Appraisal advice

I inherited a collection of coins recently and need to have them appraised
for estate purposes. Although the collection is relatively small, it's too
large for me to catalog each and every coin. I'm sure most appraisers are
honest and fare but some of the coins are quite old and potentially
valuable, and as executor, I have to be careful not to get taken. My
questions is, with hundreds of coins in the collection, how do I ensure that
I get all the coins back, and that one or two (the most valuable ones) don't
just disappear?

Craig

"Craig Callinan" wrote in message
...
I inherited a collection of coins recently and need to have them appraised
for estate purposes. Although the collection is relatively small, it's too
large for me to catalog each and every coin. I'm sure most appraisers are
honest and fare but some of the coins are quite old and potentially
valuable, and as executor, I have to be careful not to get taken. My
questions is, with hundreds of coins in the collection, how do I ensure
that I get all the coins back, and that one or two (the most valuable ones)
don't just disappear?

Craig

The only way to ensure that you get all the coins back is to hand the coins
to the dealer, remain on premises while he examines the coins, insist that
he keep his hands on top of the counter at all times, watch his every move,
and hope that he is not skilled in legerdemain. Fortunately, most
storefront dealers are trustworthy insofar as their basic honesty, and you
need not worry about having coins "disappear" under their tutelage.

A far more problematic issue is that of grading and use of pricing guides.
A coin can increase or decrease tenfold in value over a small difference in
surface quality, wear, and color. In addition to that, dealers will offer
money for coins based on their perceived ability to quickly turn the
merchandise for a profit (just as does Wal-Mart with canned peas). I would
recommend that you get in touch with local folks who are involved with
coins, and ask who some trustworthy dealers are in your area. And don't be
too afraid to travel a little distance to get more than one offer.

Finally, dealers cannot afford to appraise your coins for free. They will
size you up and assess the likelihood that they will be able to acquire your
coins for their inventory. If they get the feeling that you will get their
number, grab up your coins, and take off, never to be seen again, they will
not spend the time with you that your collection might otherwise deserve.
They may even charge a fee for their service.

I know of two dealers who, if they buy your coins and find that they have
underpaid for one or more, will send you an additional check after they sell
them. One is in SW Utah, the other near Milwaukee. I am sure there are
others.

Good luck liquidating your inheritance. But are you sure you don't want to
stay in the game and build upon that collection? You'll meet some fine
folks in the field of numismatics!

Heezer

On Sat, 23 Apr 2005 12:14:44 GMT, "Craig Callinan"
wrote:

I inherited a collection of coins recently and need to have them appraised
for estate purposes. Although the collection is relatively small, it's too
large for me to catalog each and every coin. I'm sure most appraisers are
honest and fare but some of the coins are quite old and potentially
valuable, and as executor, I have to be careful not to get taken. My
questions is, with hundreds of coins in the collection, how do I ensure that
I get all the coins back, and that one or two (the most valuable ones) don't
just disappear?

Craig


Get the 'Red book' - A Guide Book to United States Coins By R.S.
Yeoman this will help you to start getting a ballpark figure for them.
That is if you know how to grade...If not, you are in for a learning
experience!

Regards,


Gary Loveless

On Sat, 23 Apr 2005 12:14:44 GMT, "Craig Callinan"
wrote:

I inherited a collection of coins recently and need to have them appraised
for estate purposes. Although the collection is relatively small, it's too
large for me to catalog each and every coin. I'm sure most appraisers are
honest and fare but some of the coins are quite old and potentially
valuable, and as executor, I have to be careful not to get taken. My
questions is, with hundreds of coins in the collection, how do I ensure that
I get all the coins back, and that one or two (the most valuable ones) don't
just disappear?

Craig


Hmmm ... "hundreds of coins" is not what I would call a small
collection; maybe 200, OK, but much more than that and it rapidly gets
rather unmanageable.

If the coins are in an album, and you have a flatbed scanner, first
thing I would do is to scan a picture of each page. Make a written
record of each coin's type, year and mintmark. If you have duplicate
years and mint marks, give each one a sequential number. That will
make it easier to check the coins when you get them back. Slabbed
coins will already have a number printed on the holder which you can
use to easily identify them.

If the coins are not in an album, but loose, I would first put them in
2x2 holders which every coin dealer will supply. (Of course, any coin
rolls should be left unopened.) The 2x2's come with different sized
display openings depending on the diameter of the coin. Then you can
put the 2x2's into an album with plastic sheets containing a
compartment for each 2x2. Just ask your local dealer to show you any
of their albums, everyone seems to use pretty much the same standard
sizes. You can then label the holders for easier identification.

Please do not attempt to clean any of the coins at all -- this can
seriously damage them in ways you would never think of! There are
situations which might call for it, but you need to know how to do it
right, and it's best not to even try.

Unfortunately, without knowing something about grading coins, you
won't be able to tell exactly how valuable they are, but you can look
at a price guide to determine which years and mintmarks are scarcer
ones. Are you in the USA? If so, you should get a copy of the latest
redbook by Yeoman with retail prices for U.S. American coins, and if
you have world coins, the Krause "Standard Catalog of World Coins"
(one volume per century) will do very well for prices.

Good luck -- let us know how you fare!

--
Bob Hairgrove