Figuring out inheritance. 0

[J. Morgan Sr]

With the passing of a member of the family, I have become the caretaker of a coin, stamp, and comic book collection so vast it filled up my car.  I had to take all of my guns out of the 12 gun safe to securely store it all.  I am looking for a shop or group in the Memphis TN or Tulsa OK area to give advice on the cataloging of it. The coins are all 50 years Old and older.. comics look to be 60s- early 80s

[GoldFinger1969]

On 10/30/2022 at 6:06 PM, J. Morgan Sr said:

With the passing of a member of the family, I have become the caretaker of a coin, stamp, and comic book collection so vast it filled up my car.  I had to take all of my guns out of the 12 gun safe to securely store it all.  I am looking for a shop or group in the Memphis TN or Tulsa OK area to give advice on the cataloging of it. The coins are all 50 years Old and older.. comics look to be 60s- early 80s

As a general rule, probably 80% of the value is in 20% of the stuff.  Might even be 90%.

Focus on the obvious:  gold or silver coins.  Classic comics.  Use Ebay, HA, and GC to punch up some current or recent sales or offering prices. 

Gold and silver coins are the easy pickings monetarily to figure out but some small denomination U.S. coins cold be valuable, too.  Will require more digging.

Edited October 31, 2022 by GoldFinger1969

[VKurtB]

Are the coins all U.S., or are there foreign included?

[Coinbuf]

Welcome to the forum, sorry to hear of the passing of your family member.   On the main NGC website is a dealer locator Find a dealer; the locator uses your zip code and will give you the information of any NGC authorized dealers in your area, if any exist.   Unfortunately I live on the west coast so I cannot be of any direct help, also very few coin dealers are going to be able to help with comics for that I suggest you do a google search for any comic book dealers in your area.   Best of luck, if you have any questions or would like to double check any valuations of your coins you can post photos of each coin (one at a time) and the members here will do their best to provide you with information and grade/value assessments if possible.

I would also suggest that you get a copy of the Redbook, this is a publication that has mintages and other useful information on every US coin.   That will help you to know if any dealer that you visit is being honest and forthright with you on what you have.

[JT2]

On 10/30/2022 at 6:06 PM, J. Morgan Sr said:

oin, stamp, and

Stamp collection....  I used to be heavy into stamp collecting..   the only thing no one even sends snail mail anymore.   well anyway i found myself more and more involved with my coins then i did with my stamps and the collection sat un attended for years.  i decided to unload them knowing that i would never get what i put into them back.   I got a hold of Mystic Stamp and they sent the boxes i took one last time to look at  them and sent them away.  they only thing most dealers are interested in is the back of the Book stuff mostly air mails and revenues.   If you have anything with in the first 200 Scott numbers in mint they are interested and or the Columbians and Zeppelins.   Anything after around 1930 you only get face value if they are mint so be prepared for that.  I did have a lot of early stuff in the 1 - 100 range so i did make a little money back.  i by no means broke even with the way the declining stamp prices have been since the late 90's   there is still money to be made with the rare ones but that is few and far between..  hope it helps

[JKK]

If you take the coins to a dealer, be prepared for some disappointing news. Obviously I do not know what's in your collection, but it can take a very long time to go through a coin collection and for most dealers it doesn't make sense to dump out every wheat penny roll in hopes of finding a key date. Combine that with the fact that dealers will generally pay about half projected retail for US coins of numismatic merit, and far less for world coins, and you can see a collection of six big binders and a bunch of loose mint and proof sets get a $1500 offer and find yourself asking: "What? Is that all?" The answer is that maybe it's worth more than that to a collector, but not to a dealer who needs to get through the project (for which he is not yet being paid) and continue serving customers. ("But what about this whole coffee can full of S pennies! Aren't those rare?" "Mostly no. I'm not going through them all." "Then how do you know?" "Same way I know I'm not going to win the lottery. The odds. But if you want to pay me $50 an hour, I'll be glad to look at every f-bombing penny." "That's outrageous!" "Then take them someplace else. I'm no longer interested.")

