Should I Collect Coins or Paper Money?

If you are thinking about starting a collection of your own you are going to need to think about your theme – coin collecting or paper money collecting? While some will choose both, most are going to try to stay within one specific theme. There are some positives and negatives to sticking with each of these themes.

Take the time to look into the good and bad of collecting both types of currency. You may find that a coin collection is perfect for your needs, or may find that paper currency is perfect for what you want to do. The more thought you put into it, the more you can be sure that you have chosen the right form of collecting.

Coins

One of the most interesting things about coins comes from the amount of times that they are changed. The design for coins will change much more rapidly than the design for paper money. The coins are easier to produce and are easier to change. Some forms of US currency have multiple styles per year. The $.25 pieces changed multiple times per year, with each piece representing a different state with a different design. The $1 Presidential coins feature a different face for every president, changing multiple times per year.

Coins are also easier to find, simply because they are known to last longer than paper money. Individuals can easily dig up old coins that they find in the ground, something that rarely, if ever, happens with paper money. Paper money is going to biodegrade, making older pieces of paper money harder to find.

There are both inexpensive coins to collect and rare, expensive coins to collect. Know that you have a wide variety of options in each country if you are going to collect coins.

Paper Money

While some enjoy coin collecting, others enjoy the thrill that comes from collecting paper money. Individuals find that paper money has more interesting designs, making for a more colorful and vibrant collection than your average coin collection. Paper money has more design interest on it, giving individuals more insight into national moods and time periods when they look into the design.

With that being said, paper money is much harder to find and is often more expensive than regular coins. Paper money collecting will be more time consuming and more expensive than coin collecting. This is the type of collecting that is for more serious collectors. Much like coin collecting, there is enough diversity in the market for there to be both inexpensive and expensive pieces of paper money to collect.

Do you like the idea of collecting smaller pieces of currency? Work on collecting coins. Do you like the idea of colorful money with interesting art pieces? Collect paper money. While you may need to do some research and some inner searching, you will be able to highlight the perfect form of collecting for your personal needs.

How to Spot and Avoid Fake US Currency

Counterfeit coins and counterfeit paper bills are an unfortunate and real issue! All money and coin collectors must deal with this. Individuals create and push fake currency in hopes of making large sums of money – if they can talk one person into thinking the coin is real, they have made their money. It is up to buyers and dealers to take note of fake US currency and avoid it.

There are a couple of different things that you can do to avoid counterfeit US currency. As long as you put in some research time, you will be able to spot these fake pieces. This will help to save you money and will allow you to alert coin shop owners who may not realize that they have been sold a counterfeit.

Research Each Coin

While there are plenty of counterfeits out on the market, there is also plenty of information on counterfeits. If you are serious about coin collecting, you should research each coin that you are interested in and understand the visual marks that it should have. You may also find visual information on different counterfeits, helping you to spot these fake pieces of US currency as quickly as possible.

Carefully Examine Each Coin

The most important thing for you to do when you are about to purchase a piece of US currency is to inspect it. When you find the piece, take a close eye to it and look at the front and back of the money. you may want to use a small magnifier to help you to get a closer look to all of the details of the money.

This is where your previous research will come in handy. You will know exactly what to look for in terms of real money or in terms of spotting fake money. This must happen when you purchase money, as you need to know the status (real or fake) of the money before you make the purchase.

Stay Off Spam Sites

One of the downfalls of online shopping comes from not being able to see what you are purchasing before you buy it. You may be sold a counterfeit coin, but would not know that it is fake until you have already made the purchase.

This is why it is important to frequent only the best online coin collector shops and purchase from them instead of through spam sites. You will be able to see the coin and talk with the seller before you make the purchase, helping you to avoid fake US currency as much as possible.

As a coin dealer, you need to avoid fake US currency to make sound and smart purchases for your shop. If you purchase a counterfeit, you will have lost out on that particular investment. As a coin collecting individual, you need to avoid fake US currency to strengthen your collection. If you have a counterfeit, your collection value is weakened and you will have lost money. Both types of individuals should follow these steps to understand how to avoid counterfeit US currency.