Comics Shop price guide - opinions?

[Gambold Vintage]

I was wondering if anyone had an opinion on the merits or demerits of the Comics Shop price guide, published by Krause.

 

Aside from strange typos (like quoting Action 1 in NM at $20,000), the values seem all over the place, compared to Overstreet. House of Secrets 92 in NM is listed at $450...that seems a bit of steal.

 

Thoughts?

 

Thanks, Eric

[DiceX]

1) No price guide is perfect.

2) All will contain typos.

3) It is a "guide."

4) Welcome to the boards.

 

 

[Boozad]

I've just got back from the pub.

[thehumantorch]

I've just got back from the pub.

 

If I had a dollar for every time you said that.....

[Boozad]

I've just got back from the pub.

 

If I had a dollar for every time you said that.....

 

...I'd be catching the next plane so you could get the drinks in.

[MR SigS]

I've just got back from the pub.

 

If I had a dollar for every time you said that.....

...you could buy that $20M ASM #529 2nd printing PGX 9.6. Oooooooo

[MR SigS]

Yup. It's just a guide. For example; If a guide says a book is worth $10K, but you're able to snag it for $9K, then to the guy that sold it to you it's only worth $9K. A book is only worth what somebody pays for it.

That's my

[DiceX]

What other languages do you speak?

 

 

[Gambold Vintage]

Thanks for the responses. Very...well, I'm not sure what they were....

[MR SigS]

What other languages do you speak?

 

sigh. Here we go again. Is it really so confusing? Just because a guide values something @ $10K (for example), it isn't written in stone that that is what it's worth. IT'S JUST A GUIDE

[MR SigS]

I was wondering if anyone had an opinion on the merits or demerits of the Comics Shop price guide, published by Krause.

 

Aside from strange typos (like quoting Action 1 in NM at $20,000), the values seem all over the place, compared to Overstreet. House of Secrets 92 in NM is listed at $450...that seems a bit of steal.

 

Thoughts?

 

Thanks, Eric

Sorry, sometimes these responses can go in a completely different direction than the original post intended. The Comics Shop price guide may employ a totally different level of research than Overstreet uses. Keep in mind though, if Comics Shop lists House of Secrets 92 @ $450 and Overstreet lists it higher as your post implies (I don't have an Overstreet with me so I don't know how they list it), you can bet that anyone selling that book will refer to Overstreet. Most dealers universally refer to them, anyway. Hope this helps (thumbs u

[Gambold Vintage]

Overstreet is the go-to for the industry, so I was wondering what sources Comics Shop was using to come up with their sometimes hugely different pricing.

 

I agree that price guides are just guides, but they seek to provide a general sense of value, especially relative to other issues in the title. 10% either way should be expected in the "real world," so for the earlier example of a comic listing for 10K selling for 9K...that doesn't make the guide list invalid. It's just a median, a point for negotiations to begin.

 

Many dealers are starting to argue (convincingly, I think) that Overstreet needs to seriously reduce the values of mid-grade and reader copies in their Guide, to reflect the dying market for these...high-quality color reprints of all the major titles from the 1930s on is killing the historical market for low-grade issue runs. Why spend hundreds (or thousands) to get a run when you can spend $20 and get color reprints of 12 issues at a pop?

 

SO...the market is moving towards high-end investor stuff, which is why all the big money (some would say stupid money) is going into slabbed high-grade keys. Overstreet seems to base their prices on these....Comics Shop is acting like CGC doesn't exist, and that you can buy a NM Justice Leage of America #1 for $5000. That's about 1/3 of what Overstreet lists that for...THAT is a huge discrepancy, and I'm wondering where Krause is getting their numbers.

 

 

BTW...I know all books have typos, but listing Action #1 NM at 20K? We'll call that a deluxe typo

 

--Eric

 

 

[Gambold Vintage]

As an aside...I bought Comics Shop last year, since it was new and in color which is a nice thing for a comics guide...I wanted something fun to look at in traffic jams, and they don't use the 2-point type that Overstreet is now employing (I have to use a magnifying glass to read Overstreet's listings).

 

I soon started to notice that Comics Shop's NM pricing (their only category) was seriously different than Overstreet's. I understand using different resources, and I presume Krause is making an argument that they are a more accurate reflection of the market, but in most cases their prices were shockingly lower, like the aforementioned Justice League.

 

So...just wanted to see if I wasn't the only person who bought Comics Shop...I'm starting to think I am, since I haven't seen it on the shelves since, and no-one at the conventions I've talked to either had a copy or had even heard of it.

 

Eric

 

 

[WEBHEAD]

I was wondering if anyone had an opinion on the merits or demerits of the Comics Shop price guide, published by Krause.

 

Aside from strange typos (like quoting Action 1 in NM at $20,000), the values seem all over the place, compared to Overstreet. House of Secrets 92 in NM is listed at $450...that seems a bit of steal.

 

Thoughts?

 

Thanks, Eric

 

The sad reality is that the monthly guides are going away slowly and the OSPG is a snap shot for the previous year. I've asked the same question only to find out it's a slippery slope. There is no real true guide unless you do your own research (ebay,comic link, the board sale threads). LCS will sell the books for what they feel is their price point with some bounce up to make a profit.

 

WEBHEAD

[mystrymachine]

What other languages do you speak?

 

sigh. Here we go again. Is it really so confusing? Just because a guide values something @ $10K (for example), it isn't written in stone that that is what it's worth. IT'S JUST A GUIDE

 

ahh yes. But how many comic shops have you been to where you asked for a price on a book and they whip out that GUIDE and quote from it as it was the bible?

