Whether you're selling your old coin collection or purchased coins from an estate sale or inherited some from your family, you'll want to get the full value for your silver coins. In most cases, you'll receive the melt value for the coins, and the melt value can easily be a lot more than the face value of the coins! That's a lot of money when you have a large collection. It's important to take your silver coins to an experienced coin dealer, especially if the collection has numerous foreign coins. It takes expertise to determine the melt value of silver coins and to determine if the coins have any collectible value above the melt value. When you sell your silver coin collection, make sure you avoid these mistakes in order to receive the full value for your coins.

Don't Take Your Coins To The Pawn Shop—Take Them To An Expert

Unless the pawn shop specializes in silver coins, taking them to a pawn shop is a bad idea. Pawn shops do not have the expertise required to properly value old silver coins. Any collectible value above the melt value of the coins will not be considered; in addition, since the melt value of coins because of their silver content varies among different coin types, you would be lucky to actually receive the full melt value of the coins from a pawn shop that does not take every factor into account.

Instead, you should take your silver coins to an experienced coin dealer who is familiar with both the melt value of coins and can ascertain if the silver coins have any collectible value. This collectible value, known as the numismatic value of the coin, can be hundreds of times greater than the melt value of the silver coin. Although older coins are generally more valuable, this isn't always the case. The numismatic value of the coin is driven by supply and demand; sometimes coins that are only fifty or sixty years old can be more valuable than those that are over a hundred years old simply due to the fact that they were minted in small runs.

Don't Attempt To Clean Your Silver Coins

Even though it may be tempting, do not attempt to clean your coins before you bring them to the silver coin shop. The reason for this is that the corrosive acids used in coin cleaners will etch the surface of the coin. Even though it may be undetectable to the naked eye, coin dealers can tell with a jeweler's eyeglass that a coin has been cleaned with acid. You can significantly reduce the value of your coins by cleaning them, even if it improves their outward appearance. Instead, just bring your silver coins into the shop as they are, even if they are nearly unrecognizable due to decades of grime buildup.

Don't Assume That Damaged Silver Coins Are Worthless

Some of the coins in the collection may look like they have been damaged; they may have circular depressions or chips in them or they may have raised lines that look like cracks. Don't assume that these coins are worthless, because they may be the most valuable in the entire collection! The damage may have occurred while the coin was in circulation, but it also may have been a mint-made error. Since it's unusual for damaged coins to enter into circulation, these coins are sought after by collectors due to their rarity. It takes the eye of a skilled silver coin shop to determine whether damage occurred in circulation or at the mint, so it's important to take your silver coins in to a professional to have their true value appraised.