Error Coins

[Larry Dreher]

Does anybody here have advice on how thay would value error coins? I collect Pandas and somebody had listed a double strike panda on ebay. It was a huge double strike with an offset of almost 1/3 the diameter of the coin.

 

I was interested in it but couldn't convice myself to pay the starting bid price of $300. The auction eventually ended with no bids so I guess nobody else thought it was worth $300 either.

 

The broader question I want to thow out to is what guidelines if any would be in place to help me figure out what a fair price on an item like that might be.

[cpm9ball]

It's difficult to put a price on an error coin, especially if it is a new one on the market. It all boils down to how much the buyer wants the coin and how much they are willing to pay to get it. The Kennedy half on my sig line is an example. One dealer offered me $1,000 for it raw, but a few months later another one surfaced. At first, the seller put it on eBay for a $750 starting bid and he had no takers. Eventually, he relisted it and it sold for $555. Even though both of these errors are probably the only ones in existence, that is quite a spread in price, $555-$1000.

 

You have to keep in mind that the seller might be anxious to unload it. His original starting bid for the Panda might have been "pie in the sky" and he was just hoping to get lucky. If you are really interested in it, send him an e-mail and make him what you believe to be a reasonable offer. All he can do is say "No!".

 

Chris

[EZ_E]

Excellent advice, Chris, and very well stated!

[HaydenTubbs]

Do you have a link to this auction?

[Larry Dreher]

Do you have a link to this auction?

 

Are you trying to steal it from me

 

The auction is now done but I think I still have it linked in my watch list. I can't provide that link to you until tonight since I can't access eBay from the account I'm now on.

 

I did send a private message to the seller asking if he'd consider a lower price but I haven't heard back.

[physics-fan3.14]

The thing with coins, and especially errors, is that the price is really dependent on how badly you want it. It could be one of a kind and unique, like the off center clipped half cent in another thread right now, but if you don't want it, then it is worthless to you. So, the question you need to ask yourself, is this coin worth $300 to you? Also, you need to be careful because while Ebay is a great place, there are some unscrupulous dealers who will list things for way over their real value, hoping some sucker will pony up and make them rich. So, while I don't know the details of your specific coin, it pays to be careful.

[Larry Dreher]

you need to be careful because while Ebay is a great place, there are some unscrupulous dealers who will list things for way over their real value, hoping some sucker will pony up and make them rich.

 

You shouldn't say that about Hayden's auctions...

 

Just kidding Hayden

 

I was worried about the same thing (not wanting to get ripped off). You see so many coins listed on eBay at stupid starting prices that I wonder who buys them. At any point there might be twenty 2006 pandas listed betwen $15 to $18 but then you find a few listed with a buy it now price of $29. Who buys enough of those to make it worth even the listing fees?

[Larry Dreher]

Here is a picture of the coin I was talking about

[EZ_E]

Cool Coin! [Hey, that's an alliteration... ]

 

If $300 isn't a big chunk of change to you then it would be worth it if it strikes your fancy.

[cpm9ball]

Cool Coin! [Hey, that's an alliteration... ]

 

If $300 isn't a big chunk of change to you then it would be worth it if it strikes your fancy.

 

Let's say that you are willing to pay $150. Make an offer of $75 and negotiate from there. If he gripes about low-ball offers, apologize and be nice. You shouldn't ask him what he would be willing to accept, because that keeps him in control of the negotiation. If he really wants to sell it, you should be able to find a middle ground that is acceptable to both of you.

 

Chris

[Larry Dreher]

I offered him $200 which was the most I thought I was willing to pay and he said no. Now that I don't have it though I'm starting to lose the self control. It's probably not "worth" $300 but how often are you going to come across an error panda? I may break down and offer him his asking price. It's not like I'd plan to sell it any time soon anyway so I don't really need to worry about getting my money back.

