Rare Coin Investing?

I saw a book on Amazon.com about investing in rare coins for an early retirement. I won't mention the title, because I think it's against this site's Community Guidelines for me to ask whether or not you would recommend a product by name.

But basically the book claims to teach you how, by investing about $210 a month in rare coins, you could make enough to retire in about a dozen years. It's not an easy task, because apparently it takes a lot of research to find a coin that will give you a good return on your investment.

The book was published in 1998. I used AIER.org's Cost-of-Living Calculator to figure out that $210 in 1998 is worth about $265 today.

Well, I don't know much about rare coin collecting and investing. Would you be able to tell me if rare coin investing could really enable you to retire in about a dozen years?

Many thanks,
C.L.

If you happened to get lucky and always by the right coin and happen to luck out into getting it certified at a high grade (rare coins only) - then you could make a large profit on each coin. However, this is rare - certainly not something you can count on for 12 years. The highest profit I have made on an uncertified coin is 5 times it's usmint issued value. However, this only happened once...I have lost money on selling coins that come back as "less than perfect" on many, many occasions. I'm picturing $43,000 worth of coins over twelve years...even if you tripled your money (unlikely) you would only have around $130,000...a nice chunk of cash...but hardly enough to retire on.

Hope this helps.

Personally I'd invest in Gold.

If it was that easy, everyone would be doing it. Check out your library for other books. Remember a book is one person's opinion (and hopefully not a con). Read nine others before you invest a penny.

this is complete crap. there are many ways to properly invest your money that are financially sound.

i recommend you subscribe to the wall street journal.

They are all about selling the book

Coins will appricate in value provided they are properly well cared for.

To make money on the coins will require someone else in the future willing to buy them from you at a higher price then you paid for them

Try to find a few coin price guides from the past 10 years and compaire them and you will see that a few coins go up in value enough to make a few dollars in profit but most of them stay around the same price.

The only one who will benifit the most from you buying the rare coins is the person selling them to you

I don't know the price attached to this book, but if it's $10 or less, go for it.

Coin Collecting is a fun and interesting hobby. If you are going to get into it to make money, you have to understand that the value attached to these coins are 100% derived on those who collect coins for pleasure. If the market finds a coin desirable, it's price will out pace other more rare coins in similar condition deemed to be less desirable to collectors.

If you are serious about investing in coins, I suggest looking into a publication called numismatic news. From there look for a Coin Show. Most are open to the public and check it out. Talk to dealers and Collectors alike and see if they have any hints or tips. I have founds that Coin Collectors usually are very much open and happy to talk about their hobby

Unless you can buy these coins for a 'song', & then sell them for thousands of dollars, it's hard for me to see how you will be able to retire on a this plan. The coin dealers will almost surely know the value of these coins & will price them accordingly.

Coin collecting is a great hobby, I collect Morgan silver dollars myself. But for retirement, I plow money into my 401k & IRA.

Most rare coins go through auction houses. You pay a 15%-22% buyer's fee, so right out the door you are down a large percent. You CAN make money in coins, but it is not a guarantee!!!! The last few years have been VERY good for coins, but that does not mean it will continue (kind of like Internet stocks and flipping houses).

If you do not know what you are doing, DO NOT DO IT!!!!!