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Building a World Class Coin Collection

By Rob Lehmann

Rome was not built in a day, and neither is a great coin collection.

Assembling a collection of coins can be an arduous but enjoyable undertaking. And, like any goal that is accomplished incrementally, building your collection will require discipline and planning. I suggest laying the ground work for your coin collection with the following 6 principles in mind:

1. Choose a series that interests you, but won’t force you to mortgage the farm. Remember, coins, or any other collectible for that matter, are supposed to be fun. Review your target series and ask yourself, “Is this do-able?” There are two factors which obviously are paramount to your answer and hence your choice. These are availability and affordability.

Availability is important. Let me illustrate this point. I have always been fascinated by the Barber Quarter and Barber Half series. I feel that both of these series were largely ignored by collectors. Consequently, most Barber quarters and halves circulated without much fanfare. Finding these coins in AG and GOOD is not much of a challenge. However, try to find lightly circulated, problem-free examples, and it’s a whole another story. Now, if you believe the price guides, these coins are not that rare. But, scour a coin show, look at fixed price lists and hit the auctions, and then see what you come up with. My guess is that at 47 years old, my life is not long enough to complete either one of these sets, regardless of budget. Therefore, despite my affection to the contrary, this is probably not a collection that I want to undertake. Use some common sense, and choose a series to collect with availability in mind.

Affordability is the next variable. It is my advice that you set a budget before starting your collection. There is nothing more disheartening or frustrating than to start a collection only to find out that you can’t afford to finish it. As a dealer, I have seen this happen countless times. Take into consideration your discretionary income, the time frame for completion and possible market swings which could affect prices. Know that some coins are going to cost you more than you initially expect. Forecast your investment conservatively, as I can almost guarantee that your collection will come in over budget!

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