If you could buy any 5 books, and sell in exactly 10 years. Which 5 and why?

[COI]

Your FF 52 is a crazy anomaly, and you know it.

[ChasingKingKirby]

Hmmmm? Everyone seems to be picking five and six figure books... I think I'll go with lower-end books, (relatively speaking...), that I actually have a chance to purchase and resell.

 

1. Captain America comics 74 in almost any grade - Classic example of high-demand and very short supply. I believe someone told me this was a Gerber 8, but I may be mistaken on that. Regardless, you can almost never find a copy for sale and when you do it's not cheap. Recently saw a raw 1.8 sell for 1000 bucks on ebay.

 

 

Think its always been a Gerber 7 which I believe is 50 or less and there has defintely been at least 30-40 different copies for sales over the last 5-6 years. Maybe not as rare as we they once thought but I like how you think, this is a classic for sure.

 

Ahhh, it's a 7? Still pretty freaking rare. Thanks for the clarification. (thumbs u Census shows a TOTAL of 26 copies, 23 Universal and three restored. I think I've only seen a handful for sale. As one of the absolute coolest Cap covers over the last 70 years, just don't see it doing anything but going up...

[conditionfreak]

I don't mind sharing my total return and annual return data from my own CGC books--it's at this URL:

 

 

http://home.comcast.net/~rudd.james/2001%20to%202008%20buys.htm

 

 

I took out the columns showing exact amounts paid and grades for privacy reasons. I determined market value to compute the returns using GPA data as of November 2008. Most of the stuff at the top I got for below-market prices (I think you'd recognize the book at the very top of that list), and most of the stuff at the bottom I either paid above-market prices for, or they were books that are in high supply that haven't increased much. Like I said, I did a weighted average and found the annual return for all of those to be around 9%. I don't plan to update this report this year because I really don't trust that this year's market prices are realistic enough to be useful. Those 1 or 2 guys paying any price to complete their runs are throwing the market values for the stuff I buy out of whack.

 

You must have really overpaid for the FF 48 and the DD 9.

[fantastic_four]

You must have really overpaid for the FF 48 and the DD 9.

 

Not really, those two just rarely go up below 9.4 - 9.6 due to the high supply. Both of those issues were parts of warehouse finds and have comparatively massive Census counts.

[conditionfreak]

To be honest I think this list would be the better one

1) ASM 50, 7.0 (twenty copies)

 

2) FF 5, 2.0 (four copies)

 

3) Silver Surfer 4, 7.0 (ten copies)

 

4) Iron-Man 1, 8.5 (ten copies)

 

5) Green Lantern 76, 7.0 (twenty copies)

 

Yea, me too. I went back and edited my previous posting and added the GPA totals for each group. The group you and I like as better investments, actually cost $20,902 less initially.

 

Now, the question is, how much possible appreciation could be had on both groups.

[conditionfreak]

You must have really overpaid for the FF 48 and the DD 9.

 

Not really, those two just rarely go up below 9.4 - 9.6 due to the high supply. Both of those issues were parts of warehouse finds and have comparatively massive Census counts.

 

Well. Okay. It's hard to factor that in considering your grades are not posted. But you have a good point with your explanation.

[Bronty]

- The Internet

- The ability for any individual to buy and sell their own comic holdings for FMV

- CGC

- An aging demographic waxing nostalgic for SA and packing fat wallets

- The proliferation of high grade "potentializing" making high grade books available

- Movie hype / increased pop-cultural significance of comic characters

- In the last couple years, an ailing economy driving said fat wallets to find alternative places for their cash

- The fact that the surge in prices for high grade SA has outpaced income growth expontentially

 

ALL of those are true for the most popular high grade titles from any age. High Grade Silver Age isn't increasing in value exponentially, it's increasing at about the same historical rate that mutual funds have for the most popular titles (6-10% per year), about as good as a CD or savings account for the less-popular stuff (1%-5%).

 

The last two years have seen some big growth, and we should expect that to soften, but I haven't seen these increases isolated to Silver Age in the slightest. It's across the board.

 

well you can't have it both ways can you!! If SA is only increasing 6-10% per year then guess what, its "priced out"!! <3 Certainly in terms of making the kind of significant growth this thread is looking for.... and I'd argue even that 6-10% is not sustainable long term, on most books.

