I just purchased a collection from a friend's dad that included silver prestige sets from 1995, 1996, and 1997. The 1995 had the lowest mintage (17,122) but the 1996 set has the highest market value (over $200 vs $50) despite a considerably higher mintage (55,000). Does anyone know the reason for the higher market value of the 1996 set? Could the 1996 Atlanta Centennial Olympic Games set make that much difference in value?
Looking at lots on eBay, it can't be the Olympic coins because the difference in the price between the prestige and regular silver set is a lot more than the cost of the Olympic half and dollar. My guess is that it's one of two things which mean exactly the same thing. I remember all prestige sets being expensive for several years after issuance, probably because novices were fooled by the supposedly "low" mintage which is just a difference in the packaging since the actual mintages for the coins in it are a large multiple. My recollection is that the sets have been cheaper for awhile but maybe I'm wrong about it. Second, the price might be inflated just because it used to be due to this perception of "scarcity", just as with many "key" dates which are known to be common now.
Working coin shows I can tell you first hand that book values on prestige set and true value are two different things . One of the last shows I worked the dealer who I work for had a customer that purchased a mess of mint and proof sets. He was more than happy to unload them! I have also witnessed customers who have come in selling all of the above as well as the prestige sets and no one in the room were interested in even making a offer. They aren't in favor with most collectors , yes they are very well done as far as the packaging , they just take up a lot of room in the safe. The coins for the most part are very common with high mintage. The modern commemorative again are easy to obtain and since that market is soft they aren't in demand. Since during the years that these sets were issued there were other options to obtain the same commemorative coins. Working security at shows I meet and greet sign in customers . When asked who is buying I often say all the dealers are always looking to buy. Then I ask what do you have to sell so I can best direct you to a dealer whom I believe may be interested . About two shows ago a man walked in with a complete Franklin set in a very nice Capital holder. All the coins were MS. Not one dealer was interested in making a offer! The last show again the same man walked in again no takers. I explained to him that none of the dealers were interested as they didn't want to offend him with an offer for spot. However I told him to take the set home and if the kids weren't interested in holding on to the set come back in August . I would make him a offer. Dealers are not going to carry inventory that just sits. My friend got lucky at the last show moving all those mint and proof sets. Especially sets that take up so much space. And show very little interest by most collectors .
@Phil Ham I hope you didn't pay a lot for those Prestige Sets because their values are almost always inflated. Chris
I believe there are multiple reasons for what Paddy54 described. First, like he stated, dealers aren't going to make an offer for inventory that isn't going to sell, regardless that price lists or the Red Book assign it a market value which indicates that it is or might be in demand. Second, the traditional collector base for this material has less discretionary income than they used to have, particularly since about 2007 but also going back to at least 1999 which is when median inflation adjusted income peaked, as measured by US government statistics which I presume at least some here believe are understated. Third, for proof sets and modern commemoratives, the mintages vastly exceed the collector base who actually wants it. In writing my first post here, I once again checked both. As late as 2006, proof sets slightly exceeded two million (for clad) the last year posted where I checked, just over 700,000 for 2013. This to me is a combination of both declines in discretionary income and reduced interest. Additionally, these mintages are for FULL sets with additional supply for partials sets. The silver is somewhat less but still too high for the collector base. Commemoratives are a lot lower but there are just too many of them. Traditionally, a lot of both have also been bought by non-collectors. In the late 1950's and early 1960's, also by speculators which today is also evident with selective commemoratives such as the 2014 Kennedy half and 2016 gold Mercury. Contrary to what any advocates want to believe, even for these "low" mintage coins, there aren't remotely enough real collectors who want either anywhere near its current price, much less far higher ones. The reason for the latter and generically brings me to my last reason. It should be apparent that regardless of how many collectors collect these coins now, a disproportionate percentage (as in much higher than other actually more popular but maybe equally widely collected coins and series) don't have a strong affinity for them because there isn't anything particularly interesting or challenging in collecting it. I can literally go out and buy every single one of them in one day, except maybe in a "70" or when some other arbitrary criteria is applied. The primary challenge in buying these coins is having the money. This is why most longer term collectors don't buy them except maybe in isolation and why the turnover is higher or much higher than others. Those who buy them frequently lose interest relatively quickly and move on to something else. This is why both are near the bottom of the preference scale which is exactly where they are going to stay. My narrative also substantially applies to a set like Franklin halves, though the collector base has a larger core following which is reflected in the prices of FBL and cameo proofs.
Part of your confusion comes from an incorrect minage figure on the 1995 set, It wasn't 17,122 it was 107,112. The 96 set was the low mintage set not the 95.
Very true every point you made....as for Franklin half's as well as complete sets of Roosevelt dimes 46-64. First mintage's are high, even the keys to the sets are doable for the everyday collector . Take the 49 S Roosevelt there was a post on here not long ago that showed them listed on e bay from ms-64 and up for way below market trends. Franklin half's pretty much the same unless as you stated FBL's and ultra cam proofs. To be perfectly honest the offer I intend to give the seller I mentioned would be slightly more than spot. As I would be interested in any varieties more so then the complete collection . I already have a ms collection that's completed. I will also admit could never recoup my money back spent on this collection . Never the less I enjoy having it completed it ,and say to the new collectors that this is a set that is very doable in coins Xf - MS coins.
The 1996 prestige has the 1996 Olympic soccer half in it. That coin has a very low mintage because they had just offered the 1994 world cup soccer coin two years earlier and people did not want to spend the money on another soccer half. Also alot of collectors thought that 16 coins over a 2 year period was way too many coins so they passed on buying the 1995 1996 sets. It also has the lowest number minted of the prestige series at 55,000. http://prestigeproofsets.com/mintages http://moderncommemoratives.com/modern-commemorative-coin-mintages/
Agree that the sets are worthwhile collecting but the buyer needs to be prepared to accept a likely loss upon resale. When I was starting out at age 10 in 1975, local dealers where I lived claimed to offer 60% of "retail". Unless the coins in the set are particularly nice, I suspect this is optimistic today. Financially, the problem with all of these sets (both circulation, proofs and commemoratives) is that this type of collecting reflects how collecting almost exclusively used to occur. Today, I suspect that most US based collectors still do it the same way but the internet has reduced marginal demand substantially since literally almost every US coin is available on demand and many (maybe most) world coins also. If there are at least 250,000 coins (date, country, denomination) and 10,000 series available, they aren't very competitive anymore.
The value of those sets are about 10% back of CDN Bid (which is $260.00 for the 1996) if you find someone that needs them however, most of the value of the 1996 set is in the OGP and the boxes. I have some sets without the boxes that I can't move even though I am only asking 68% of the current Bid price.
These are one of those items where you have to have the whole shebang, the set, the papers and the box.
Yes Conder, in book like holders,and boxes. Nice presentation however eat up a lot of room in the safe.
Thanks for staying on topic and providing the answer. I was using the 33rd addition of Krause, which erroneously showed the mintage of the 95 set at 17,122. I'm now using the red book's mintage of 107,112, which validates your answer.
