Numismatic Value Versus Bullion Value: A Word of Advice for Perspective Collectors and Investors
There are many people who collect coins and bullion together, but for the most part, at least in my experiences, collectors tend to choose one or the other. Collecting coins and precious metals for numismatic value means that people are collecting and stacking them because they hold more than just intrinsic metal value; they have a collectible demand and value as well. Those that just collect or invest in precious metal bullion alone are doing so not because the units of bullion have more than their intrinsic bullion value, but because they hold their value as precious metals.
Often it's very difficult to discern which coins have exactly how much bullion content and how much of the coin's value is due to its scarcity or other demands. There are tons of great websites and sources you can use to help decide which coins are the right investments for you. My favorite site of this genre is www.coinflation.com. It has separate pages outlining the metal content of many of the world's coins. It's sometimes fun to go to this site just to learn more about the US coins that have bullion value. They even have a handy calculator that helps you see, based on real-time bullion spot prices, just how much each coin is worth in terms of metal value.
Some collectors hold both bullion and precious metals with numismatic value. Some coins can have a ten to twenty percent premium attached to them because of their numismatic appeal. Many countries issue bullion with legal tender value that end up becoming either scarce or highly collectible for many collectors. China, Australia, Canada, South Africa, Austria, Germany, Switzerland, and the United States are just a few countries that do so.
A few collectors have learned to diversify their collection to include both straight bullion and bullion that holds other value besides the intrinsic value. Where diehards of both schools of thought disagree, some have come up with a great solution in collecting both. Why not hold a Canadian Maple one ounce gold coin not only because it contains the world's highest available karat value, at 24k, but because there are only a few thousand minted each year, so the coin's scarcity also gives it value?
If you're looking to jump into the bullion or coin investing world there are a lot of things to watch out for. If you're just looking for bullion value alone, try collecting precious metal bars and rounds with little or no numismatic value, and therefore premium, attached to them. If you're looking for numismatic value, Australia has issued a "Deadly and Dangerous" series that has dealers collectors charging premiums of over 100% of the bullion value.
If you're into numismatic collecting as well it is likely that you will be able to get some of the premium you paid back, but don't count on getting 100% of it back. Some collectors look at numismatic investing as a market all by itself. Websites like EBay and Kitco at www.kitco.com offer the opportunity to buy and sell coins and other bullion in a place where many collectors of both tend to shop for good deals.
As always, with any market or investment, it's a great idea to do your research before you dive in. Coin and bullion collecting is no exception and I hope you have learned a thing or two that will help better prepare you in your precious metals investing future.