 

The general point I was trying to make is that SA has been well and truly combed over. Every time someone posts a "which SA marvel key is undervalued" thread I have to laugh. Every little minor appearance, every nice cover, every everything that could have a premium does. So I don't know what investment gems anyone could really hope to find in a barren mine shaft

 

If you guys think 6-10% is good for something as risky, susceptible to theft/fire, difficult to insure, etc... as collectibles then I disagree. For my money I want something that's going to get me a much higher return for the risk involved. I can find other things I love that I think will do better.

[ChasingKingKirby]

- The Internet

- The ability for any individual to buy and sell their own comic holdings for FMV

- CGC

- An aging demographic waxing nostalgic for SA and packing fat wallets

- The proliferation of high grade "potentializing" making high grade books available

- Movie hype / increased pop-cultural significance of comic characters

- In the last couple years, an ailing economy driving said fat wallets to find alternative places for their cash

- The fact that the surge in prices for high grade SA has outpaced income growth expontentially

 

ALL of those are true for the most popular high grade titles from any age. High Grade Silver Age isn't increasing in value exponentially, it's increasing at about the same historical rate that mutual funds have for the most popular titles (6-10% per year), about as good as a CD or savings account for the less-popular stuff (1%-5%).

 

The last two years have seen some big growth, and we should expect that to soften, but I haven't seen these increases isolated to Silver Age in the slightest. It's across the board.

 

well you can't have it both ways can you!! If SA is only increasing 6-10% per year then guess what, its "priced out"!! <3 Certainly in terms of making the kind of significant growth this thread is looking for.... and I'd argue even that 6-10% is not sustainable long term, on most books.

 

The general point I was trying to make is that SA has been well and truly combed over. Every time someone posts a "which SA marvel key is undervalued" thread I have to laugh. Every little minor appearance, every nice cover, every everything that could have a premium does. So I don't know what investment gems anyone could really hope to find in a barren mine shaft

 

If you guys think 6-10% is good for something as risky, susceptible to theft/fire, difficult to insure, etc... as collectibles then I disagree. For my money I want something that's going to get me a much higher return for the risk involved. I can find other things I love that I think will do better.

 

Like what? Were living through a financial meltdown unlike any the world has ever seen. Precious metals and gemstones are extremely volatile, real estate is in the crapper, stocks and bonds have been hammered and may or may not come back anytime soon. I don't doubt that you're right, but nothing has been more profitable AND enjoyable for me over the last few years. I'm not wealthy, far from it, but I own all the things I mentioned to some extent and, right now, I'll take the comics...

[Bronty]

Your FF 52 is a crazy anomaly, and you know it.

 

yeah you really can't include stuff bought cheap even then. I mean it was worth twice what you paid when you bought it.... so it went "up" 100% in a day on your chart

[Bronty]

- The Internet

- The ability for any individual to buy and sell their own comic holdings for FMV

- CGC

- An aging demographic waxing nostalgic for SA and packing fat wallets

- The proliferation of high grade "potentializing" making high grade books available

- Movie hype / increased pop-cultural significance of comic characters

- In the last couple years, an ailing economy driving said fat wallets to find alternative places for their cash

- The fact that the surge in prices for high grade SA has outpaced income growth expontentially

 

ALL of those are true for the most popular high grade titles from any age. High Grade Silver Age isn't increasing in value exponentially, it's increasing at about the same historical rate that mutual funds have for the most popular titles (6-10% per year), about as good as a CD or savings account for the less-popular stuff (1%-5%).

 

The last two years have seen some big growth, and we should expect that to soften, but I haven't seen these increases isolated to Silver Age in the slightest. It's across the board.

 

well you can't have it both ways can you!! If SA is only increasing 6-10% per year then guess what, its "priced out"!! <3 Certainly in terms of making the kind of significant growth this thread is looking for.... and I'd argue even that 6-10% is not sustainable long term, on most books.

 

The general point I was trying to make is that SA has been well and truly combed over. Every time someone posts a "which SA marvel key is undervalued" thread I have to laugh. Every little minor appearance, every nice cover, every everything that could have a premium does. So I don't know what investment gems anyone could really hope to find in a barren mine shaft

 

If you guys think 6-10% is good for something as risky, susceptible to theft/fire, difficult to insure, etc... as collectibles then I disagree. For my money I want something that's going to get me a much higher return for the risk involved. I can find other things I love that I think will do better.

