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AU-58 Coins – A Stealth Numismatic Investment

Photo Credit: Silver Torch66

AU-58 coins are one of the best-kept secrets in numismatics. But coin investors and collectors alike have started to grasp the potential of these underrated gems.

In order to appreciate the unique appeal of AU-58 coins, we must first understand the Sheldon grading scale. Invented by the numismatist William Herbert Sheldon in 1949, it was first intended for grading U.S. Large Cents. The scale ranges from 1 to 70, with higher numbers representing better states of preservation. For example, a Poor-1 coin is an almost worn-smooth slug and a Mint-State-70 coin is absolutely perfect.

The Sheldon grading scale was updated to apply broadly to all coins in the 1970s. Today, it is the global standard used by the two largest and most respected third-party grading services – NGC (Numismatic Guaranty Corporation) and PCGS (Professional Coin Grading Service).

The Sheldon grading scale designates MS-60 through MS-70 as Mint-State. This means that all coins in this range are technically uncirculated, with no wear whatsoever. Instead of using wear as a grading criteria, Mint-State coins are sorted according to the quality of their strike, along with the presence of mint luster, marks or hairlines and any attractive/unattractive toning.

So an MS-70 coin should be perfect, with no visible marks, a strong strike and full mint luster. In contrast, MS-60 coins have a combination of distracting imperfections, unsightly tarnish and a weak strike. As a result, it is almost axiomatic that low-grade Mint-State coins, like MS-60 and MS-61 examples, are relatively unattractive specimens with little eye appeal. In fact, they are often downright ugly!

However, coins below the MS-60 designation are primarily graded according to the amount of wear they have received. So coins graded from AU-50 to AU-58 fall in the About Uncirculated category. These coins have received anything from very light, even wear to only a hint of rub on their highest surfaces. Original mint luster is the only other criteria for AU coins, with higher grades within the classification requiring more luster.

You can probably see where I’m going with this analysis.

If AU-58 coins acquire that grade purely because they have an almost imperceptible amount of rub on their highest points, then there is no reason that an AU coin with good eye appeal can’t look better than an MS-60 or MS-61 coin.

This is a numismatic revelation for coin investors.

PCGS & NGC Certified AU-58 Pre-1933 U.S. Gold Coins for Sale on eBay

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You see, eye appeal is one of the most important traits an investment-oriented coin can possess. Relatively small increases in eye appeal can have a major impact on the desirability – and thus value – of a rare coin. After all, coins are miniature works of art. If one coin with a particular type, date and mintmark looks objectively better than another example, it only stands to reason that it would be more valuable.

Normally, we would expect coin prices to rise as we ascend the Sheldon grading scale. After all, each successively higher grade should have more detail, luster and (indirectly) eye-appeal than the one below it.

And this is indeed the behavior we tend to observe in the rare coin market, particularly for Mint-State coins. Once you ascend to coins graded MS-63 and higher, it isn’t unusual for each step-up in grade to be accompanied by a large – or even massive – price increase. And this is in spite of the fact that it is difficult for the layman to distinguish the minute visual differences between these grades. For instance, the average person can’t reliably distinguish between an MS-64 and MS-65 coin.

About Uncirculated coins, particularly AU-58 coins, are the only potentially systematic wrinkle in the rare coin market’s continuum of Higher Grade = More Eye Appeal = Higher Prices.

This brings us to the concept of the elusive “AU-64” coin. What if there was a beautiful MS-64 coin that had somehow received the tiniest bit of wear or rub sometime in the distant past? It could no longer be properly called Mint-State anymore, because it isn’t technically uncirculated. The best grade it could hope to achieve on the Sheldon grading scale would be AU-58. Oh, but what a glorious AU-58 coin it would be!

PCGS & NGC Certified AU-55 & AU-58 Carson City Morgan Silver Dollars for Sale on eBay

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It is easy to see how an AU-58 coin with the eye appeal of an MS-64 coin would sell at a significant premium over your run-of-the-mill MS-60 or MS-61 coin. In fact, it would be easy to see how a superior AU-58 specimen could achieve MS-62 or even MS-63 price levels, provided it has stellar eye appeal.

Simply put, AU-58 coins are a numismatic loophole that every serious coin investor and collector should be exploiting.

