BOISE BENCH, Idaho — A one-ounce silver coin is now worth more than $95 — about double what it was just three months ago — as demand for gold and silver skyrockets to all-time highs.
At the Treasure Valley Coin Exchange on the Boise Bench, it's been busy as customers flock to the store.
“Is this something that you’ve ever seen in your 30 years doing this?” reporter Brady Caskey asked.
“Not like this, no,” said owner Dan Templeman, an expert in rare coins, gold and silver.
WATCH: Hear from Dan Templeman and customers about Idaho's silver and gold rush
Templeman said they've seen a huge demand locally as precious metals hit record prices.
“It’s really shocking, I mean it’s been a long time coming — I’ve been waiting for it, but I really would have bet against it being this high, but it keeps going up every day now,” he said.
With demand surging, his son Michael moved to Boise to help run the shop.
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“Like the moment I got here, things just took off,” Michael Templeman said. “It’s been madness, and we are kind of a shop that’s more word of mouth.”
The shop sells everything from gold coins to silver bars, with a focus on rare coins with numismatic value.
“We have people coming in every day that buy one ounce up to a couple hundred ounces of silver,” Dan said.
Some customers are surprised by the record-breaking prices.
“It’s crazy! I started buying it for four dollars an ounce,” said customer Kenneth Christiansen.
“Happy and sad, I wish I had a lot more of it than I do, and I’m happy it’s going up,” said customer Drew White.
And as gold prices climb, Idahoans don’t want to miss out.
“Back when gold was half this price, people were afraid to buy it," Dan said. "Now that it’s doubled, I think they’re worried that it’s going to even go higher, so they’re buying it now.”
But the rising prices also bring rising risks for the shop.
“We had somebody try to break in a week ago Friday, luckily our alarm system worked, and our cameras worked, and they tried to break the door in, but the deadbolt held,” Dan said.
The would-be thieves wouldn’t have gotten away with anything anyway, as the shop packs up all its gold and silver into safes at the end of each day, he said.
If you're looking to buy or sell gold, silver or old coins, the Treasure Valley Coin Exchange is open Tuesday through Saturday and aims to keep up with demand as long as possible.
This story was initially reported by a journalist and has been, in part, converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
