1937 OSBOURNE //TOWERS 50 VERSUS 100

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Just thought I would start a topic, why do you think the 50 dollar note is more expensive than the technically scarcer 100 dollar? the 50 dollar note has 100,000 printed while the 100 dollar note had only 70,00o. In my experience I have seen alot more 50s being sold on ebay and local coin dealers compared to the amount of 100s i have ever seen, which in my opinion the 100 should fetch a higher premium. Or is it that 50s are more desirediable then the 100s.

Charlton cat:      50         100
                   vg  375      300
                   F    700      375
                  VF    1650   500
                  EF   2750     1000
                  AU  7000     2000
                 UNC   10000   3500

Numbers printed ultimately are of less significance than quantities saved.  (Think of the 1967 $1 1867-1967 vs. regular serial numbers.)  While note registers are necessarily incomplete, they can indicate relative scarcities.
1937 Osborne $50 recorded:  UNC - 1; AU - 0
1937 Osborne $100 recorded:  UNC - 3; AU - 4
Most of the available $50's in the register are VG or Fine.

Given the reported surviving population numbers and the strong demand for these issues these notes are both extremely under-valued in AU and UNC.

If there is only a single $50 known to exist in AU or UNC it is truly an incredibly important note and in another mature currency market like the US or Australia this note would be multiples of the stated Charlton value. Given the population numbers of the $100 versus demand for this issue it is also very undervalued.

Top US collectors/investors are walking around with registers that allow them to understand the relative scarcity of their notes and this is a troubling lacking element in the CDN market.

I personally escorted one of the top buyers of USA currency in the world around the FUN show in Orlando as he spent 1/4 million on USA notes in about two hours and over $100,000 on CDN. With every single USA purchase he relied on his register to guide him as to the history of each rare note and its surviving population numbers.  For the CDN notes he relied on me and the information I had, which is extremely lacking compared with the tools that the USA market is equipped with.

With information and understanding comes confidence and with confidence comes increased demand. If the entire CDN market was made aware of just how rare high grade $50 and $100's Osborne's were you could flush the existing stated values down the toilet in favor of prices which reflected the markets improved understanding. I am sure Bob's post opened many eyes wide as to how few of these exist in the stated grades. This forum represents a fraction of the overall market audience.

We have got to get better information out to the market because we have one heck of a market story to tell, it's such a shame it is a secret for the masses and only a limited number of insiders actually have decent information.

Troy.

They are both very scarce and I'm surprised the pricing is not more equal in both cases. Even though there are 6-7 top grade 100's I don't see that making the large differential in prices.

I have never seen either of these notes any better than VF for sale anywhere for any price

I've only seen 2 50's in VF and 1 100 in VF

The 50 is not too hard to get in VG although most I have seen are asking 500 or more

Take a look at what Page 109 of my 1982 Charlton Coin Guide lists for the "buying price" of these two notes in UNC:  

I have a 100 for sale on ebay now and I am sure I will get double book for it it is worth at least that and I have seen alot more 50s for sale then 100s sold on ebay 8 fold