Comments on: 2013 Australian Koala Silver Coin in 1/10 Oz Size

By: jim

jim — Wed, 15 May 2013 14:01:14 +0000

Good for you – a budding numismatist! Keep up the good work.

By: Axiom Precious Metals

Axiom Precious Metals — Wed, 15 May 2013 06:04:45 +0000

Funny you should say that….
I got an email from the eldest one (13) a couple of days ago asking me if I would buy a couple of 1/2oz Perth Mint Lunar Dragons (she’s a Dragon in Chinese Astrology) for her, she said she has saved up a bit of her birthday & pocket money and didn’t know where else she could buy them! (They live in a rural area & a few hours drive away from me)
I have a couple of them floating around so I’ve told her that if she deposits the money into my account that I’d send them up to her.
Granted, I’m cheating a bit because I’m only charging her “Spot” for them but I gotta admit, I was glowing with pride when I read the email she sent.
The way I see it, this is a great start for her & over time I’ll explain about “premiums over spot” etc but I was impressed that she even knew what the current Spot price was!
Clever girl, proud uncle.

By: jim

jim — Tue, 14 May 2013 15:42:38 +0000

So how much are they learning if Uncle is doing all the buying for them? Get them to commit a few of their own $ even if you provide the balance towards buying coins and under your guidance they might keep it up.

By: Axiom Precious Metals

Axiom Precious Metals — Tue, 14 May 2013 11:49:54 +0000

I’m probably going to be the odd one out when I say this but…
The Perth Mint markets this coin as an “ideal gift” & as others have mentioned, it’s not really a coin for the serious collector or bullion stacker but nevertheless I really like this product and I think it has its place.
I’ll give an example of why I like this coin:
I have a couple of nieces, in an attempt to teach them the principles behind buying coins & bullion I decided to buy them a couple of coins to get them started. I wanted to get them something that was interesting, artistic and (not to sound cheap) not too costly just to get the ball rolling. At first I decided that non-precious metal BU commemorative coins would be a good start so I bought them a few R.A.M 50c coins in the blister pack with the illustrated card etc for AUD$9-10 each one day when I was at the Post Office, they loved them! Anyway, I was at the post office again and I saw that it they’d released these 2013 1/10th oz/$0.10c (face value) Koalas and they were only a few dollars more expensive than the BU base metal coins that I had been buying them.
So, I decided then & there that these coins were much better value for money than the base metal ones I had been buying them.
SO…Yes, they are pretty pricy for 3.15g of silver but still much better value than the alternative and the girls absolutely love them.
That makes me a happy uncle and gives my nieces something more valuable than a regular BU base metal 50c Coin.
But that’s just my opinion!

By: Brian

Brian — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 01:36:11 +0000

When is the Perth Mint going to release the 2013 specimen silver koala’s? These are same carded ones as above they are just the 1 oz coins though.

By: Kevin

Kevin — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 07:19:51 +0000

Jim,
The coins I took a modest loss on were generally ones where I didn’t wait long enough to sell, or ones that developed toning or spots. Due to the big production numbers of American silver eagles, I find that if I try to sell NGC MS69s soon after release, I’m doing well to break even. I’ve done better at the non-US silver coins, and I don’t usually get them graded. Their lower mintage figures help sellers get good prices (with patience).

The premiums that the US Mint charges have caused me to slow my purchases of proof and burnished silver eagles. But if 2012 burnished silver eagle mintage figures remain low, I may buy more…. Currently, they are the lowest of any burnished year’s figures. And who knows when the Mint will pull the plug?

Re your question…. Australian koalas and Mexico libertads were my best return on investment over time. Austrian philharmonic was on either side of break even. Early releases blue labels have fetched more $ than their brown labels for eagles, when I sell. (All coins,I am referring to silver.). Winners to losers on dollar amounts I would guess to be 75%winners/25% break even or small loss.

Sorry for the random musings.

By: jim

jim — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 17:06:28 +0000

Kevin – good plan. I wonder how your hits compare to your misses – evening out? I don’t follow the numbers that closely but it’d sure be nice to get the coins for “free”.

By: Joe

Joe — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 15:39:55 +0000

The Perth Mint came out with a 1 oz silver koala high relief for the first time last year. I wonder if they are going do it for 2013? It’s a real sharp looking coin. Glad I bought a couple. They only made 10,000.

By: Kevin

Kevin — Sat, 02 Feb 2013 21:19:17 +0000

@thePhelps….Secondary market price for 1 oz silver koalas is ludicrous unless you are the seller. :-). I find it interesting and challenging to pick coins that may have a better resale value in a few years, apart from increasing bullion values (or decreasing $US). I guessed wrong on Austrian Phil 2008 silver, first year. I guessed right on koala and Mexico silver libertad. Some, the guessing is made easier by comparing mintage figures. My goal is to buy extra coins, wait a while, sell the extra coins at a nice profit and end up with “free” money on the ones I keep. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t.

By: thePhelps

thePhelps — Sat, 02 Feb 2013 13:03:42 +0000

I was wrong… the half issue started in 2008 the dime issue started in 2011.