And, in all honesty, a lot of knowledgeable coin enthusiasts have been taking advantage of the wonderful potential of good-looking NGC and PCGS AU-58 certified coins over the last 15 to 20 years. For example, many desirable 19th century U.S. coin series command high premiums for AU-58 pieces with strong eye-appeal. In fact, it can be difficult to find AU bargains in series like Capped Bust half dollars or Trade Dollars because of this trend.

But the U.S. rare coin market is the most forward-looking, sophisticated coin market on the planet. So although the advantages of AU-58 coins may already have been recognized in 19th century U.S. coins, it still hasn’t been widely applied elsewhere.

This means there are still AU deals to be found in 20th century U.S. coins & world coins. I especially like European gold coins in AU-58 condition. They haven’t been picked over yet, giving the numismatic enthusiast a lot of great examples to choose from.

PCGS & NGC Certified AU-58 European Gold Coins for Sale on eBay

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I should also point out that some AU-55 coins can also share the phenomenal eye appeal of AU-58 specimens, just with a touch more wear. So although I’ve been talking about AU-58 coins throughout this article, the same concept can also apply to AU-55 examples, just somewhat less frequently.

For instance, one of my recent Spotlight posts featured a stunning 1882 French 100 franc gold coin certified AU-55 by NGC. This impressive gold coin, with a mintage of only 37,000 pieces, looks far better than your average MS-60 or MS-61 example. But it is selling for a ridiculously low 38% premium over its bullion value!

Of course, I should also point out that not all AU-55 or AU-58 coins have great eye appeal. Unlike with Mint-State coins, the AU grades primarily designate wear, not eye appeal. So it is certainly possible to run into ugly or sub-par AU-58 coins. A certain amount of patience and discretion is necessary to cherry pick a gem AU example.

Let me part with a word of caution. There is an old numismatic saying: always buy the coin, not the holder (or the grade on the holder, for that matter). This dictum has never been more important than when dealing with AU coins. But although it requires discipline, AU-58 coins are one of the best ways I know of to score a deal in the world of rare coins. And that little bit of knowledge is worth its weight in gold.

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5 Odd Investments for the Stock Market Skeptic under $100

Photo Credit: Joe Haupt

These 5 odd investments don’t rely on the stock, bond or real estate markets in order to make you money. Better yet, each one of these tantalizingly unusual assets is available for less than $100!

1) Pre-1982 U.S. Copper Pennies

Few people know it, but U.S. pennies aren’t made from copper anymore. In 1982, the U.S. Mint was forced to change the composition of the coin due to the rising price of copper. Consequently, pre-1982 pennies were made from an alloy of 95% copper and 5% zinc, while post-1982 cents consist of a solid zinc core that has been copper-plated (97.5% zinc and 2.5% copper). In 1982, both solid copper and copper-coated zinc pennies were struck.

This would all be rather academic, except that right now the price of scrap copper #2 is around $2.20 per pound (this varies according to location and scrap dealer). But it only takes around 154 circulated pre-1982 copper pennies, with a face value of $1.54, to equal one pound. So each pre-1982 penny is actually worth about 1.43 cents in copper scrap.

This presents the enterprising coin sorter with an arbitrage opportunity. According to estimates, pre-1982 copper cents represent around 15% to 20% of the remaining pennies in circulation in 2018, although this can vary considerably depending on geographic region. If you are willing to take the time to pick these copper pennies out of circulation, you can easily accumulate a significant stash of copper bullion at below market prices. And you can get started for only $5 and a trip to your local bank, or even just the loose change that is laying around your house.

There are, however, a couple downsides. First, the U.S. government made it illegal to melt down pennies (and nickels too) for scrap in 2006. That isn’t too much of an issue because rolls or bags of pre-1982 copper pennies can be traded for more than their face value without being melted.

The other problem is that the U.S. penny is not long for this world. Inflation has rendered the smallest of U.S. denominations practically worthless. In addition, the U.S. Mint hasn’t made a profit on the penny since 2005.

When the penny is finally discontinued, one of our era’s best odd investments will disappear with the lowly coin.

2) Indian Mughal Rupee Silver Coins from the 16th and 17th Centuries

Rare coins are a perennial favorite among alternative asset investors. Unfortunately, the very finest examples can often be prohibitively expensive. You don’t need to look any further than ancient Greek gold coins to verify this, where prices start in the thousands of dollars and only go up from there.

But what if I told you that a centuries-old, hand-struck silver coinage of tremendous beauty from one of the greatest empires on earth could be yours for less than $100? Allow me to introduce you to one of the finest odd investments you’ve never heard of: Indian Mughal silver rupees.

