The 2008 Proof Set Pricing

Many readers will have noticed that the there is an oddity in the pricing of two 2008 proof sets: the “base” clad set which consists of 14 coins and the clad state quarters set, which consists of 5 coins. The Greysheet bid for the clad set is $24 while the bid for the quarters-only set is $34. This is counter-intuitive, as one would expect the set with more coins to cost more money, so why is this so? They dynamics of the market dictate so. There is a buyer that has had, for some time, a buy at $34 for the quarters only set. In this case, the buyer does not want the additional coins that come with the “base” set, and is willing to pay a premium to get just the quarters, as the labor involved in breaking down the sets and time taken to dispose of the remaining, unwanted coins may be greater than the premium paid. Another fact is the the base proof set and the quarter set have different boxes, the latter of which were made in fewer numbers.