Find Out How Rare Coins Can Fund Your Early Retirement Dreams
Written by
Laura Beck
Edited by
Cory Dudak
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Tucked away in a drawer somewhere, you may have the ticket to an exotic, luxury-filled early retirement plan. Outside of Social Security benefits and Roth IRAs, what else could fund your ideal retirement dreams before you hit retirement age? Or, if you’re planning to stop working earlier, what about age 60, or even 50 for that matter?
Once seen as niche collectibles for hobbyists, rare coins are entering the mainstream as viable alternative assets that can transform average portfolios into fortunes for the future. Whether gathering dust in your jewelry box or tucked in the back of a safe deposit box, everyday coins have the potential for incredible appreciation over time.
GOBankingRates spoke to leading numismatic experts to get additional information about how building a coin collection today can yield a sizeable nest egg tomorrow. It’s time to shake out your piggy bank and reevaluate just what other optional retirement funds you can count on.
Strike It Rich With Rare Gold
“Anyone. And I mean anyone who has been collecting coins since the ’70s, ’80s or ’90s has the ability to retire early, travel the world and afford all the amenities that are associated with luxury,” said Nicholas Adamo, the president and CEO of Bullion Shark. “Rare gold coins like the 1927-D $20 gold Saint-Gaudens could have been bought in the ’70s for $60,000 and now are worth well over $3,000,000.”
While gold bullion rises and falls with market prices, rare gold coins that meet eligibility requirements offer more stability and upside potential.
As Adamo explained, “An 1893-S Morgan silver dollar that could have been bought in the ’70s for just about a thousand dollars would be worth over a million today!”
With gold’s meteoric rise from $36 an ounce in the 1970s to over $2,000 an ounce today, focused collectors stand to reap seven-figure windfalls.
According to Adamo, “It’s safe to say that if you bought 100 different coins in the ’90s, 95-100 of them would yield profit, and most would be 100% – 1000% up in value. It would be almost impossible not to have life-changing amounts of profits. And this is from the ’90s!”
Whether assembling portfolios in recent decades or holding long-term, investors continue seeing massive gains.
Score Big With Silver and Other Denominations
While gold understandably grabs the headlines, rare coins made of silver and other metals can also deliver huge returns.
Adamo said, “Numismatic rarities from the ’90s like the 1889-CC out of Carson City that were bought for $20,000 are worth close to a quarter million dollars today. An 1896-S Barber Quarter in the ’90s that was bought for $2,000 is now worth close to 45,000 dollars.”
Even modern numismatic pieces are appreciating at lightning speed, like coins issued after 2000 that have realized 500% gains.
“Yielding much better results than the stock market,” Adamo said. “In addition to the great financial results, when collecting coins you get to own and hold a rare and beautiful collectible. I like to think of myself as the caretaker of my coins as I know they will be in others’ hands long after my time.”
Perfect Portfolio Diversification
While no investment comes without risks, adding rare coins to your broader portfolio provides tangible assets to balance stocks and bonds. Before you reach retirement age, make sure you personally analyze or talk with a financial professional to see just how rare coins can work for you. The built-in diversity acts as a hedge against inflation and financial market volatility which can jeopardize retirement timelines.
Ian Russell of Great Collections shares specific examples of high-value coins that have gone on to sell for over seven times higher than the normally expected price at a successful auction. He mentions a 1953 Lincoln cent graded MS-67 RD guided near $235, yet Great Collections sold it for $1,944. A 1927 MS-67 Saint-Gaudens double eagle outperformed its $20,000 book value by selling for $133,875 with a green CAC sticker.
Never Too Late To Start
According to Adamo, “Just now I am helping to liquidate a coin collection that was assembled in the 2000s and our happy client is seeing his couple hundred thousand dollars beget millions. Collections that I have contributed to from 2017-2020 have more than quintupled in price. Yielding much better results than the stock market.”
If you want to retire early and are looking to do so in the next 20 years, then starting your investment journey today is a great idea. If you retire at age 65 and live until 90, that is 25 years you have to fund on a fixed income and benefits plan, so all the planning you do ahead of time is paramount.
So even those who have only recently begun assembling collections are realizing large returns in fairly short periods. The key is focusing on high-quality, investment-grade coins with strong potential. With the right guidance and strategy, amassing valuable portfolios to fund retirements is within reach, even for novice collectors.
Final Take To GO: More Than Just Money
Rare coins appeal to a sense of history and beauty as objects of art and vessels of culture, regardless of whether they factor into your retirement plans. Building intimate connections with tangible pieces of the past offers rewards beyond dollars and cents. As stewards of tiny metal treasures, collectors derive satisfaction from preservation and storytelling — leaving a legacy for future generations.
“In addition to the great financial results, when collecting coins you get to own and hold a rare and beautiful collectible,” shared Adamo. “I like to think of myself as the caretaker of my coins as I know they will be in others’ hands long after my time. There is a very good reason collecting coins is commonly referred to as ‘the hobby of kings.'”
Caitlyn Moorhead contributed to the reporting for this article.
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