Keep a close eye on your pocket change

Against my better judgement, I am going to let you all in on a little secret – be on the lookout for any 2019 or 2020 quarters that have a little “W” mintmark on the front. They are worth much more than your typical quarter.

Now, by telling you this I run the risk of you finding and keeping some of these special coins, meaning there will be less for me to add to my own personal collection, but hey, that’s just the kind of guy I am.

What makes these quarter so special, you ask? Allow me to explain…

Most all quarters you find in circulation will be stamped with either a “P” or a “D” on the front. The “P” stands for Philadelphia, and the “D” stands for Denver. These are the mints from which the quarters came.

However, last year a certain amount of quarters were produced at the West Point mint, and were then silently released into circulation. Obviously, the “W” stands for West Point, and this was done in an effort to generate some new interest in coin collecting.

They’re doing the same thing again this year, so be sure to check your change when you get it at restaurants or retail stores. You may just be handed a rare coin that will one day become a highly sought after item. Heck, even now they seem to be selling pretty regularly on eBay for around $10 or so.

Another coin you might want to pay attention to are 2017-P pennies. 2017 was the only year that pennies have ever had the “P” mintmark stamped on them. They are pretty common, so they’re not worth too much currently, but who knows – that might change at some point down the road.

Now, don’t ever let anyone tell you that it doesn’t pay to ready the News Journal!