I don't get every good deal that comes along. I shop around on eBay quite a bit and bid low. Plenty of other people bid a little higher. If I win, great, otherwise, there are plenty of other opportunities to take a look at. Too often I see people bidding on coins, not so much to get a good price, but to win the auction. Just because it's a nice coin does not mean it's worth paying too much. If buying through auctions one must exert strict control over bidding prices.
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| One of today's pickups 1914-S in F-VF for $15.25 |
I'd like to make $50 in profit in a day. I've done it before quite a number of times and would like to do it more often. In all honesty, doing that 4 times per week would pay all my bills. I live out in the woods, the place is paid for, I don't need to do a whole lot of traveling. A couple hundred a week would see me retired. For a lot of folks, a couple hundred a month would be enough to improve their situation. Perhaps I should focus on that. 10 coins, 5 bucks, $50 bucks. Do it each weekend, $200/month=Good Money. Its a real simple formula. Let's further quantify it.
To sell 10 coins I've gotta have 10 coins. For coins in the 20-30 range, an average price of $30/coin says I need $300 available for inventory for a day of selling. Add more for supplies: shipping labels, envelopes, padding, tape, inkjet cartridges, 2x2s, staples, all those little things one needs to have around to make the plan come together. I keep a separate account for all my coin dealings. When I need supplies, I order them online, pay with that account through paypal or visa. For those items it makes sense to purchase locally, I have a debit card tied to that account. The supplies needed to sell a coin are maybe a buck. That $5 profit margin accounts for that. A good day of sales, I can pick up most supplies in a quantity that will see me through for a while. I'm at the point right now that I'm getting supplies in larger amounts to get a better price. I don't have to come out of pocket for supplies. If you work it, the hobby takes care of itself.
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| The lamination error on the back probably drove away some bidders, keeping the price down. It will go over well with the variety and error crowd. |
To get started in selling I had to lay out some cash. I needed a printer and ink. The old stapler gave out so I picked one up at Office Max. Sure wish they had a Flat Clinch. Setting up that checking account took 100 bucks out of the loop. I still have it, it's in the checking account doing its job of keeping the account open. Shipping supplies were another $30. Now I drop that much just on shipping labels. The most important purchase was a camera that could take a decent photo. At this point I'm looking for a replacement that will take an awesome photo. Total spending to get my sales effort up and running smoothly was about $300. 6 good sales days would be enough to recover my investment. This does not include several thousand spent on coins over the years. I've got lots of stuff just sitting around, seems to me I'd much rather stay home and do my coin thing than punch a clock. Putting those coins to work is a whole lot easier on my back, and I get to sleep in.
For the coins needed to make a good day of sales I need about $300. It takes time to bid, time for the coins to arrive, time to inspect them and return when necessary, time to photograph and list, time for bidders to work themselves into a frenzy, and once they win, more time for them to pay and for that payment to make it into my account.
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| 1924-D Lincoln Cent found in a 5000 count bag Paid: $0.04 Sold: $12 |
I'm fortunate that I happen to have that much already invested which is why I'm looking to do more buying and selling. Even without a high dollar investment, anyone with a good head for coins can do this.
While typing this article up I was also keeping an eye on eBay. Along with some other items, I won a 1914-S Lincoln Cent, seen above, with a bid of $15.25. One of these other items was with the same seller, and the seller will combine shipping charges. That's an advantage to keep an eye out for.
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| Canada Large Cent, 1886 Obverse #2 Paid $6.50 Sold $30 |
When I put a coin up for sale the starting price is what I paid, plus a little more. I need to break even and cover my expenses. Sometimes that's all I get. Sometimes I have to list the coin several times. I'm finding most items I list do pretty well. Every now and then I list one that outperforms my expectations. The big dollar and break even sales are infrequent. Most of the time my sales put at least 5 bucks in my pocket, with 10-20 being more typical. Just a couple of weeks ago I had a great week-$500 in sales on coins that cost me closer to $250. If I can do that every week, I'll never work for The Man again.
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| 2000 Wide AM found Coin Roll Hunting Cost: $0.01 Sold: $10.00 |
Part of what I do is search through bank rolls, hunting for doubled dies, RPMs, errors, and other varieties. I find lots of stuff valued at a buck or two: minor DDRs and RPMs, a BIE here and there. Bigger ticket items are out there: WAMs are one of my favorite CRH targets, and they sell. I've found doubled dies with values ranging from $10 to $75. The best part of all is getting them for face value. If I lost everything I own tomorrow in a forest fire I could start over from scratch with the money I have in my coin checking and paypal accounts. New laptop, printer, camera, 50 bucks for a couple of boxes of pennies, and use the rest to hunt for deals. It might take me a year or two to get back to where I am now, but my experience tells me it can be done without question. I know of no job that offers this sort of income security.
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