The alternative is to try and sell them to a collector. That has its own issues, starting with advertising them and then trusting the buyers. I've met people at McDonalds to buy coins when I could see a confederate outside the glass keeping a close eye on me lest I pull some sort of a fast one. How is a collector going to appraise a collection in detail when it's spread out across a dining table at Denny's? The alternative is your place or theirs; are you willing to bring it to the house of someone you don't know? To have them come to yours? The best way to deal with that is to find your local coin club and see if anyone's interested in the collection; failing that, you could actually pay an experienced numismatist to estimate its value. Obviously if you spend $200 to learn that the collection might get $800 from a dealer, that's not so encouraging. Even so, going to your local club is one of the better ways because people know them. Anyone who had a history of ripping people off would be known and unpopular in a decent club.

Unless you have some big value stuff, don't expect much interest from auction houses. I helped a lady unload her father's gold and platinum collection, which netted her $150K, and we were not a very important piece of business for any auction house. We were treated well, but no one sucked up to us or seemed like they'd be bothered if we went elsewhere. So if yours might be worth $2K and contains a bunch of shoeboxes of loose unsorted stuff, from an auction standpoint the answer is almost surely nyet.

Then there is the tendency for our deceased relatives (and yes, I have had some of my own in this boat) to have seemed like great numismatists to their own families (where they knew more than anyone else around, thus seeming expert), but for the truth to out that they really did not know so much. I'm not making any judgment on your relative, for whom condolences are proper, just speaking in general terms so that you don't blow your stack at the dealer or collector if you find out that many of the otherwise potentially valuable coins were cleaned, mis-attributed, improperly stored, overpaid for, and so on. See it from their perspective. They get no joy out of telling you what they see, especially at a time when there are raw feelings and high expectations--but failure to tell you the honest truth is its own form of betrayal. There's no need for someone to be a jackwagon about it, but the coin collecting world has quite a few people who aren't social butterflies. Some have no tact, and live by a rule that says "I may be a jerk to people, and if they don't like that, they can just deal with it because I'm never at fault." This isn't Toastmasters, and we've got what we've got.

This post is a good example of the truth with the bark on. Most of it is not very encouraging. That's because I know how this road looks, as a buyer and as a seller, and have seen how far apart both sides can be. If you at least know of those possibilities, you won't be as shocked if you experience them yourself. There's got to be a coin club at one of those cities where there are honest people who will either evaluate your collection for purchase, or appraise it for a fee with no expectation of purchase, and whose standing among their peers depends upon a reputation for integrity.

[EagleRJO]

Welcome to the forum and my condolences on your loss.

There are some auction companies that handle all three of the distinctly different categories of items you inherited (coins, stamps and comics) such as Heritage Auctions, but they are probably not interested in common lower value items. There are also estate sale companies, but they often only want to give you pennies on the dollar as its commonly just a shot in the dark for them or they see a few items they can cherry pick. You might be better off going to local dealers as suggested by others and may find some that handle both stamps and coins. They may ask for a list of items with descriptions first, so you may need to do that. Also be prepared for pretty low numbers or disinterest in many items, particularly with common loose coins and stamp collections, which happened to me when I inherited similar items including a large stamp collection, so I just kept them.

Good luck and maybe let us know how it works out for you, or if maybe you decide to keep some of the coins and pick that up as a hobby.

Edited October 31, 2022 by EagleRJO

[VKurtB]

JKK said it all. Liquidating a family member’s holdings WILL AT SOME POINT make you feel like you’re being taken, but probably you are not. There are many collections that contain little of interest, but a few collections that are bonanzas. 

[JKK]

On 10/31/2022 at 9:10 AM, VKurtB said:

JKK said it all. Liquidating a family member’s holdings WILL AT SOME POINT make you feel like you’re being taken, but probably you are not. There are many collections that contain little of interest, but a few collections that are bonanzas. 

And one can even go further and see why they might think that. To them, the great fear is that a chiseler will give them pennies on the dollar and make Major Bank. It is not in their power to know who is such a chiseler, thus even reputable dealers might seem suspicious.

If we need an example of why, there are lots of longtime "reputable" auto dealerships around that make a big deal of being no-dicker, no-hassle, and so forth, trying to seem like Alternatives To Those Other Greedy Skum Beings, all of whom turn out to be in fact actual standard car dealerships with standard auto dealership ethics. The bereaved, who have generally dealt with car dealers, expect our world to work something like that. Loins are girded up for battle, but the suddenly-novice-collectors don't own the weapons it would take to win, so it's mostly a show of empty warning. I feel for them, enough to write practically a book helping them find a good option, hoping to show that some of us live by strong ethical codes.