The Mughal Empire ruled the Indian subcontinent between the early 16th century and mid 18th century. The Mughals were not only extremely powerful, but also incredibly wealthy. In fact, the Indian Mughal emperors were considerably richer than Western European monarchs of the time, such as Queen Elizabeth I and King Louis XIV.

So it shouldn’t be surprising that the Mughals struck a magnificent silver coinage to match their exalted status. Mughal rupees were high denomination coins, each containing about 11 grams of nearly pure silver. This made them exceptionally heavy for their time – about 3 to 4 times the average weight of most contemporary European silver coins.

In addition to being impressively large, Mughal silver rupees also possess phenomenal eye appeal. These Indian artistic masterpieces deftly weave geometric borders, elegant decorations and flowing Arabic calligraphy together in an unrivaled numismatic tour de force.

But perhaps the best thing about these odd investments is their low cost. Prices range from around $40 or $50 for common types in Very Fine condition to $200 or $300 for scarce examples in pristine grades. However, discerning investors can easily find superb examples of these centuries-old Indian silver coins for less than $100.

3) Vintage Fountain Pens

Before the widespread adoption of ballpoint pens in the 1960s, every gentleman and businessman used a fountain pen. These little luxuries were often made from the most cutting edge materials of the time, including hard rubber, early plastics and stainless steel. Some examples were even made from sterling silver, gold-filled and, occasionally, solid karat gold.

The nibs of high quality vintage fountain pens were invariably made from solid 14 or 18 karat gold, while more modest specimens made due with palladium-alloy or gold-plated steel nibs.

Vintage fountain pens perfectly embody the zeitgeist of the mid 20th century. However, in spite of all their positive attributes, these odd investments were often overlooked until recently. Before the early 2000s, it was possible to find desirable vintage fountain pens from the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s at flea markets, garage sales and second-hand shops for only $5 or $10 each.

But as it became apparent just how special these pens were, prices inexorably rose. Even so, it is still possible to purchase desirable vintage fountain pens in good condition in the $50 to $100 range today.

Although a tremendous number of companies manufactured vintage fountain pens, if you’re shopping in the sub $100 price bracket you are most likely to encounter pens from U.S. mid-tier makers, such as Parker, Eversharp, Sheaffer and Wahl.

4) Artisan Hand-Poured Silver Bars

Most people think of silver bullion bars as, well…bullion and nothing more. But over the last decade, a veritable renaissance has bloomed among small precious metal fabricators. These companies, which are often family-owned businesses, have begun producing a variety of hand-poured silver bars that are actually miniature works of art.

Artisan produced, hand-poured silver bars are a far cry from the soulless, mass-produced struck silver bullion bars that dominate the precious metals market today. Instead, small-batch, hand-poured silver bars have soft, rounded edges, alluring pour lines and charming blemishes that make them irresistibly odd investments.

In fact, vintage poured silver bars made in the 1980s or earlier already trade for strong premiums among tangible asset investors looking for something intriguingly different. And I feel it is only a matter of time until artisan hand-poured silver bars start selling for elevated premiums over spot as well.

A single $100 bill can easily buy one of these hand-poured bullion masterpieces from a recognized fabricator like Vulture Peak Mines, Prospector’s Gold & Gems, Scottsdale Mint, Bison Bullion or SilverTowne. Hand-poured bars generally range in size from 1 troy ounce to 20 troy ounces, although anything larger than 5 troy ounces will cost more than $100 (with spot silver at $15 per ounce).

5) Vintage British Sterling Silver Liquor Labels

The aristocracy of 18th and 19th century Britain loved few things more than a glass of fine wine. Unfortunately, paper labels for wine and liquor bottles were not developed until the 1860s. Therefore, wealthy British lords and ladies had to find a way to distinguish the otherwise anonymous bottles of spirits stockpiled in their private stashes.

They accomplished this by using solid sterling silver liquor labels, also known as wine or bottle tickets. These small, decorative plaques were engraved with the name of the appropriate spirit and then hung around the neck of a bottle via an attached silver chain. Every well-appointed British Georgian country estate or stately London townhouse had its share of these upscale sterling name tags.

Although rendered technically unnecessary by the late 19th century, sterling silver liquor labels have continued to be made until the present day because of their elegance and high-end appearance.

