Coin Collecting Club

Coin Price Guides are useful among collectors. In brief, coins are tiny disk shaped metal pieces of currency. Coins come in various categories currency coins which are valued as per their face value, currency coins come with an amount printed on them and the printed amount is the price of the coin.

Rare and Historical coins are those which belong to centuries before us ,these coins are rare and very significant in finding out historical information of our ancestors ,these coins fetch a very high price in the market, the pricing of the coin is also based on the significance quality condition uniqueness and beauty of the coin.

Gold coins or Silver Coins, these coins are mostly bought as an investment the price of these coins usually depends on the market price. There can be no price guide as with the fluctuations of the economy the price of Gold and silver coins will also fluctuate.

Coin Pricing guide is based on certain criteria’s-
*Coin must be made of valuable metal, the pricing of this coin will be close to the market price of the metal.

* Coin should be of standardized weight and purity.

*The marking of the marking on the coin has to be genuine and marked only by an authorized authority only.

* Pricing of the coin also depends on the date printed on the coin, as well as its historical significance.

Coin collectors from time to time come across such coins too which are very difficult in analyzing their price ,so clarify sometimes a coin may own a very unique coin whose price cannot be determined due to its unclear marking or worsened condition in such occasion the pricing of the coins is based on the demand the coin or how many coin collectors would be interested in your piece.

Sometimes a very unique coin would not be as well priced as a coin which is relatively plenty in nature and the simple reason would be as the coin is in more demand by the coin collectors. For example there are only 30000 dimes of the 17th century where as 20th century dimes are nearly 4,00,000 still the 20th century dimes are sold for higher value than the 17th century dimes the only reason being the 20th century dimes are more popular among coin collectors.

Generally coin price keeps varying, the general rule in the coin price guide is rarer the coin higher the coin value ,still there are some exception in this case too for example a 1913 marked Liberty head Nickel was sold for as high as $1,000,000 as there are only 5 pieces of such coins ,where as 1000yrs old Chinese coins were sold for not more than $100-$200 as there were number of these coins available.

Coin grade also influences the coin price guide, coin grade depends on the condition, better the condition higher will be the grade and higher will be the price the coin will fetch.

However one should remember monetary valuation of a coin is not everything, even if one coin does not have a high market value it does not loose its significance it can still be very much a part of your collection.

Coin Price Guides come in print (softcover and hardcover) and online in digital format.

Coin Price Guides are useful among collectors. In brief, coins are tiny disk shaped metal pieces of currency. Coins come in various categories that are valued as per their face value, currency coins come with an amount printed on them and the printed amount is the price of the coin.

Rare and Historical coins are those that were made centuries before us, these rare coins are very significant in finding out historical information about our ancestors. Historical coins can fetch a very high price in the market; the pricing of the coin is also based on the significance, quality, condition, uniqueness and beauty of the coin.

Gold coins or Silver Coins are mostly bought as an investment; the price of these coins usually depends on the market price. Due to fluctuations in the economy there are no set price guides therefore the price of Gold and silver coins also fluctuates.
Coin Pricing is based on certain criteria’s- * The coin must be made of a valuable metal; and the pricing of this coin will be close to the market price of the metal.

* Coin should be of standardized weight and purity.

* The marking on the coin has to be genuine and marked only by an authorized authority.

* Pricing of the coin also depends on the date printed on the coin, as well as its historical significance.

From time to time coin collectors come across coins that are very difficult to analyze a price, for instance a coin collector may own a very unique coin that cannot be priced due to its unclear marking or worsened condition, on such occasions the pricing of the coin is based on the demand of the coin or how many coin collectors are interested in the piece.

Sometimes a very unique coin will not be as well priced, as a coin that is relatively plentiful in nature and this is simply because the more common coin is in higher demand by the coin collectors. For example there are only 30,000 dimes of the 17th century, where as there are nearly 4,000,000 20th century dimes, yet the 20th century dimes are sold at a higher price than the 17th century dimes, and this is only because the 20th century dimes are more popular among coin collectors.

Generally coin prices keep varying, the general rule in the coin price guide is the rarer the coin the higher the coin value, still there are some exceptions as in this case; a 1913 marked Liberty head Nickel was sold for $1,000,000 as there are only 5 pieces of such coins, where as 1000 year old Chinese coins were sold for not more than $100-$200 as there were a number of these coins available.

Coin grade also influences the coin price guide, coin grade depends on the condition, the better the condition the higher the grade will be and the higher price the coin will fetch. However you should bear in mind that the monetary valuation of a coin is not everything, even if one coin does not have a high market value it does not loose its significance as it can still be very much a part of your collection.

If you are interested in pricing, you can get Coin Price Guides that come in print (soft cover and hardcover) and they are also available online in digital format.