 

Like what? Were living through a financial meltdown unlike any the world has ever seen. Precious metals and gemstones are extremely volatile, real estate is in the crapper, stocks and bonds have been hammered and may or may not come back anytime soon. I don't doubt that you're right, but nothing has been more profitable AND enjoyable for me over the last few years. I'm not wealthy, far from it, but I own all the things I mentioned to some extent and, right now, I'll take the comics...

 

I was comparing comics to other collectibles not to real world assets. that's a whole other discussion, but I know what you're getting at. I won't bore everybody with my own other collectible of choice because I've mentioned it a few times now, but there is lots of stuff I bought for a couple hun five years ago that is a couple thou now. bottom line each collectible category like comics, stamps etc takes on a life cycle much like a real world industry does. rapid growth at the beginning, followed by development/stability/slower growth, and eventually decline. railroads were a lot more of an enticing proposition in the 1800s than today for example. I won't go so far as to say comics are railroads (coins/stamps) but they are IBM/coke/mcdonalds maybe.

[ChasingKingKirby]

- The Internet

- The ability for any individual to buy and sell their own comic holdings for FMV

- CGC

- An aging demographic waxing nostalgic for SA and packing fat wallets

- The proliferation of high grade "potentializing" making high grade books available

- Movie hype / increased pop-cultural significance of comic characters

- In the last couple years, an ailing economy driving said fat wallets to find alternative places for their cash

- The fact that the surge in prices for high grade SA has outpaced income growth expontentially

 

ALL of those are true for the most popular high grade titles from any age. High Grade Silver Age isn't increasing in value exponentially, it's increasing at about the same historical rate that mutual funds have for the most popular titles (6-10% per year), about as good as a CD or savings account for the less-popular stuff (1%-5%).

 

The last two years have seen some big growth, and we should expect that to soften, but I haven't seen these increases isolated to Silver Age in the slightest. It's across the board.

 

well you can't have it both ways can you!! If SA is only increasing 6-10% per year then guess what, its "priced out"!! <3 Certainly in terms of making the kind of significant growth this thread is looking for.... and I'd argue even that 6-10% is not sustainable long term, on most books.

 

The general point I was trying to make is that SA has been well and truly combed over. Every time someone posts a "which SA marvel key is undervalued" thread I have to laugh. Every little minor appearance, every nice cover, every everything that could have a premium does. So I don't know what investment gems anyone could really hope to find in a barren mine shaft

 

If you guys think 6-10% is good for something as risky, susceptible to theft/fire, difficult to insure, etc... as collectibles then I disagree. For my money I want something that's going to get me a much higher return for the risk involved. I can find other things I love that I think will do better.

 

Like what? Were living through a financial meltdown unlike any the world has ever seen. Precious metals and gemstones are extremely volatile, real estate is in the crapper, stocks and bonds have been hammered and may or may not come back anytime soon. I don't doubt that you're right, but nothing has been more profitable AND enjoyable for me over the last few years. I'm not wealthy, far from it, but I own all the things I mentioned to some extent and, right now, I'll take the comics...

 

I was comparing comics to other collectibles not to real world assets. that's a whole other discussion, but I know what you're getting at. I won't bore everybody with my own other collectible of choice because I've mentioned it a few times now, but there is lots of stuff I bought for a couple hun five years ago that is a couple thou now.

 

I got ya. (thumbs u I don't recall reading what other collectible you're into, but there are alot that are profitable to some extent. Though I will say that the antiques market is also in the crapper. At least for the everyday stuff. I think Art and maybe coins are doing even somewhat as well as comics.

[musicmeta]

Action 1, Tec 27, Bats 1, FF 1, AF 15. Barring unforeseen changes in the market, I imagine they'll hold a decent value over the next 10 years.

 

Picked the same five as well and the reason.

[fantastic_four]

well you can't have it both ways can you!! If SA is only increasing 6-10% per year then guess what, its "priced out"!! <3 Certainly in terms of making the kind of significant growth this thread is looking for.... and I'd argue even that 6-10% is not sustainable long term, on most books.

