Foster’s Coin & Stamp Company

When I was a student at U.C. Berkeley I occasionally stopped in at Foster’s Coins. As many people have said, Mr. Foster is not the friendliest person. He boasts a nice selection of coins and stamps in his store. However, beware of his grading tactics. Many of his coins are marked «A+» or «AAA+» and are sold at prices for nice, non problem coins. In reality, many of these coins have been harshly cleaned. The other day, I found a Mercury Dime that I purchased from him for $ 10 in «AAA+» condition over 7 years ago. Looking again at the coin, it is probably worth no more than bullion value.

I am forced to update my review, since Mr. Foster’s coins are no longer inexpensive nor does he even pretend to provide good service. Despite being a 10+ year customer, I was treated rudely and he said that he had no need to sell anything to me since he got more money on eBay. Never mind that I offered within 10% of what he said he got on eBay, and eBay+Paypal charges 13% total for a sale. Mr. Foster is now too big for his shoes. He is making a mistake by alienating his most loyal customers.

Yes… very wise man in this store…
Go here. Buy some sell some whatever but really just buy his book and learn… ask him questions. .this guy is very knowledgeable

I was told by a nearby bank that I might be able to exchange some European coin currency here. I tried going at 2:30 on a Thursday afternoon, but when I arrived the door was locked, although there was a customer inside. The owner, Ralph Foster, was visibly annoyed that I was trying to enter. When I explained my situation, he completely blew me off and literally walked away to the back of the store. I understand that the store is not an international currency exchange, but the way he treated me was so unprofessional and rude. He’s a bitter old man with a filthy, disorganized store. I would never set foot in there again.

Ralph Foster is the fairest dealer in the bay area. His mark up margin on coins is the lowest by far. I’ve checked many times!!! I’ve dealt with him for many years. I always to my homework though on prices… it helps in negotiations to be informed. He can be very pointed in his assessments which will rub some the wrong way, but I like him.

I do know about coin buying, though I haven’t used Mr. Foster (I live in Millbrae and use a local coin shop). However, if you go on YouTube, and type Ralph T. Foster interview, I can tell you that he was very accurate and forthcoming in the premium you should pay, what coins you should buy, how it works, etc. I cannot understand why people want more from a man than to be honest in his dealings. They are criticizing him for being curt? I would be curt after a while too; I’m sure he’s heard every story under the sun, from sob stories to know-​it-​alls. In my opinion, you can trust this guy.

Very very rude owner. Do NOT give this man your time or business

Mr. Foster is very knowledgeable about stamps and precious metals, and there is no better place to go in the Bay Area than his shop! Also, ask him about his incredible book, Fiat Paper Money. The man is a wealth of knowledge and is simply the best in the business.

Ralph Foster is an amazing source of valuable information! My husband and I went into his shop on the recommendation of a friend, not knowing anything about precious metals. We left two hours later with what seems like a PhD in the monetary system. If you go in there with an open mind, wanting to learn and expand your knowledge, you won’t be disappointed. He shared willingly and excitedly with us. He was also great with our two young children who were with us on our long, educational journey, and we will definitely buy from him again.

i found some old stamp albums at an estate sale, and in it were about $ 10 face value in US uncancelled stamps — mostly from the 60s. i looked up a couple online and several of them seemed like they were worth more than that — no hidden treasures, but maybe like 2−3x more.
mr foster was extremely curt with me, wouldn’t look at them, said he’d give me a couple of dollars for the whole thing, wasn’t worth his time to price them all out, etc… unless of course i wanted him to give me an evaluation (or whatever it’s called) — for $ 50.
now i don’t know anything about stamps other than the number on them. so surely he understood things way better than i do. fine — but i walked in there with the assumption that whatever he gave me he would make back — maybe even generously.
even if i was wrong, i didn’t like being swept off out the door quite so brusquely.

I have been coming into Mr. Foster’s shop for years and hes always been fair and friendly. He knows all about the history of coins and stamps. I highly recommend going to his shop!

Friendly, knowledgeable, and fair. Highly recommend, worth all 5 stars.

I’ve been a patron of Foster’s Coin and Stamp shop for 10 years, and always found him to be honest, and fair dealing person. I recommend him — as a respected authority on monetary history, stamps and coins, as well as an interesting person to know.

I phoned this establishment to inquire how much he would give me for a 1OZ American Eagle gold coin I had that I wanted to selI.
I follow gold prices closely and he told me that gold had gone down $ 100. in the last two days when in fact it had done just the opposite, it had gone up!
He was obviously trying to take advantage of someone he thought was not informed.
And in response to the owners comment below– I would like you to look up the word «libel». Clearly he has no clue what he is talking about and his response serves to further substantiate my review as it’s indicative of the type of service you will get at this operation.