My introduction... 0

[jle123]

Hello all,
My name is Jay and I have been asked to inventory and get a reasonable value for a collection of coins/silver/gold from my late father-in-law.  He lived and traveled around Europe in the 2000's and collected quite a few Thalers as well as some other world coins.  He also collected US coins - mainly Morgans and Peace dollars.  There is also some silver and gold bullion from various places.

When my he passed, he willed the collection to my wife and the 3 other children.  The collection either needs to be split evenly or sold outright and the proceeds split.  Each one of those options comes with it's own issues...  With that said, I've been doing some research to try to determine approximate values and have quickly become aware that I am no where near experienced enough to try to establish a value to any of these.  I might come close on a few, but I'm sure I will miss a lot.  Basically, I'm smart enough to know that I don't know nearly enough about the numismatic art at this point.

The research has been fun though.  While looking at the Thalers and digging around I have learned a bit about the Habsburg empire as well as the minting process/progress that took place in the Holy Roman Empire around the 15th and 16th centuries.  It's fascinating to see the improvement in the details on the coins over time as the minting methods improved.  Regarding the US coins, I've only begun to scratch the surface.  There is so much to learn.

I really hate that this collection will be split up and/or sold.  While photographing the coins, building the inventory spreadsheets and looking at the purchase dates for a lot of the coins, I realize they took quite a bit of time and money to aquire.

I would like to ask the group if it would be ok for me to post a few picture of coins with some questions (I've read and will try to abide by the rules - I don't want to be "that kid.")  I would appreciate some feedback to help me get a better understanding of what we have and maybe help us (actually, my wife - she's the executrix of the estate) decide how to proceed.  I'm aware that coin dealers and auction houses need to make a profit but I don't want to feel like I got low-balled.  Also, I might want to get advice as to whether it might make sense to send some of these coins off to be professionally graded.  Of course, I could pack them all up and send them off to an auction house but that is not my first choice.  If I had it my way I would crack open my wallet and buy the whole lot.  We shall see...

I'm sure questions like mine have been asked plenty of times in the past and I am thankful for folks that don't mind answering them.

Thanks,
Jay

[Sandon]

    In most if not all jurisdictions, the property of a deceased person's estate must be appraised by a qualified person who has no interest in the estate--which would not include the spouse of a person left property under the will--and the appraisal submitted to the probate court.  Your wife should discuss this with the estate's lawyer. Because of the specialized knowledge involved, coins should be appraised by a coin dealer or other person with substantial experience in numismatics and in this case with world as well as U.S. coins, not by a general personal property appraiser. That person could also provide advice on whether it would be worthwhile for the estate to incur the expenses involved in having any of the coins third party graded and also on how best to distribute or sell the coins.  The appraisal, which would likely be based on retail prices, would give you a guide as to what offers would be reasonable.

   

  

[jle123]

Thanks for the information @Sandon!  We will proceed down that road.  

[GoldFinger1969]

On 1/10/2023 at 2:45 PM, jle123 said:

Hello all, My name is Jay and I have been asked to inventory and get a reasonable value for a collection of coins/silver/gold from my late father-in-law.  He lived and traveled around Europe in the 2000's and collected quite a few Thalers as well as some other world coins.  He also collected US coins - mainly Morgans and Peace dollars.  There is also some silver and gold bullion from various places.

If it is like most collections, 80-90% of the value will be in 10-20% of the coins, especially the gold ones.  So concentrate  there.

You might be able to sell individual coins worth a few $$$ solo and then sell the rest all in one group.  You'll get a fair price and also do it without occupying weeks or months of your time.

Let us know what interesting/valuable coins you find.  Good Luck !! 

Edited January 11, 2023 by GoldFinger1969

[RWB]

A numismatic appraiser will usually work on either a flat fee or a percentage of value (such as wholesale, retail, retention). Do not rely of the person appraising personal property - they almost never know anything about coins or precious metals.

You can make an inventory in advance. This will save time and help the appraiser concentrate on value not shuffling piles of coins. If you preliminary research indicate presence of several rare/expensive coins ($5,000 or greater) you can also consider contacting on of the major auction companies (Heritage, Stacks-Bowere) to see if they are interested in valuing the collection as possible auction material.

Please note that anyone can tell you what they think a coin is worth; only a appraiser can report this to the Court in your late father's jurisdiction.

Edited January 11, 2023 by RWB

[Sandon]

On 1/10/2023 at 9:27 PM, RWB said:

A numismatic appraiser will usually work on either a flat fee or a percentage of value....

   In my experience, an estate appraiser's compensation can't be contingent on the value of the property as determined by the appraiser. This would create an incentive for the appraiser to overvalue the property.

[RWB]

On 1/11/2023 at 8:43 AM, Sandon said:

   In my experience, an estate appraiser's compensation can't be contingent on the value of the property as determined by the appraiser. This would create an incentive for the appraiser to overvalue the property.

True. However, numismatic appraisers hired by attorneys do not appear to follow that rule in the strict sense, particularly if the coins are largely bullion products or highly depreciated NCLT.

[J P M]

On 1/10/2023 at 3:11 PM, Sandon said:

    In most if not all jurisdictions, the property of a deceased person's estate must be appraised by a qualified person who has no interest in the estate--which would not include the spouse of a person left property under the will--and the appraisal submitted to the probate court.  Your wife should discuss this with the estate's lawyer. Because of the specialized knowledge involved, coins should be appraised by a coin dealer or other person with substantial experience in numismatics and in this case with world as well as U.S. coins, not by a general personal property appraiser. That person could also provide advice on whether it would be worthwhile for the estate to incur the expenses involved in having any of the coins third party graded and also on how best to distribute or sell the coins.  The appraisal, which would likely be based on retail prices, would give you a guide as to what offers would be reasonable.

   

  

This thread is making me wonder if leaving my junky coins to my wife and kids is going to be a problem for them?  

[Mr.Bill347]

On 1/11/2023 at 12:18 PM, J P M said:

This thread is making me wonder if leaving my junky coins to my wife and kids is going to be a problem for them?  

For sure JP! I don’t want my kids to end up spending valuable time with mine. I would rather sell them as a lot!

[VKurtB]

On 1/11/2023 at 10:27 AM, RWB said:

True. However, numismatic appraisers hired by attorneys do not appear to follow that rule in the strict sense, particularly if the coins are largely bullion products or highly depreciated NCLT.

I’ve seen too many “appraisers” in Pennsylvania who offer that “service” as a means to acquire the coins at a sick lowball price. It’s endemic.