Yep - been following it.... Coins have been making thier comeback lately. Since the late'80s they had taken a BIG dive. Back then, the coin market was equivelent to the stock market of today. And Morgan Silver dollars (the silver dollars dated 1878 to 1921) were the "Internet Stocks" of the coin market. An MS65 "common date" coin would sell for $500...
Guess what, it's coming back. Prices for Morgans are getting better and better (thank god - that happens to be my favorite coin). An MS65 common date can go for $150, up from $100 just a few months ago...
Other silver coins are also showing renewed interest, but as always, the higher grade, and RARER the coin, the more desireable. The rest are just the penny stocks of the world, subject to promotion by whoever wants to make a quick buck.
I have a sizable collection, lots acquired during childhood, but much also in the last decade (during childhood it was in circulation - really cheap ;-) Only in the last few years have I been able to invest the amounts required to build on a quality collection - so I wasn't really involved in the run-up during the '80's. Maybe now is another chance?
Interesting thought - baby boomers are coming of age, have extra money, and as they get older are more interested in "non-active" hobbies (coins) and can afford this very expensive hobby. Maybe we're on the edge of a new boom? We'll see...
BTW - starting next year today's quarter will be replaced with a new design (actually 50 new designs). For the next ten years "new" quarters will be minted for each of the 50 states and used in general circulation. Of course there will be hundreds of telemarketing scams, mint "specialty" products out the wazoo, but my bet is that the overall effect will be to raise the interest level in coin collecting. How much I don't know. The new coins will still not carry any silver content (in the general circulation pieces) but mat spark interest.
Some more interesting links for the potential collectors out there:
anamarket.money.org
heavypen.com
coinmall.com
dgse.com
coinworld.com |
