What are my coins worth?

The coin market is ever changing, but there are three basics of coins that will never change. These three factors contribute the most to a value of a coin: condition, demand and rarity. We will go over these three factors briefly, explaining how and why they exist.

It is important to remember that other factors can always play a role. For instance, if two bidders are bidding on a coin in an auction that they both want to complete a set, the bidding may go very well over the average price, especially if the coin in question is low population.

Condition

The grade, or condition of a coin is determined by several factors, some technical and some subjective. The technical aspects of grading a coin include the amount of wear on a coin, surface marks, luster, and the sharpness of the strike. Subjective aspects include the originality of the coin, or if it's been 'dipped' or otherwise modified, any toning that may be present and the quality of the coin for the mint that it came from in comparison to others.

The grades that are used to designate the coin depend on whether it is a raw coin (not graded by a professional grading service, such as PCGS or NGC) or if it has been 'slabbed' (graded by a service, such as PCGS or NGC). If the coin is 'raw' it's designations will be by letters. In order from lowest quality to highest quality, these coins are labeled as: (Poor), (Good), (Very Good), (Fine), (Very Fine), (Extra Fine), (Almost Uncirculated), (Brilliant Uncirculated), (Choice Uncirculated). If the coin is graded through a grading service, the coin is most likely using the Sheldon Scale which is a letter/number combination from 1-70. The designations are: P1, P2, AG3, G4, G6, VG8, VG10, F12, F15, VF20, VF35, XF40, XF45, AU50, AU53, AU55, AU58, MS60-MS70 with MS70 being a 'perfect' coin. There are also Proof coins, which are designated with PR or PF. Further designations can be included among them: RD for Red, DCAM for Deep Cameo, FBL for Full Bell Line, and so on.[/FONT]

Demand

Some coins may have plenty of examples available, but the demand may be high. This all depends on the current coin market conditions.

Rarity

Rarity is determined by the orignal mintage and the amount of coins that have survived. Population reports from grading services can give an idea of condition rarity, in which a coin may be common in lower grades, but only a small amount may exist in higher grades.

In the end, the coins value ultimately depends on what people are willing to pay. Although there are price guides, they are not 'fixed' prices. If a coin is listed for $1500.00 in a price guide, it may end up selling for $1750.00 or $1200.00 or something completely different then the guide!