Commemorative coins from the U.S. Mint bad investment

[tab1962]

I've been told many times that Commemorative coins from the U.S. Mint are not really a good deal. Yes, there are exceptions like the 2001 Buffalo Silver dollar but most cases you are lucky to break even as far as an investment. Love your hear your thoughts/experiences.

Tom

[Daniel]

I agree, they'er so over-priced from the beginning that they most generally never increase in value.

[mhonzell]

With the advent of lasers in the die making process, the dies are made of a harder material and chrome plated after being cut. This greatly reduces the likelihood of errors in the manufacture of dies, and produces much higher quality coins in mass quantities before the dies deteriorate. Think about it... Cameo coins used to be only the first couple of hundred coins produced by a die. Now, almost all coins produced by a die can be frosted.

Older commemoratives (before lasers) still draw fairly good values. Modern commemoratives no longer draw value because they are all the same and mass produced at this high quality. When errors do occur, they draw the higher values.

Proof coins are rapidly going the same route.

[dipper13]

Unless they are limited, thus scarce, most modern commems are a waste of time, effort and $.

[Wanzewurld]

I'll definitely agree that modern commemoratives are a bad investment when viewed in the short term but if someone looks at purchasing and holding the issues as a legacy to be handed down to succeeding generations then it may be a decent investment.
Who's to say that COMPLETE COLLECTIONS won't be profitable? Perhaps the monetary value would be better or greater when invested and continually rolled over in a certificate of deposit BUT the collection, when taken as an artistic or historic collection, would indeed class itself as a legacy.
I can see arguments - both pro and con - having validity but, in the final analysis, they are VERY PROBABLY a HORRIBLE investment but I'll continue buying them for their artistic value while buying and selling other, more widely recognized and traded numismatic pieces.
There is one other consideration to be taken into account if one DOES CHOOSE to invest in commemoratives... should one collect raw coins with OGP and COA (Original Government Packaging and Certificate Of Authenticity), collect slabbed and (highly) graded pieces, or maybe (AT LEAST) one of each? I have THIS to say about THAT - OGP would take up an inordinately large space!
I would have to say the numbers of collectors would ultimately determine whether or not commemoratives would eventually influence and determine profitability... I'm optimistic and believe modern commemoratives will be a good investment over a, say, 50 year time period.
The pessimist in me says their precious metal content will, in the next 20 or so years, prove profitable - Depending, of course, on the value of the U.S dollar.
This brings one of my favorite quips, "Where are we going... And why are we all in this handbasket?" To mind.

[mhonzell]

This is my opinion...
If you are going to collect commemorative coins made since ~1972, then only collect them as personal art pieces. In other words, these are not an investment, you simply like the designs on the coins. Buy a DANSCO book and fill it up with circulated versions and feel great when the book is complete.

Here is an awesome write-up on "investing" in any numismatic coin: Investing in Numismatic Coins

Read the article carefully! These "returns" do not reflect "Mark-ups", "Commissions", or "Fees".

Basically, if you're investing in coins, you lose.
If you're collecting coins, you occasionally lose.


I have a complete set of Indian Head Cents and Kennedy Half Dollar Proofs. I acknowledge that I will never be able to sell these as a set. That half of these are not desirable because they are so common and would sell at a loss even after 20 years. And, that the varieties I have identified in my sets would only be "valuable" to a few collectors. Yet, I complete and maintain both sets because I like the coin types.

The only one who will significantly benefit from my coins are my beneficiaries who did not pay a cent for them.

==================
If you want to "invest" in coins, there are only two paths:

1. You must research diligently and know the coin you are going to buy. It must be rare and desirable. It doesn't matter what it looks like.
Compare the price of a 1893-S VG Morgan Dollar to a MS65 1896 Morgan Dollar. They have the same design, the MS65 is in far better shape, yet the VG coin is selling 20x higher. And, while it costs and sells for more... as an investment, it has lost money over the last 20 years.

or

2. You become a shyster. Flip coins with absurd statements and hide when they come looking for you.