Investment Grade Gold: What You Should Know
There are three primary factors that should be considered in determining the value of a coin. The first is “rarity”. This is determined by how many were minted or produced and still survive. The next is “popularity” or demand. Even if a coin was produced in small quantities, if there is little or no demand the price will reflect it downward. The third is “grading” or condition of the coin. Stay away from non graded or raw coins. Coins that are graded, are assigned a numerical value based on a 70 point numeric scale. Business strike coins from 1 to 59 are circulated and coins from 60 to 70 are uncirculated. These later numbers are called their Mint State and it is abbreviated to the letters “ms”.
Typically the higher the grade the more a coin is worth. The difference in one grade point (e.g. Ms63 to ms64) can result in a significant difference in the price or value of the coin. Hence, it is essential to rely upon grading services with the most experience and to whom the greatest respect is given. Pcgs and ngc are the two that we regard as the most reliable and deserving of respect for accuracy. The majority of coins traded today by dealers, collectors and investors are certified by one of these two, third party grading companies. These services, again are “Professional Coin Grading Service” (pcgs), and “Numismatic Guaranty Corporation” (ngc). Each coin submitted to these companies are anonymously inspected and assigned a grade, then encapsulated into a sealed and tamper proof container.
These grading services keep records on each coin graded, so that populations of issues can be attained and so the assigned grade on the label can be verified. The lower the population of a coin, the scarcer or rarer it is. The population of a coin of its entire type is a significant factor determining its rarity, scarcity and value. We utilize the services of “Collectors Acceptance Corporation” (CAC) as the ultimate safeguard that the assigned grade is of premium quality.
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