A FUN Start to 2007

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A FUN Start to 2007

 

A guest article from NumisMedia

 

The FUN Show was considered a tremendous success by a

majority of dealers and collectors in attendance. Some

thought the timing of the show could hurt overall

sales because it was the first week of the year.

However, attendance was strong throughout as buyers

and sellers traded coins fast and furious; retail

sales were solid as collectors came to not only see

what was available, but to purchase coins they wanted

for their collections. Dealers catering to the public

were very pleased with the final results.

 

Dealers buying and selling strictly with other dealers

were very aggressive from the opening of the show

until the very end. Most evenings some dealers nearly

had to be run out of the show because they were not

done with the day’s trades. If you could not make

money in this market, it may be time to look for other

employment. Although, some dealers feel there is an

air of suspense in this market. Which coins are primed

to move higher and which are likely to struggle

throughout the year? This is the question that will be

answered as 2007 develops.

 

As for the major auctions held just before and during

the FUN Convention, according to dollar volume, they

will go down in history as the highest total of prices

realized in a one week period. In the neighborhood of

$85 million in rare coins and currency were sold in

three major auctions. Superior Galleries knocked down

just over $2 million, while Stack’s realized $7.4

million. Adding to this total is the newest record,

set by Heritage Auction Galleries, again, at slightly

over $75 million besting their previous record of

nearly $62 million at the 2005 FUN Sale. Where does

all this money come from and how does the market

support this kind of volume?

 

With this much money spent in auctions there are

certainly a number of highlights to report. We will

list a select few to show the willingness to spend big

bucks on just the right coins. In the Superior Sale an

1879 Flowing Hair $4 Gold sold for $82,800 in NGC

PR58. They also sold an 1862 $5 Gold Liberty in PCGS

PR64 Cameo for $47,150. The very next lot was an 1869

$5 Gold in PCGS PR65 Cameo that realized the same

$47,150. Superior also auctioned two 1776 Continental

Dollars, one in PCGS AU58 and the other in PCGS MS64;

they realized $44,850 and $138,000, respectively.

 

The Stack’s Sale was full of key date rarities and

many brought levels that were near or above the

current FMV prices. A 1918/7 D Buffalo Nickel in NGC

MS63 realized $55,200; the 1918/7 S Standing Liberty

Quarter in PCGS MS65 brought $100,625 and the same

date in MS62 Full Head graded by PCGS sold for

$57,500; a very rare 1922 Matte PR25 Peace Dollar

graded by PCGS was sold for $27,600; a 1908 PR66 $5

Indian realized $63,250 as certified by PCGS; an 1801

$10 Gold in NGC MS63 was taken home by a happy bidder

at $49,450; a superb 1866 with Motto $10 Gold in NGC

PR66 Cameo was hammered at $109,250; and just maybe

the highlight of the sale was the 1870 $20 Gold in

PCGS PR66, which realized $368,000.

 

The Heritage FUN Sale was everything you could imagine

when hosting an auction of this magnitude. The number

of true rarities and the prices realized were

phenomenal. The high grade $10 Indian and $20 Saints

will cause us to revise our FMV prices for these rare

date issues. In some cases, we will be able to post

FMV levels for the first time where we had no listings

prior to this sale. The 1907 $20 Gold Ultra High

Relief with Lettered Edge, in PCGS PR68 changed hands

at $1,840,000 and the 1839/8 $10 Gold, Type of 1838,

in NGC Ultra Cameo PR67 realized a healthy $1,610,000.

Another High Relief in PCGS MS69 sold for $546,250;

while a 1933 $10 Indian in PCGS MS65 finished at

$546,250; a Rolled Rim 1907 $10 Indian sold for

$402,500 in PCGS MS67; and a 1920 S $10 Indian was

taken off the market at $402,500 in PCGS MS66. It was

a wonderful week for collectors with the wherewithal

to afford these coins. Please visit the websites of

the auction companies to view the entire prices

realized for each auction.

 

Over the last several years millions of dollars have

been pouring into numismatics as thousands of dealers,

collectors, and frankly, investors feel that this is

one of the best markets for cash reserves. In

addition, the potential for profits is well above any

other form of savings or investing. Granted, you need

to take baby steps as you learn about the nuances of

buying coins; it is a tricky business and we all need

to learn which coins have potential versus the ones

that may remain stagnant or dwindle in value over

time. As intelligent buyers you need to know which

grading services command the greatest respect and

potentially the highest value for your coins. This is

one of the easiest aspects of the coin business.

Simply call around the country and ask dealers which

coins they favor when it comes to buying and selling.

The overwhelming answer is NGC and PCGS. Any other

grading service is normally discounted from these two

services.

 

Bear in mind, the leading factor in more buyers

entering the coin market over the last few years is

the confidence in the grading of coins by NGC and

PCGS. Without their expertise and solid reputations,

the coin market today would be little different than

it was in the early 70s. Along with their grading

expertise, we are afforded census reports that offer

additional information about availability of all coins

within a specific grade. These reports have become

invaluable tools when it comes to searching out

understated rarities. We have used these reports many

times when trying to determine the FMV for specific

coins when little information can be found. Sometimes

the most common coins listed by their original mintage

figures may be that rare diamond in the rough, so to

speak. More and more dealers and collectors are using

the census reports to identify future rarities that

may still be undervalued as listed by our current FMV

prices.

 

Earlier we alluded to the overall condition of the

coin market. After monitoring and speaking with

numerous dealers and collectors in the last couple of

months, it is obvious to most numismatists that the

coin market is moving in the direction of tiers once

again. The whole market is not on fire. There are

various levels of activity within the whole of

numismatics. The most common coins seem to be very

flat as the majority of collectors already have these

in their collections. We may see some drifting of the

FMV for these coins for the rest of the year, unless

there is a major movement into numismatics from

outside sources. Outside sources refers to demand

other than what we are experiencing currently. The

softness in common coins may have been created when

demand for the modern rarities picked up. There has

been a major shift in demand to these modern rarities

because the collector (and investor) receives the

benefit of the value of the metal along with the grade

of the coin. Many of these modern collectors feel

there is little downside risk for most of these coins

because they are quite confident that gold, silver,

and platinum will continue to rise in the coming

years. Built in security is a wonderful thing as long

as this holds true.

 

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I was just reading a Coin World article about modern commemorative gold and how some of the low mintage dates have double in price just in the last couple of months. It made no mention of the 2002 Salt Lake MS $5 gold, however, with a mintage just a tad over 10K.

[123cents]

Nice report. Thanks for posting it.