good start on a modern era proof collection by purchasing such coins in top-grade very inexpensively from EBAY.
I innocently thought that would be the case for this collection. Boy howdy was I wrong. I decided to take up the challenge practically on the eeny meany miney mo, buy low, sell high principal. The set isn’t as popular as others with collectors. For example, the first three coins I purchased put my collection in the top 50 of registry sets listed on NGC.
I naively believed that the lack of overall popularity for Roosevelt dimes would equal good prices on EBAY. As of today’s date, (1/25/2024) that has not been true. Most of the listings on EBAY are overpriced too insanely overpriced. Many of the sellers want, at minimum, twice the NGC book value of an offering. This has been especially true of the top graded SMS coins from 2005 forward. Most have an NGC book value of about $30.00-$70.00 with only one priced at more than $150.00. This has not stopped sellers from trying to gouge the purchasing public for as much as $150.00, $300.00, and more for such coins. The sellers of PCGS versions of the SMS coins offer far better if still higher than PCGS book value prices.
One or more of the companies selling Roosevelt dimes puts a garish brown and/or yellow and/or blue green sticker on the slab claiming such accolades as, Finest, MAC (whatever that means), MAC SOLO, MAC 90FT, and others. They then try selling the coin for anywhere from two to three times or more the NGC price guide value. Most slabbed coins with CAC stickers don’t get that kind of premium.
As an example, a coin may have a book value of $500.00. This company or these companies put their sticker on the slab and advertise the coin at, say $1,250.00. When it inevitably doesn't sell, they reduce the price maybe to $1,000.00. You buy the coin. You just paid twice its NCG or PCGS book value.
Worse yet, realized auction prices for most coins are almost always a lot lower than NGC or PCGS guide valuations.
Another seller who is hawking NGC slabbed dimes deceptively advertises PCGS population reports and prices for those coins. The seller does not specify that the advertised populations and prices are from PCGS and not NGC. The seller offers the NGC graded dimes at "reduced" prices from the PCGS book valuation.
In every instance the PCGS population of the coins is significantly lower than the NGC population. And the "reduced" prices are 50% or more higher than the NGC valuations.
I sent an email to the seller asking about this practice. I specified one 1985-D MS 68 FT dime where he was advertising a population of 3. The NGC population was 24. He advertised a book value of $1,750.00 and wanted $1,350.00. I noted that the NGC price guide for the NGC graded coin was $125.00. Unsurprisingly, the seller never responded or changed his advertising or pricing practices.
The poor soul who purchases coins from such sellers is never going to get back anything close to what he paid when it comes time for him or his heirs to sell.
Basically, all of this blather, blather is a long-winded way of saying that putting this collection together at a good and fair price is going to be far more difficult than any of my previous forays.
No doubt, some EBAY listings will offer good prices. However, I expect that, in order to get the fairest prices, most of the coins I purchase for this collection will come from Great Collections, Heritage Auctions, Stack’s Bowers and others instead of EBAY.
Please also let this serve as a warning to any new collectors. Do your research and avoid those who would gouge you out of your hard-earned money.
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