Sheet of 1973 dollar bills (4x10)

News: Welcome to the Canadian Paper Money Forum.

I would really appreciate an estimate as to the value of my uncirculated sheet of 1973 dollar bills.

They are in 4 by 10 format and the serial numbers begin with ECW.

They have been stationed in a cardboard tube for life, and are in excellent condition save for a bit of soft denting along the top and some along the sides.  Incidentally the tube is postmarked 12-13-89 from Ottawa (PO Box 693 Station "B" K1P 9Z9).  Any idea if this is the original tube? 

I have checked eBay and found completed auctions around $250 - is this fair?  I also found a single uncirculated dollar sold for $20, and a few years ago some guy with a shop told be the whole sheet would be worth $40.  So.  Mainly, I am unemployed, need to sell this, but don't want to get ripped off.  Is eBay the best place to offload this item or is there a way around it?


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The current book value for a sheet of ECW notes in AU condition is $450.00, however given the present state of the market for paper money, you might realize a market value of $250.00 also.

We also have a "Trading Post" here on the forum, but I believe you need to be a member for a certain period of time and make at least 25 posts before you can access the Trading Post.

We also have a "Trading Post" here on the forum, but I believe you need to be a member for a certain period of time and make at least 25 posts before you can access the Trading Post.

Its 15 posts

The current book value for a sheet of ECW notes in AU condition is $450.00, however given the present state of the market for paper money, you might realize a market value of $250.00 also.

Thanks. 

So how often are book values realized in the marketplace?  I only have experience collecting stamps and baseball/hockey cards, and when I was active it seemed there was no decent way to get book value in exchange for these things.  If you went to a shop, they would not want to buy your collection, or they would lowball.  Nobody ever got more than book value for something, unless they were running a shop and selling to the uninformed.  So how correct were the book values?  I have a sense to expect better from the much older and more respected field of numismatics, which if nothing else deals in a product with a face value, but is there a natural tendency for appraisers and value guides to overstate fair values?

All that you need to keep in mind is that "Book Values" are established by Dealers. As for how often are book prices realized, although that would be very interesting to know its simply not possible but I would say that the "Book Prices" are more often wrong then right. You can buy at 20% of book or even 200% of book and everything in between, that's where experience comes into play when established selling prices. You can ask what you want but you get what people are willing to pay.

Regards,
MG

You can ask what you want but you get what people are willing to pay.

I can't argue with this - true value is basically what you are handed in exchange.

So does it really come down to launching this onto eBay and letting the auction process sort this out?  My concern would be that there are not enough interested parties perusing listings there.  I'm confident that there is demand for this, but not sure if there is enough of that demand surfing the Bay during the standard auction time window.  I could list at a fixed price, but that runs a risk of mispricing (too high would fail, too low would not realize fair value).

I am unfortunately in the southern US where I expect little interest from local dealers.  It seems like currency dealers have a real focus on precious metals and not much interest in paper.