Vintage sterling liquor labels produced from the 1950s through the 1980s are particularly interesting. These odd investments can be found inscribed with the names of a variety of different spirits, including port, sherry, whiskey, gin, brandy, bourbon, scotch and rum, just to name a few. So there is sure to be one that appeals to you, regardless of the kind of alcohol you enjoy.

In addition, vintage sterling silver liquor labels from the Mad Men era are significantly less expensive than their Georgian progenitors. While a late 18th century example might cost you $150 to $200, a fully-hallmarked 1960s or 1970s British sterling liquor label can be purchased for a modest $50 to $100.

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Do Gold and Gemstones Have Intrinsic Value?

One complaint often leveled against gold and gemstones is that they have no intrinsic value and are therefore “fads” or “speculations”. A perfect example of this lunacy is an article I recently read titled “Gold Is No More of an Investment than Beanie Babies“. The author, a professor of economics at Pomona College named Gary Smith, unequivocally argues that gold, gems and other valuables aren’t assets because they don’t pay dividends or interest.

All I can say is good grief!

Sometimes economic professors get so caught up in their textbooks and theories that they forget to look out their ivory tower windows into the real world. So let’s try to answer the question of whether or not gold and gemstones have real intrinsic value.

No, gold and gemstones do not produce cashflow, but not every asset does. There are about 4,800 U.S.-listed equities that don’t currently pay a dividend. In addition, there is a type of debt instrument called a zero coupon bond that pays its par value at maturity, but makes absolutely no interest payments until then. Warrants, options and futures also pay no income.

As you can see, demanding that a security pay a stream of cash flows in order to be considered an investment is an excessively restrictive definition. In other words, all things that pay income are investments, but not all investments pay income.

But this doesn’t really definitively answer our question. Lots of things don’t pay interest or dividends, but only a very small proportion of them could convincingly be called investments. Maybe examining the meaning of the word “intrinsic” can help us make a determination.

According to Dictionary.com, the definition of the word intrinsic is: “Belonging to a thing by its very nature: [for example] the intrinsic value of a gold ring.”

We’ll set aside for a moment the fact that the dictionary definition of the word intrinsic specifically references gold.

When critics declare that gold and gemstones have no intrinsic value, what they are really saying is that they have no practical uses. In other words, when stripped of their decorative, monetary or status-enhancing applications, gold and gems (allegedly) possess no industrial usefulness.

First, I will comment that it seems a little unfair to discount their primary strengths. It is like asking what good cotton is if you can’t weave it into fabric. But even with this considerable handicap, gold and gemstones still have a significant number of uses, thus endowing them with substantial intrinsic value.

For starters, gold does pretty much everything copper can do, except better. Other than its exorbitant cost, there is no reason you couldn’t make all the plumbing and electrical wiring in your house out of gold. And it would last pretty much forever, to boot.

Of course, gold has a lot of other uses besides giving copper an inferiority complex.

Almost every cell phone, laptop and desktop computer on the planet contains small amounts of gold, where it is used to plate vital electrical circuitry. This is because gold does not tarnish or corrode, even under the most hostile environmental conditions. It is safe to say that the computing revolution of the past few decades would have been impossible without gold.

Gold is also used in dentistry, where its chemical inertness and durability make it a perfect material for filling cavities.

Even the medical profession has adopted gold for some specialized situations. The gold-based compounds auranofin and sodium aurothiomalate are sometimes used to treat rheumatoid arthritis. In addition, tiny radioactive gold seeds have been implanted into cancerous tumors, helping to shrink them.

Space exploration is another industry that is heavily dependent on gold. It is not only found in the computer components of every satellite and spacecraft, but is also lavishly used in orbital telescopes and space suits. These gold coatings reflect solar radiation, thus helping to regulate temperatures and prevent heat damage.

Glassmaking also relies on gold. A highly prized type of deep red glass called cranberry glass or ruby glass can only be made by dissolving gold salts in a pool of molten glass. High-rise skyscrapers also rely on an ultra-thin coating of gold on their windows to help with climate control.

Much like gold, gemstones often get a bad rap as unnecessary baubles that have no intrinsic value. But this ignores the modern world’s reliance on their unique physical and optical attributes.

First up are diamonds. These covetable gemstones are the unsung all-rounders of the gem world. Diamond’s superior hardness and toughness means that it is perfect as an abrasive or cutting edge.