 

Overstreet has a "market report" in every book with sellers telling the market what a specific book was selling for, which books were "hot", etc... now if these prices aren't set in stone then what was the point of all that research other then to tell everyone what sticker price to put on a book?

So yes it is a guide, a guide for sellers to determine what price to sell a book at.

[MR SigS]

What other languages do you speak?

 

sigh. Here we go again. Is it really so confusing? Just because a guide values something @ $10K (for example), it isn't written in stone that that is what it's worth. IT'S JUST A GUIDE

 

ahh yes. But how many comic shops have you been to where you asked for a price on a book and they whip out that GUIDE and quote from it as it was the bible?

 

Overstreet has a "market report" in every book with sellers telling the market what a specific book was selling for, which books were "hot", etc... now if these prices aren't set in stone then what was the point of all that research other then to tell everyone what sticker price to put on a book?

So yes it is a guide, a guide for sellers to determine what price to sell a book at.

Here is an example of the only point I'm trying to make;

I put up a book for sale on ebay that I really need to sell quickly (for WHATEVER reason). Based on Overstreet, my asking price is $10,000 or "make me an offer."

3 weeks go by and I get no offers (for WHATEVER reason). Finally I get a nibble and the offer is $9,000

I really need the $$$ so I accept.

Now, FOR ME (not for you, not for my neighbor, not for the Mayor of Imagination Land, but FOR ME) the book is worth $9,000

So, my point is... for an individual seller selling and individual book, it is worth only what somebody is willing to pay for it.

If another seller sells the same book in the same grade a month later for $9,750 then...

 

1) Good for him/her

2) Damn it, I should have held out longer, &

3) To that seller, it's worth $9,750

That's all I trying to say. Maybe it's out of context with the post, but that's all I'm trying to say

[marvelcollector]

What other languages do you speak?

 

sigh. Here we go again. Is it really so confusing? Just because a guide values something @ $10K (for example), it isn't written in stone that that is what it's worth. IT'S JUST A GUIDE

 

ahh yes. But how many comic shops have you been to where you asked for a price on a book and they whip out that GUIDE and quote from it as it was the bible?

 

Overstreet has a "market report" in every book with sellers telling the market what a specific book was selling for, which books were "hot", etc... now if these prices aren't set in stone then what was the point of all that research other then to tell everyone what sticker price to put on a book?

So yes it is a guide, a guide for sellers to determine what price to sell a book at.

Here is an example of the only point I'm trying to make;

I put up a book for sale on ebay that I really need to sell quickly (for WHATEVER reason). Based on Overstreet, my asking price is $10,000 or "make me an offer."

3 weeks go by and I get no offers (for WHATEVER reason). Finally I get a nibble and the offer is $9,000

I really need the $$$ so I accept.

Now, FOR ME (not for you, not for my neighbor, not for the Mayor of Imagination Land, but FOR ME) the book is worth $9,000

So, my point is... for an individual seller selling and individual book, it is worth only what somebody is willing to pay for it.

If another seller sells the same book in the same grade a month later for $9,750 then...

 

1) Good for him/her

2) Damn it, I should have held out longer, &

3) To that seller, it's worth $9,750

That's all I trying to say. Maybe it's out of context with the post, but that's all I'm trying to say

 

And well said

 

 

... :gossip:although...you might want to consider not saying everything so bold ly...

 

[marvelcollector]

As an aside...I bought Comics Shop last year, since it was new and in color which is a nice thing for a comics guide...I wanted something fun to look at in traffic jams, and they don't use the 2-point type that Overstreet is now employing (I have to use a magnifying glass to read Overstreet's listings).

 

I soon started to notice that Comics Shop's NM pricing (their only category) was seriously different than Overstreet's. I understand using different resources, and I presume Krause is making an argument that they are a more accurate reflection of the market, but in most cases their prices were shockingly lower, like the aforementioned Justice League.

 

So...just wanted to see if I wasn't the only person who bought Comics Shop...I'm starting to think I am, since I haven't seen it on the shelves since, and no-one at the conventions I've talked to either had a copy or had even heard of it.

 

Eric

 

 

Sorry, that sentence just jumped out at me...

 

And I did buy Comics Shop Guide...they sold at least two...

[MR SigS]

Thank you for not giving me a hard time on my point (thumbs u

Oh, I make it bold 'cause my eyes are kinda bad, so at least I can easily read what I type.

Plus for some reason I find I need to add "vocal" inflections to type

But I'll give everyone a break.

This time

[MR SigS]

As an aside...I bought Comics Shop last year, since it was new and in color which is a nice thing for a comics guide...I wanted something fun to look at in traffic jams, and they don't use the 2-point type that Overstreet is now employing (I have to use a magnifying glass to read Overstreet's listings).

 

I soon started to notice that Comics Shop's NM pricing (their only category) was seriously different than Overstreet's. I understand using different resources, and I presume Krause is making an argument that they are a more accurate reflection of the market, but in most cases their prices were shockingly lower, like the aforementioned Justice League.

 

So...just wanted to see if I wasn't the only person who bought Comics Shop...I'm starting to think I am, since I haven't seen it on the shelves since, and no-one at the conventions I've talked to either had a copy or had even heard of it.

 

Eric

 

 

Sorry, that sentence just jumped out at me...

 

And I did buy Comics Shop Guide...they sold at least two...

Yeah I caught that too, but let it go