Hey all! My first post ever of hopefully many. Excited to join the silver community ! I am new to silver investment/collecting and I have a question on the 1990 Australian Silver Kookaburra. For my first ever silver purchase I'm looking at either buying the bullion version or the proof version of the coin. Which of the two do you recommend for a long-term investment? What should I avoid/look out for? Cheers
Hi! Interesting choice, why in particular a 1990 Kook? I guess you would be paying between 40 and 50 AU for one of those or quite a bit more for a proof. They have already reached the peak price, I believe, so there is not any great prospect for further appreciation on that coin. Personally I would buy a current Kookaburra or better yet a China Panda for maximum potential gain in numismatic value. As for proofs, I tend not to buy these as from past experience I have found they do not appreciate as well as the non proof semi numismatics. The best I have found for appreciation are the half ounce, particularly the Lunar series.
I like the Kookaburra series and I thought a great place to start would be to get the first coin of release, but I'm not set in stone. Why would you say the China Panda would be the best investment?
Also why would you say to get a current year coin as opposed to an older coin? Do these have a tendency to appreciate at a faster rate than older coins? Would a good investment be say - get a current years coin and trade it in few years for another coin ? Thanks!
There are a lot of reasons for semi numismatic coins to gain in value and often there are just guesses or luck in how well you may profit. I have found the best gain is realized within the first couple of years and then that value tends to stay fairly static apart from the gain or loss due to the spot price. A couple of examples that I have done well on recently would be the 2013 Kook purchased at about $28.00 which I could sell now at around $40.00 or the 2013 and 14 Pandas with similar gains. The Pandas are well known to gain steadily in value although the latest Panda is getting a bit controversial due to some unpopular changes by the China mint, but that's another story. The 2015 anniversary kook might be a good one for you to consider if you like the Kooks although the price has already risen from the $26.00 I bought them at. I think they may now be in the early 30's but still a good contender I think. Of course, go with your personal likes as well and you will quickly pick up some wisdom in picking the better ones but no matter what, you will end up with a few disappointments. I'm sure a few others here will chime in with some good advice for you also and there are many here far more wise about this subject than me.
Thanks Silver bullitt! Very interesting information and great advice. You've been a great help and well done on your picks ! It looks like I have a lot to consider before making a purchase.
Hi and welcome. I have only been stacking/collecting for around a year and its pretty addictive If you want coins like the kookaburra are you buying many or just a few because postage sometimes can be almost a 1/4 of the price of the actual coin if buying singles. If I were you I would buy 2015 bullion kookaburras and 2015 bullion Koalas before the new 2016 release,they both tend to go up in price a bit during the year then stay above the new release price. The 2016 kookaburra due out in November is a really nice design and I think it will go up in premium so best get some of them at the cheapest release date price. Dont make the mistake of buying everything you see! ( like me ) try to focus on less variation and it will save you in the long run. If you go too diverse you end up chasing more or past and future coin dates for all of them and it can become a mish mash of all sorts. The price difference between a 90,s bullion and proof kookaburra can be as little as $10 if you shop right.
Hi Fishtaco (great name btw ) I was thinking of buying just a few singles to get some variety in my new collection, but you raise a good point in buying multiple instead of singles. By buying multiples is it better to buy a roll or individuals of a coin? For example, would it be better to buy a roll of 20 coins or 20 individual coins? Thanks so much for the tip!! I have seen the new 2016 Kookaburra design and I agree it does looks epic! With regards to bullion vs proof coins in general, what would you say is a better investment and which type of coin easier to sell seeing as some like the Kookaburra only vary in price by small amounts? Thanks again!
Agree with the buying everything you see comment which is just what I did too. There are now two sides to my stacking; a clear stategy for acquisitions and an ancillary activity of disposing of things I would not have bought if I'd been more experienced. Its not the end of the world here either as some may make a bit of a gain which will go towards new items and others have the bottom line that no matter what else, they are still each an oz of silver. I've been stacking for just on a year and I'm sure I've seen other ex-newbies say the same sort if things. You will get great help from the forum and even more so if you can get along to some of the meets. Sometimes you feel you might be asking silly questions but the experienced guys are good and its probably nothing they haven't heard before. Also I think there's an aspect of being glad to see more people coming into stacking.