[Coin]

Larry , with Ebay in particular , I've noticed a trend that some sellers follow. If an item ( this is subjective , but - if it seems to be priced a bit too high) listed for a seemingly large original starting bid and got zero bids , some sellers re-list it and start it off anew at the same or a lower starting bid . If it still does not have any takers ...(I've even tracked a few sellers doing this) ...at some point in time , they seem to give up on pie-in-the-sky and decide to let the market decide the price by starting it out way lower or at only a dollar .

Keep in mind , on the auctions I tracked , they end up 50/50 with about half selling at a lower price and the other half selling at a final bid higher than the original first starting bid. I can only account for the higher sales being due to 'bidding wars' between buyers that had to have it....even seen one or two that looked like phishing bids(forgot the right name for this shameful act) were submitted to drive up the price .

 

I won a Barber half by following the listing game on one seller and ended up getting it for what I felt was a fair price versus the the original starting price that looked like it came off one of those pricing guide pages from it's original auction that had no bidders.

-John

[HaydenTubbs]

 

You shouldn't say that about Hayden's auctions...

 

 

Hey wise guy,all of my auction start at 99c,so there is no possible way I could list them for over their real value...Hey,wait a minute now!

 

Are you saying my junk,er,monster toners aren't even worth a buck!?!

 

 

 

 

Actually,if you no longer have any interest in that coin and you'd be willing to PM me the auction there is a chance that I might be interested in it.Of course you saw it first so if you're going to go ahead and take it at his asking price that's cool too.

Cheers!

 

Hayden

[Larry Dreher]

Ok, Now you helped me make up my mind. I'm going to go groveling back to him and see what I can do. I'm in a good mood today. I got a PF70 UC on my 1994 panda I just submitted.

 

If he refuses to talk with me, I'll let you take a shot. One of us should get it.

[EZ_E]

I think that's a good idea except for the grovelling part. I like the coin, alot. And the Panda series is a great one that will always be popular. I doubt that you'll go wrong here.

[HaydenTubbs]

Ok, Now you helped me make up my mind. I'm going to go groveling back to him and see what I can do. I'm in a good mood today. I got a PF70 UC on my 1994 panda I just submitted.

 

If he refuses to talk with me, I'll let you take a shot. One of us should get it.

 

Cool,thanks Larry.

[cpm9ball]

Ok, Now you helped me make up my mind. I'm going to go groveling back to him and see what I can do. I'm in a good mood today. I got a PF70 UC on my 1994 panda I just submitted.

 

If he refuses to talk with me, I'll let you take a shot. One of us should get it.

 

There is one other alternative. You could give us the site and we could all send him offers under $200. Maybe he would begin to think that your offer was not too bad, after all! On the other hand, maybe he is lurking on these boards!

 

C H R I S

[Larry Dreher]

Ok, He's sending me an invoice for his full asking price of $299. I'm planning on having it slabbed at NGC to match the rest of my pandas. I'll post a picture when I get it. Thanks for the lively conversation and prodding me into the purchase. If you had all told me $300 was crazy, I would have missed it and probably regretted it years from now.

[EZ_E]

Cool! I feel comfortable with your decision.

[Beijim]

In my opinion, regret is worse than the minor twinge you feel when you wonder if you paid too much. I think you made the right decision. The worst that happens is you tire of the coin and unload it, perhaps at a small loss. In the long run, who cares? You enjoyed the acquisition. It's only money.

 

Now if you'd paid $14K for a moster toned Peace, I would've been concerned...

 

Beijim

[Larry Dreher]

Here is the coin I just received. I've attached the image. How can I display the image without attaching it?

[Larry Dreher]

Ok, That didn't work. Try this...

[Grumps]

Awesome! Definately a keepsake!

 

Greg

[Bruceswar]

 

Thats a really cool coin if you ask me .....

[Larry Dreher]

How did you put that picture inline?

[Bruceswar]

First you will need to make the post using it as an attachment. Then once posted, click on the attachment and copy the link of the image. Then go back and edit your post and add the picture by using the image button. Its under instance UBB Code. Hope this helps.

[Larry Dreher]

Yep. I can take it from there. It's kind of a round about way but I can figure it out.