Clueless Kiwi needing advice regarding old banknote and coin inheritance

I've recently discovered my late grandfather's old banknote and coin collection, several of which are above 90 on the Numista rarity scale. Many items could be classed as almost uncirculated as they've been put away for safe keeping since 1940s-70s.

What is the best way to get these valued/appraised from Wanganui, New Zealand? It isn't one of the major cities in New Zealand.

There are an overwhelming number of websites for selling banknotes and coins but I'm not sure which one's to trust or what the best process for selling is. Especially for very rare and potentially high value items…

Appreciate friendly advice and direction,

Thanks 😊 

I was hoping @Moneytane would reply to this since New Zealand is his turf & he may know where you can find some help.

My 1st suggestion would be to get organized (enter the coins/notes here) & search your grandfather's personal effects (or collection) for a document which lists the items or provides an inventory of his coins/notes. If he hasn't left you one, then I guess you will have to use this site or create some type of spreadsheet to track his collection.  On that spreadsheet categorize coins from oldest to newest with a section for observation/notes on each item (what he's noted on the coin's flips/banknote sleeves) & possible Book or (Estimated) value from your research. The other thing I would suggest is to check with your family (if you're so inclined) to see if there are any items they may wish to keep before you actually sell off the collection. You may want to take photos of the coins/notes once you feel you've got everything organized so you can show images to potential coin shops/auction houses. Remember that the less you handle the rare stuff the condition will remain unaltered (especially banknotes) & you will want to minimize risk of theft. Be careful who you broadcast this info to. Don't cart the collection around unless you are actually about to sell it. Remain vigilant.

This thread from Coin Community Family gives great advice on what to do when you inherit a collection. If you already know the value of each coin/note in your inheritance, then I'm not sure whether you need to pay an appraiser to tell you what they're worth.  The problem is that they must be sold & that will cost money.  If you take the collection to a Local Coin Shop (LCS) expect about 50% (or less) of what its worth. Ultimately, your best bet will be an auction house but they also charge a seller's commission (which varies but I believe is 15-20%). In another forum I discovered that if the collection is worth serious money than you can often negotiate this fee to less than the std rate but expect to sell all of it (& it would need to be worth 6 figures).  Once you know what you have, (your inventory “to sell” is set in stone) begin negotiating with an auction house about selling off the collection. If there are items which must be graded be sure you know how much they will charge & be sure there are no extra fees beyond the seller's commission. 

I have listed a number of auction houses on my Money Market page (Heritage, Spinks & Stacks Bowers) once you scroll down to “Selling banknotes” & Potential Buyers. However, these serve a North American/European market. You should decide which auction house to go to depending on the make up of the collection (which nation did your grandfather specialize in the most/ the rarest).

You may want to deal with an Australian auction site like Downies Collectibles or Noble Numismatics if there's a good deal of Australian coins/notes.  Ask around on coin forums for recommended auction houses (I just googled these). Remember, you don't need to sell it all off using one auction house. You could break the collection up & try different ones (depending on who you trust, etc). Seek opinions & never rush into anything you don't feel comfortable with.

Mowbray Collectibles is an auction house based in New Zealand. It may be the best option if you have a lot of items from New Zealand. Wait for others to chip in here. 

Good luck!

Yes re 

Mowbray Collectibles

Remember condition is very important. But a little research would assist.

For New Zealand material, The John Bertrand 2024 catalogue is now out. The prices are generally what dealers would like to sell to you for. If selling expect 50 to 75% of the catalogue price. Good luck.

 The John Bertrand New Zealand Coin & Banknote ...

Numista

https://en.numista.com › Reference catalogues

Code, Bertrand. Author, Anthony W. Grant. Title, The John Bertrand New Zealand Coin & Banknote Catalogue 2020. Publisher, Philatelic Distributors Limited.

regards

MC

Kind of agree, with all the above. Mowbrays are your best bet and being Otaki, they are not that far from Whanganui.

Before you do though - answer these questions.

1. Is this collection mostly consisting of the following items?

1965 and 1967 Proof sets in plastic packaging and cardboard outers - Pink, Green and Blue Labels.?

10/- and £1 banknotes in any condition other than perfectly flat and new?

Coins consiting mostly of pennies/halfpennies and any 1947 or later coins in less than perfect condition?

Perfect condition                                                     These are not perfect condition and worth only metal value.

1967 and 1969/70/74 slabbed $1 coins - also 1953 crown and 1953 bronze medal for the queen given out to every school child?

Coins in bags that are all mixed together including all the above and 1c - 50c of NZ from 1967 to 2004?

$1 and $2 banknotes from the 1980s (They always are) even in perfect condition?

British pennies and halfpence from as far back as 1797, yet all worn flat or heavily worn?

Modern world coins, mostly of base metals like copper. brass, nickel, aluminium, etc

If your answer is yes to any of the above, generally dealers WILL NOT be interested in them and such items have minimal value. figure 10c per penny and cupronickel coin (Halfcrown/50c down to 5c/3d) - give them to a child or a doveshop or something.

HOWEVER!

If the collection contains any of the following.

Any coin with silver in it including New Zealand coins 1946 and earlier, 3d and up only NO PENNIES OR HALFPENCE.

British coins before 1947 (Not including 1947 dated coins, 1946 and earlier) and again silver coins only, no Bronze or copper

Any gold coin - sovereigns etc - not the joke shield guineas that say “For the memory of the good times” its a worthless brass token.

Banknotes from NZ including better grade notes £5 and up, NZ $5 and up

Coins that are very old (Like pre 1800s that are NOT copper or base metal like aluminium)

Old banknotes - except German inflation banknotes (Have gothic lettering and always dated 1922 or 1923 = worthless)

Then contact the dealers, hope this may help.