 

The general point I was trying to make is that SA has been well and truly combed over. Every time someone posts a "which SA marvel key is undervalued" thread I have to laugh. Every little minor appearance, every nice cover, every everything that could have a premium does. So I don't know what investment gems anyone could really hope to find in a barren mine shaft

 

If you guys think 6-10% is good for something as risky, susceptible to theft/fire, difficult to insure, etc... as collectibles then I disagree. For my money I want something that's going to get me a much higher return for the risk involved. I can find other things I love that I think will do better.

 

What books are you thinking will beat the return of mutual funds? I wouldn't expect it from a single book anybody's listed in this tread. And is there really much risk involved with few keys sitting in a safety deposit box?

[Bronty]

well you can't have it both ways can you!! If SA is only increasing 6-10% per year then guess what, its "priced out"!! <3 Certainly in terms of making the kind of significant growth this thread is looking for.... and I'd argue even that 6-10% is not sustainable long term, on most books.

 

The general point I was trying to make is that SA has been well and truly combed over. Every time someone posts a "which SA marvel key is undervalued" thread I have to laugh. Every little minor appearance, every nice cover, every everything that could have a premium does. So I don't know what investment gems anyone could really hope to find in a barren mine shaft

 

If you guys think 6-10% is good for something as risky, susceptible to theft/fire, difficult to insure, etc... as collectibles then I disagree. For my money I want something that's going to get me a much higher return for the risk involved. I can find other things I love that I think will do better.

 

What books are you thinking will beat the return of mutual funds? I wouldn't expect it from a single book anybody's listed in this tread. And is there really much risk involved with few keys sitting in a safety deposit box?

 

what makes you think I'm talking about comics? My whole point has been that comics as a collectible category are at a stage in their life cycle where explosive growth is not going to happen. Hence everybody betting on the same old tired books - af15, tec27, a1, etc.

 

"The general point I was trying to make is that SA has been well and truly combed over. Every time someone posts a "which SA marvel key is undervalued" thread I have to laugh. Every little minor appearance, every nice cover, every everything that could have a premium does. So I don't know what investment gems anyone could really hope to find in a barren mine shaft 2c"

 

I'd LIKE to be writing about how miracleman 15, swamp thing 21, et al. will be the sure fire bets for 10 years from now, but it just isn't going to happen (going back to my first post).. "copper is too common and nobody's read anything since."

[Mr 9.8]

INCREDIBLE HULK #180,#181 (first Wolverine) House Of Secrets #92 (First Swamp Thing) Tales of Suspence #39 (First Iron Man) Green Lantern/Green Arrow #76.

[Hedge Collector]

INCREDIBLE HULK #180,#181 (first Wolverine) House Of Secrets #92 (First Swamp Thing) Tales of Suspence #39 (First Iron Man) Green Lantern/Green Arrow #76.

 

IMO, Hulk 181 is probably the worst key you could buy right now for investment. The market "feels" like it is tiring of Wolvie and price is actually starting to confirm this. Being that this is probaby one of the keys in most supply, any decrease in demand is going to be reflected fairly quickly and heavily in price.

[ChasingKingKirby]

INCREDIBLE HULK #180,#181 (first Wolverine) House Of Secrets #92 (First Swamp Thing) Tales of Suspence #39 (First Iron Man) Green Lantern/Green Arrow #76.

 

IMO, Hulk 181 is probably the worst key you could buy right now for investment. The market "feels" like it is tiring of Wolvie and price is actually starting to confirm this. Being that this is probaby one of the keys in most supply, any decrease in demand is going to be reflected fairly quickly and heavily in price.

 

I'd add X-men 94 to that list of books people are tiring of, not to the extent of Hulk 181 but close. GSX1, oddly enough, seems to be bucking the trend.

[MR.COMICBOOK]

With comics ready to take off on the iphone and upcoming itablet,new players,creators and characters will be born,in ten years the landscape will be vastly different from anything we can imagine.

[namisgr]

My five purchases, in order of preference, would be:

 

Showcase #22

Journey Into Mystery #83

Showcase #22 (copy two)

Showcase #22 (copy three)

Journey Into Mystery #83 (copy two)

 

Why? These comics are flagships of the hobby, are tough to find in decent shape, and have only begun to appreciate to the value I think they'll reach eventually.

 

I sold a very nice copy of Showcase #22 about 3 years ago when I decided to liquidate my SA DC superhero comics, and now am experiencing a massive seller's remorse about it.

[Paratrooper]

Give me a couple days, I gotta do research and figure out which books Hollywood plans on turning into movies.