Diamond drill bits are a mainstay of the oil, gas and mining industries. And construction workers frequently use diamond-impregnated saw blades to quickly and easily cut concrete.

Another, less well-known application is the diamond-scalpel in medicine. Diamond scalpels are used in any situation where an ultra-sharp, long-lasting blade is necessary, like eye surgery.

Perhaps diamond’s most interesting scientific use is the diamond anvil cell. This high-tech tool skillfully exploits the tremendous toughness and near perfect transparency of diamond in order to crush a test sample between two opposing diamonds. This allows for massive pressures and temperatures, similar to those deep within the earth, to be replicated in the laboratory.

Sapphires are another gemstone that has widespread industrial applications. Titanium-sapphire lasers are commonly used in spectroscopy, LIDAR and other research applications.

But sapphire also has more down to earth uses, as well. It is often employed anywhere a small, perfectly clear window of extraordinary toughness is needed. For example, many luxury watches have sapphire crystals to protect their dials. And Apple’s iPhone 7 made news when it was announced that it would ship with a sapphire camera lense.

Even more prosaic gems like garnet and quartz have extensive industrial uses.

Garnet sandpaper has been used as a cheap and reliable tool by woodworkers for many decades. Indeed, it can be employed anywhere that a super-hard abrasive isn’t needed. For more demanding applications, stepping up to aluminum-oxide (which is just another word for sapphire!) sandpaper makes more sense, although it is slightly more expensive.

Quartz possesses an unusual property known as the piezoelectric effect. This means that it turns mechanical pressure into a small electrical impulse and vice-versa. The most practical use for this strange property is in time-keeping. As a result, a tiny quartz crystal resides in the heart of every quartz watch and clock on the planet.

I suppose that the biggest complaint a skeptic could have about the intrinsic value of gemstones is that their industrial roles are typically fulfilled by laboratory-created synthetic gems. But I don’t think this takes anything away from the desirability of naturally mined stones.

To the contrary, naturally mined gems are merely being employed in their highest and best use. Highest and best use is an economics concept that basically states that while an item might have many possible uses, it will tend to be primarily employed for its most valuable purpose. And it will also be bid to a price commensurate with this highest and best use.

The fact is that the highest and best use for gold and gemstones are as jewelry, decoration and money. This might confound and disturb uneducated critics, but thousands of years of human history confirm it.

Read more thought-provoking Antique Sage gems & jewelry articles here.

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Garage Sale Picking and the Scavenging of America

Garage sale picking is a national pastime for a large segment of the U.S. population. And it is easy to see why. You get to paw through another family’s accumulated junk to see if there is anything that strikes your fancy. As the old saying goes, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.

It may be surprising to you, but I usually don’t frequent garage sales. I find their ephemeral nature (there one day and gone the next) to be somewhat frustrating. But I suppose that is part of their charm as well.

Anyway, I had read in the local paper about a large garage sale that wasn’t very far from my house. According to the advertisement, this sale would feature vintage post cards, antique tin-type photographs and old jewelry, among many other things. So I decided to check it out on a whim.

The jewelry was the real draw for me, but I always set out for garage sale picking (or any kind of picking for that matter) with an open mind. You simply never know what antique wonders you might discover.

There is nothing quite like that moment when you first arrive at a flea market, swap meet or garage sale. The air is full of electricity – the tantalizing possibility of the treasures you might find. Of course, the reality of garage sale picking is often far more mundane.

Only a minute after my arrival I was trawling up and down the rows of household debris, looking for something worth my while. If you are a regular reader of my Antique Sage website, then you know I focus on small, precious items – jewelry, silverware, coins, watches, etc.

After just a few minutes I began to worry. The advertised jewelry was nowhere to be found. I soon discovered that the early birds had picked it over before I got there, leaving nothing but a few costume jewelry scraps.

Of course, anybody who does garage sale picking expects to find a high proportion of junk items hiding a handful of gems in the rough. But this family’s sale was absolutely overrun with nonsensical trash.

My personal nomination for best of the worst kitsch was a small painted box full of Thomas Kinkade coasters. If you are unaware, Thomas Kinkade was the self-anointed “Painter of Light” who marketed himself so effectively that even today – well after the peak of his popularity in the 1990s – his works still saturate middle-class American homes like a demented, Norman Rockwellesque plague. In fact, Thomas Kinkade paintings and prints are so bad that they’ve gained a place of dubious honor on my list of the 7 worst collectibles for investors.