Other dealers include John and Peter Eccles (Auckland and Wellington) and Howard Mitchell Auckland - details online.

Before you do though - answer these questions.

100% agree: go through & survey grandfather's collection for the items@Moneytane has listed/described. If there's a lot of the common items he's listed, then separate & you're probably best off selling the common coin/notes to a LCS (no auction house will go for such common stuff). You must separate the common stuff from his more rare/collectible stuff (Numista Rarity Index above 90). This may also mean grade (separate the low grade from the higher grade items).  Very few collectors hit all UNC rarities so there's likely some common items (& lower grade items) in the collection.  It is important to go through this step as it will save you money/time when dealing with the rare stuff.

Condition is paramount & if the items are graded that will make everything much easier for you. Some auction houses demand that items be graded/(sometimes referred to as “slabbed” or “certified”).  Check your larger city's library's reference section for coin/paper catalogues as @mike c suggests for approximate Book Values.  It will give you a better idea of total value (plus may provide guides on grading).    Here is a link to the PMG Grading scale for banknotes. If the banknotes aren't graded you will have to try & make a best guess on your spreadsheet (& take a photo for the experts opinions) & be prepared to pay a fee for the grading. Only investigate the auction house consignment option if each item is near $1000 & the total value is above the $10,000.  If the auction house staff suggest you grade it then it would probably be wise to pay the fee & have it graded.

GoodnightNurse

I've recently discovered my late grandfather's old banknote and coin collection, several of which are above 90 on the Numista rarity scale. Many items could be classed as almost uncirculated as they've been put away for safe keeping since 1940s-70s.

 

What is the best way to get these valued/appraised from Wanganui, New Zealand? It isn't one of the major cities in New Zealand.

 

There are an overwhelming number of websites for selling banknotes and coins but I'm not sure which one's to trust or what the best process for selling is. Especially for very rare and potentially high value items…

 

Appreciate friendly advice and direction,

 

Thanks 😊 

 

 

John Eccles has his shop at 144 Victoria St. in Wellington.

Mowbrays is actually an auction house not an actual dealer.

Great to know you are in Wanganui - as Wanganui is where I am originally from, but I now live in Wellington in semi-retirement.

Aidan.

Yes but Mowbrays will buy better lots of stamps and coins for consignment into Auction.

The OP has not got back to us anyway - so my guess is either they are busy or realised that their “inheritance” is ticking many of the  boxes i created.

I have noticed lately lots of 1965 and 1967 sets coming on the market along with the plastic case $1 coins. This is mostly as everyone was encouraged to buy these in the 60s and 70s, to salt them away for a rainy day. Now many of these people born between 1930 and around 1960 are either dying or downsizing and a flood of this stuff is coming on the market. It did not help these sets were produced with the cheapest packaging materials possible and issued in MASS quantities and thus they have not survived well. People in the 1960s did not know about PVC and Acidopherous paper. It was only around 1990 that people got their act together. Seriously how many 1970s and 1980s numerous sets, envelopes, cards, boxes etc have toning and damage or stains from poor quality production or storage. Most plastic sets have spots on them and the copper is always tarnished and often coins are toned badly. Any case set will have discoloured material, rusty hinges and usually toned insert cards and toned/stained coins.

These people probably remember, when they were growing up, that money had much more value. An old £1 not bought about $30 of stuff today, now unless its a rare serial number or perfect condition, its worth $2 - $10. Same with the coin sets with $1.88 of coins in them that sold for $4 or $5, now they are worth maybe $5 each (Catalogues say $10 or $20, but these costs factor in overheads) and most dealers are snowed under with them. One dealer on trade me is trying to offload 388 sets of 1965/67 and 68 coins for like $2k and its laid there like a lox for weeks, selling 200 $1 1967 coins for like $500 or something is not moving either. They minted 200 - 500k sets of these things and most have survived. I myself don't even buy then, yet for some reason have about 10 sets of the damn things.

Then a second group of younger people who have hoarded 1c and 2c coins from 1989 backwards, when they were removed for being worthless and the same with $1 and $2 notes from when the coins replaced them in 1991 (Coins dated 1990, but released early 1991). Same with 2006 when old 5c and 10c - 50s were downsized. This stuff will never gain value as there are millions of them around. Same with pennies, will never gain value because hundreds of millions were minted and tens of millions survive - but maybe 1 million people in total may want them.

The same people who hoarded these things were less likely to hoard say $100 or £50/10 notes, because they had a lot of value and many cases a take home wage was worth less than these in the 1960s. Same with silver coins, even in 1947 a silver halfcrown had about $10 buying power and thats a lot of money to save when you get £3 a week (About $100 - 150 in todays money), but rent, food etc were more basic and cheaper then - no one was paying water rates, big power bills or Netflix subscriptions and my Food Bag in 1947.

Then there is the quality, few thought to put aside the shiniest coin or freshest note they could find, just any old thing from circulation. Its amazing how many accumulation lots have common items in poor condition. Mainly as these low value denominations (coins and $1/$2/10/- notes etc got lots of use and wore quickly), and even if it was nice when hoarded, it likely spent decades in a jar, some corrosive acid filled paper, plastic, an old box/trunk or bag and no doubt kids may have played with them, rats and silverfish tried to eat them, sat in storage units or attics for decades. Hence why no one wants them, as the $1 and $2 notes are always Brash (1988 - 1990) or Russell (1985 - 1988) and UNC ones cost barely more than bad ones.