And it's hard enough for them when they are not grieving, but a part of them hopes no one would take advantage of grief while probably having enough healthy distrust of the human species to realize that oh yes, lots of people would do exactly that and have zero conscience about it. Interestingly, I find women to be more prone to trust someone in this situation. A reasonable and possible interpretation there would be that they are picking up on something and are more attuned to trusting the nonverbal/intuitive cues. Maybe part of it is also just wanting to believe that someone indeed can be trusted, and willing to bet the proceeds on that.

[VKurtB]

On 10/31/2022 at 12:47 PM, JKK said:

And one can even go further and see why they might think that. To them, the great fear is that a chiseler will give them pennies on the dollar and make Major Bank. It is not in their power to know who is such a chiseler, thus even reputable dealers might seem suspicious.

If we need an example of why, there are lots of longtime "reputable" auto dealerships around that make a big deal of being no-dicker, no-hassle, and so forth, trying to seem like Alternatives To Those Other Greedy Skum Beings, all of whom turn out to be in fact actual standard car dealerships with standard auto dealership ethics. The bereaved, who have generally dealt with car dealers, expect our world to work something like that. Loins are girded up for battle, but the suddenly-novice-collectors don't own the weapons it would take to win, so it's mostly a show of empty warning. I feel for them, enough to write practically a book helping them find a good option, hoping to show that some of us live by strong ethical codes.

And it's hard enough for them when they are not grieving, but a part of them hopes no one would take advantage of grief while probably having enough healthy distrust of the human species to realize that oh yes, lots of people would do exactly that and have zero conscience about it. Interestingly, I find women to be more prone to trust someone in this situation. A reasonable and possible interpretation there would be that they are picking up on something and are more attuned to trusting the nonverbal/intuitive cues. Maybe part of it is also just wanting to believe that someone indeed can be trusted, and willing to bet the proceeds on that.

My best advice ALWAYS, but particularly to those who have lost a loved one is “DO NOT BE IN A HURRY”. There is zero value in rushing. Probably NEGATIVE value. The time you take learning about the estate is the best time you’ll spend, both financially and emotionally. 

[JKK]

On 10/31/2022 at 12:36 PM, VKurtB said:

My best advice ALWAYS, but particularly to those who have lost a loved one is “DO NOT BE IN A HURRY”. There is zero value in rushing. Probably NEGATIVE value. The time you take learning about the estate is the best time you’ll spend, both financially and emotionally. 

I tend to agree from the standpoint of maximum return. The goad that pushes them forward is often the desire to get an estate closed out (you know this, but some others may not have thought of it), so that the process of reducing a life to a bank balance can be complete and the proceeds divvied. This might be especially true as a calendar year winds down, with an executor wanting it done before year-end.

[VKurtB]

On 10/31/2022 at 3:08 PM, JKK said:

I tend to agree from the standpoint of maximum return. The goad that pushes them forward is often the desire to get an estate closed out (you know this, but some others may not have thought of it), so that the process of reducing a life to a bank balance can be complete and the proceeds divvied. This might be especially true as a calendar year winds down, with an executor wanting it done before year-end.

Haste breeds waste. I’ve seen first hand the tragedy of hurrying closing an estate more times than I care to count. It’s almost always a horrible idea. 

Edited October 31, 2022 by VKurtB

[RWB]

On 10/31/2022 at 4:08 PM, JKK said:

I tend to agree from the standpoint of maximum return. The goad that pushes them forward is often the desire to get an estate closed out (you know this, but some others may not have thought of it), so that the process of reducing a life to a bank balance can be complete and the proceeds divvied. This might be especially true as a calendar year winds down, with an executor wanting it done before year-end.

Settling an Estate comes down to just 4 tasks: 1) Inventory, 2) Valuation, 3) Distribution, and 4) General Accounts.