But the Thomas Kinkade trinket I found was infinitely more banal than just another overly-sentimental landscape painting. Culturally speaking, it doesn’t get any worse than a box full of garish Thomas Kinkade coasters. Well, I guess it gets a bit worse when you look at the price tag and realize that this typical American family wants $10 for the artistic abomination.

But my garage sale picking story doesn’t end here. No, I persevered, systematically sorting through useless small kitchen appliances, boxes full of plastic knick-knacks and endless piles of VHS and cassette tapes.

And then I saw it.

Tucked away on a corner table in the garage were a few old-fashioned linen silverware storage rolls. I carefully took them out into the sunlight one-by-one in order to get a better view.

98% of the time, when you come across silverware while garage sale picking, it is either stainless steel (made in Korea!) or silver-plate (1847 Rogers Bros!), either of which is equally worthless in most circumstances.

But this wasn’t one of those times. The family had clearly labeled these silverware rolls with that magical word “sterling”. I slowly unwrapped each roll with great anticipation and was rewarded with an amazing sight.

Inside were partial sets of two different Gorham sterling silver flatware patterns. The first was Etruscan (patented in 1913), a simple and stately pattern with a classical sensibility. The second was Plymouth (patented in 1911), an equally clean and uncluttered early 20th century design.

Gorham is renowned for the quality of its antique sterling silver. In fact, it is generally considered second only to Tiffany & Company in perceived status among knowledgeable silver collectors.

The 3 silverware rolls filled with Gorham sterling pieces (and a few mismatched silver-plated spoons) had price tags totaling $135. I had a hunch that this was below the bullion value of the silverware, but I wasn’t absolutely certain. So when I brought them to the cash register I asked the woman if she would be willing to accept $110 for the group.

It is always a good idea to haggle down the price a bit if you can. That way you limit your risk.

Happily, she readily agreed to my offer. There is nothing like the sight of a wad of $20 bills to motivate a prospective seller.

We quickly concluded our business and I soon headed for home with my new treasures in tow. Upon reaching my house, I immediately broke out the scale and began to weigh and inventory my new (to me) silver flatware.

There were 24 Gorham sterling silver pieces in total – 9 Etruscan teaspoons, 6 Etruscan tablespoons, 1 Etruscan sugar spoon, 1 Etruscan master butter knife and 7 Plymouth teaspoons. They collectively weighed in at around 20 troy ounces of sterling silver, giving them a bullion value of about $275 at current spot prices.

A quick check on eBay revealed that antique Gorham sterling flatware in good condition often sells for around $14 to $18 a piece. I paid $4.58 a piece for my haul.

I had done well on my garage sale picking expedition.

But I think there is a larger lesson to be learned from my experience. The modern age has so corrupted the idea of money that average people no longer recognize valuable tangible assets when they see them. Instead, money has evolved into this virtual, largely imaginary thing that has no basis in the physical world. In the modern age, why should anything have value – even sterling silver?

The family that sold their Gorham silverware to me knew that it was sterling silver. The woman even commented to me that she had “looked it up online” to verify that it was actually sterling. She sold it knowing full well that it was solid silver; she simply didn’t believe that fact conferred much value on the set.

But what she was actually doing was selling the accumulated wealth of her ancestors. These hard assets had undoubtedly been passed down in her middle-class family over many decades. This hodge-podge collection of Gorham sterling silver was probably her family’s only physically inherited wealth of any note, with the possible exception of a few pieces of old jewelry or a family home. And she sold it for $110.

Now, she may have put that $110 to very good use. Maybe she used it to pay-down onerous credit card debt or to fund a profitable small business. I don’t know, although I certainly do hope she made smart choices with the money.

But it is important to keep in mind that when you sell great aunt Jenny’s sterling silver, grandma Etta’s diamond wedding ring or Uncle Howard’s coin collection, it is highly probable that you will not be able to easily or cheaply replace these hard assets in the future. So you had better be rolling the proceeds into other tangible assets (gold and silver bullion are probably the easiest choice for the neophyte) or using the extra cash for an exigent need.

The other side of this analysis is that garage sale picking is a great way to build wealth for those willing to scavenge their way across America. After all, people are out there literally selling the family silver! And if you don’t buy it, some eBay flipper or metal scrapper will. So open up your wallet and back up the truck!

Read more thought-provoking Antique Sage thrifting & antiquing articles here.

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