TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Those coins you have stored away could be worth more than you think, especially with recent spikes in precious metal prices.
"Silver spent a lot of time in the mid $20 range, and as of today, it's about $85," said Ben Weinstein, organizer of the Tucson Coin and Currency Expo. "It's really drawn a lot of attention to the coin market in general. A lot of things tend to be worth their silver content or gold content, because the prices are so high. Gold went from $2,000 to $4,500 an ounce."
The Tucson Coin and Currency Expo is running through Saturday at Casino del Sol on the Westside, featuring about 50 vendors buying and selling coins. The expo features thousands of coins to sort through.
Barry Hughes, owner of Barry Hughes Canadian Coins, has been collecting for 60 years and dealing for 40. He’s seen an increase in people looking to sell and buy silver coins.
"When it was $30, they went, 'oh yeah, it's never going to make $50' and so they wouldn't buy it," Hughes said. "But now they've heard, no $150, $200, 'well I better get some while it's still under $100, because the sky is the limit on this.'"
For those wondering about pennies, Weinstein, known as "The Coin Geek," explains there's typically increased demand when production stops on items. However, he says there’s probably a good chance the penny will only become more valuable for its copper content.
"But that's only pennies made through 1982," Weinstein said. "The new pennies are mostly zinc with a copper coating on them. So there's not a lot of copper in the modern penny. So collectibility, it'll be there with time, but the stuff that's been produced for the last 40 years or so, probably not a lot of value as far as collectibility goes."
Anyone curious about their coin values can get bids from multiple vendors at the expo, which continues through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Casino del Sol, located at 5655 W. Valencia Rd.
The expo is open to the public with a $5 admission fee. All admission ticket sales and raffle ticket sales will be donated to a local family with a child fighting cancer. Adults are required to show I.D. to enter.
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Madison Thomas joined KGUN 9 in July of 2023 as a multimedia journalist. She graduated from Arizona State University in May of 2023 with a degree in journalism and mass communication. She has lived in Arizona her entire life and grew up in Douglas. Madison is thrilled to share the stories from the community she grew up in. Share your story ideas and important issues with Madison by emailing madison.thomas@kgun9.com or by connecting on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook.