The person appointed Executor/Personal Representative needs to prepare a complete inventory of the Estate based on categories or official form types used in the decadent's jurisdiction of residence. If the OP is the Executor or is preparing an inventory of the named collections for the Executor, that must be completed first. Following inventory, the Executor has to obtain a financially valid appraisal; the appraisal must have expertise in this type of work and it is common for there to be wide variation among appraisals. (Example: Granny dies leaving 2 large cabinets filled with Hummel figurines. Granny valued these highly and occasionally boasted of their high worth. These objects, evaluated absent Granny's opinions, might be fairly valued at cost, or at present market value, or at auction value, or as worthless if scratched by Granny's cat. All are valid and supportable within an Estate.)

So.....find an Estate and Trust attorney and follow their instructions.

Edited November 1, 2022 by RWB

[VKurtB]

On 11/1/2022 at 10:34 AM, RWB said:

Settling an Estate comes down to just 4 tasks: 1) Inventory, 2) Valuation, 3) Distribution, and 4) General Accounts.

The person appointed Executor/Personal Representative needs to prepare a complete inventory of the Estate based on categories or official form types used in the decadent's jurisdiction of residence. If the OP is the Executor or is preparing an inventory of the named collections for the Executor, that must be completed first. Following inventory, the Executor has to obtain a financially valid appraisal; the appraisal must have expertise in this type of work and it is common for there to be wide variation among appraisals. (Example: Granny dies leaving 2 large cabinets filled with Hummel figurines. Granny valued these highly and occasionally boasted of their high worth. These objects, evaluated absent Granny's opinions, might be fairly valued at cost, or at present market value, or at auction value, or as worthless if scratched by Granny's cat. All are valid and supportable within an Estate.)

So.....find an Estate and Trust attorney and follow their instructions.

I wish I could like this post 10 times. Distribution includes HOW assets are sold, no? My father died with a very rare automobile, actually two, that my sister nearly GAVE away. She got conned by a slick operator. Absolutely ZERO “due diligence”.  

Edited November 1, 2022 by VKurtB

[GoldFinger1969]

On 11/1/2022 at 11:49 AM, VKurtB said:

I wish I could like this post 10 times. Distribution includes HOW assets are sold, no? My father died with a very rare automobile, actually two, that my sister nearly GAVE away. She got conned by a slick operator. Absolutely ZERO “due diligence”.  

Didn't you mention over the years to your sister that the car(s) were valuable ?

[Sandon]

    Although some of the members have given @J. Morgan Sr some good advice on handling a numismatic estate, only one has referred him to a dealer directory (NGC's) from which he might find a suitable dealer in the Memphis or Tulsa areas.  Coin World also has a dealer directory that can be searched by location at Home Page | Coin World - Find a coin, bullion, medal, and paper money dealer (right click for menu to open). The Professional Numismatists Guild (PNG), which is an organization of high-end dealers who are required to abide by a code of ethics and fulfill other membership requirements, also has a directory of its dealers at Find A PNG Dealer (memberclicks.net) (also right click for menu to open).  Unfortunately, I don't know any dealers from those areas myself.  

    I assume that @J. Morgan Srdoesn't know from whom his relative purchased his coins or much about coins or how much he spent on them.  I agree that he should purchase a current or recent "Redbook" (A Guide Book of United States Coins, 2023 edition is most current) to try to sort possibly valuable items from those that are likely of low value and not worthy of separate appraisal.  This book can be purchased from its publisher at whitman.com or through other sellers such as Coin World's affiliate at amosadvantage.com. (The latter also sells the Scott stamp catalogs.)  As the coins are over 50 years old, he should be aware that any U.S. dime, quarter, or half dollar dated 1964 or before is composed of 90% silver alloy and currently worth about 15 times face value in silver alone, that half dollars from 1965-70 are 40% silver and also worth a premium, and that all silver dollars (dated through 1935) are also 90% silver and generally worth some premium over silver value. Obviously, any coins composed of gold are valuable. (Rare dates or varieties of coins in any metal may be valuable as well.)   If there are foreign coins, he should also be on the lookout for pieces that may be gold or silver. The NGC World Coin Price Guide may be found under the "Resources" tab and "Price Guides" menu on the NGC home page.

   I hope this helps.

[VKurtB]

On 11/1/2022 at 11:14 AM, GoldFinger1969 said:

Didn't you mention over the years to your sister that the car(s) were valuable ?

She knew. She didn’t care. She was the only beneficiary and she wanted “her money now”.