If you’re new at coin collecting, you might find yourself overly excited at the prospect of finding or holding a coin that’s priceless. Some coins are worth more than others, while other coins are not worth anything at all. To help you figure out if what you have is treasure or trash, you should seek a reliable coin price guide. These days, you can find several coin price guides in the Internet. Like coins, some of these coin price guides are genuine and reliable, while others are inaccurate and misleading. It’s best if you ask the help of a coin expert in determining the value of the coin or coins in your possession.

In the meantime, you’ll do well with settling on a credible source that provides an accurate chart of coin prices of values. You can find several websites that contain coin price guides. The value of a coin depends upon several factors, including the demand for it, its scarcity or rarity, its quality, and its bullion value. One other important coin characteristic or trait that can help influence or determine its value is its grade, which is basically where coin price guides base their prices.

First of all, you should learn the common coins that coin collectors seek for. These coins are the Mercury dimes, Buffalo nickels, Liberty Head v-nickels, Indian Head pennies, Draped Bust dollar, Flowing Hair dollar, Peace dollar, Ike dollar, Barber dime, and Wheat pennies, among many others. A coin price guide will no doubt include the prices for these coins. What is great about certified coin price guides is that they tell you how much your coins are really worth or at least average dealer asking prices, as opposed to the lower retail prices that most coin dealers are willing to give you for them.

The coin market, unlike other commercial markets out there, is comparatively volatile and not heavily capitalized. Moreover, important short-term price swings are always just around the corner waiting to pounce at the most opportune moment. This is why most online businesses in the coin pricing industry do not guarantee profit and security against loss for any coin that you buy or sell (or buy and sell) according to the information you gather from such sites. Moreover, you can find several additional output or information regarding coin prices from time to time which should help you arrive at a wise decision.

The prices in some coin price guides are compiled from a variety of sources, such as dealer advertisements found in trade papers, dealer fixed price lists, vital auctions, and trading activity and coin impression that takes place in major coin shows. Based on all these things, prices for coins are updated on a regular basis, especially those of the most actively traded coins.

In general, a coin price guide should serve as a guide and assist the buying public in identifying the values of coins. It is most useful to coin collectors of all ages from all places.

Coin collecting is the collecting of coins and/or some other form of legally minted currency whether still in circulation or has been in circulation for some time.

There are many coin price guides published; weekly, bi-weekly, monthly and annually. They come in the form of magazines, newsprint, “hot sheets”, and books. All of us have referred to one of these from time to time to ascertain what a particular coin might be worth. Yet, few of us stop to think about what we are getting from any one of these Price Guides, beyond the price or value of a coin. After all, don’t price guides, just give you the price? What else is there?

Basic to an understanding of price guides are two things: 1) the Grade of the Coin; and 2) the Foundation of the price guide. Knowing the Grade of the Coin is required before one can begin. Saying so seems to be obvious, but what more does it mean?

Unless the coin is Graded by an appropriate Professional Grading Company, which has designated what Grade and Identity has been assigned to the coin, most of us are making an assumption about the actual Grade. This assumption we make can be very dangerous because of: a) the difficulty in grading a coin; and, b) the different possible outcomes or results that occur. One Grade “point” or level can make the difference in hundreds or thousands of dollars in the Value of a Coin.

Price Guides assume that YOU already Know the Grade of the Coin. This is why we have the First Rule of Coin Collecting: Know the Grade of Your Coin.

Secondly, ALL Price Guides are founded on the same Principle, which is that the Coin, whose price you are looking up, has been Graded using one Grading Standard. That Grading Standard is set by the ANA - American Numismatic Association - and is entitled the Official Grading Standards For US Coins.

Therefore, ALL Price Guides have a “silent assumption” built in to their guide; which is that the Grade that YOU decide upon, is the True or Accurate, and that such Grade is based on the ANA Standards.

The first difficulty that arises is that most people never know if the Grade that they have decided upon is Accurate. Of course, this difficulty never comes into question, if the coin is Professionally Graded by an appropriate company. There are only four (4) reputable Professional Grading companies that strictly follow the Guidelines set by the ANA, and they are: PCGS, NCG, ICG, and ANACS.

The second difficulty arises because of this “silent assumption” or Foundation of all price guides is whether or not the Grade has been decided upon using the Guidelines or Standards established by the ANA. If you don’t have the skills and training of a professional coin grader, the decision is probably questionable.

Even if you do have the skills and training of a professional coin grader, the decision is still probably questionable. Why? Because even professional coin graders have differing opinions. This is why the reputable professional coin grading companies require the opinions of three (3) professional coin graders to arrive at the “Grade” designation to be placed on every coin.

The obvious conclusion is that a Serious Coin Collector is going to invest in rare and modern coins that are graded by one of the Top Four reputable Grading companies. It is the only certain way to eliminate the disagreements and arguments about the Grade of Any coin being Bought or Sold! It is the only certain way one can Value their coin collection. It also eliminates “getting taken” or cheated buying raw coins.

Have fun collecting your Perfect Coins!

Robert L Taylor, JD

Copyright 2006, Robert L Taylor, JD