Rules of thumb on value

[HRCostigan]

I'm curious if you guys have any rules of thumb for GA book values. For instance, is a 8.0 "worth" some percentage higher than a 7.0, are White pages worth some percentage higher than C/OW, etc. Obviously this wouldn't be intended to be a strict rule, but rather a decision-making framework when considering bidding on or purchasing a book.

[Foxtrot70]

Me personally - I will pay a prem or even pass over book if it doesnt have nice PQ. There is a website that has investment tips that discussed if PQ was attribute worth paying for... this guy did analysis etc and claimed in auctions and such it appeared there was no correlation to claim the avg buyer put any special value on PQ (vote w pocket book)- hence my personal pref to pay a prem for high PQ is a bad investment decision. I also avoid tape like the plague, but will accept a detached cover if book is otherwise supple and complete. As they say "buy the book not the grade". Also, when buying some GA books considered Gerber 7 and up, good idea to snag it when you see it, then upgrade as opportunity arises. In my years, I might pass on a book and not see it again for a long time if ever...

[jimjum12]

Me personally - I will pay a prem or even pass over book if it doesnt have nice PQ. There is a website that has investment tips that discussed if PQ was attribute worth paying for... this guy did analysis etc and claimed in auctions and such it appeared there was no correlation to claim the avg buyer put any special value on PQ (vote w pocket book)- hence my personal pref to pay a prem for high PQ is a bad investment decision. I also avoid tape like the plague, but will accept a detached cover if book is otherwise supple and complete. As they say "buy the book not the grade". Also, when buying some GA books considered Gerber 7 and up, good idea to snag it when you see it, then upgrade as opportunity arises. In my years, I might pass on a book and not see it again for a long time if ever...

 

.....I would disregard any advice that implies that PQ doesn't translate to more demand.....it's simply not true. There are people, myself included, who will pick up a place holder until the right book comes along......but I'm always looking for that bright copy. He may have a point when speaking about the average buyer.....but it isn't the average buyer who wins the auctions and drives the price increases. The "average " buyer will most often be one of the 23 underbidders. PQ as a documented factor is still an evolving dynamic anyway.....and with a large percentage of record prices occuring on Clink, which doesn't provide sales data to GPA, nor maintain an archive, any "evidence" is incomplete and certainly inconclusive. GOD BLESS....

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

 

P.S. Perhaps the advisor has never seen a white paged book outside the slab....otherwise the appeal would not have been lost on him(her?).

[shrunkenhead]

Agreeing with Jim here. PQ books merit a premium and, in my experience at least, they get it. There is simply no way that a key book with white pages is going to be looked at as comparable to a similarly-graded copy with light tan pages. Just never going to happen.

 

To respond to the OP, I don't know of any reliable formula for gauging "value." Every book is its own special case. The best thing to do is immerse yourself in the culture of buying, selling, trading, figure out what books go for what $$ and evaluate demand for specific titles, artists, keys, etc. You just have to learn the whole shebang, or as much as is feasible. If you apply a general rule of thumb, I think you'll end up overpaying severely for something, somewhere down the line.

[Foxtrot70]

I am sure glad to here you guys value PQ - prob got my priority in the right place. Of course I know Jimbo loves his Twin Cities and that is creme PQ!

 

btw - I wasnt saying not to pay extra for good PQ, else Id be hypocrite. Just being fair to present what seemed material info that someone had done stat analysis and found little evidence to prove strong correlation. Wish I could remember where I read it. I could be wrong but I think the guy was disappointed that the data didnt tell a strong story that folks did value PQ.

 

pssst - All that being said, for those that dont put PQ at high priority, they should wait to appreciate it until I buy all the comics I need so I dont have to pay even more prem... GA books are expensive enough already

[jimjum12]

As was said before, each book is different so using statistics to gauge trends may be an exercise in flawed logic. To correlate the "statistics" with investment strategy may be misguided, as a large number of the participants aren't involved from an investment standpoint.....they're simply collectors with different sets of priorities. The best an "investor" can do is to speculate on the future buying patterns of a large unorganized group of people who aren't even investing....

One thing a stat person may be failing to consider are all the unreported sales that occur with raw books (which all slabs begin as) that occur at shows, stores, and message boards everywhere. There's no way to place a percentage on the number of these sales that are unreported and unregulated. Grading ( and PQ designations) varies from point to point and the sales data that HAS been captured is dwarfed by the unreported transactions. Personally, I find white pagers, particularly on the 50's books that I so love, to be MUCH easier to sell or trade to dealers and fellow hobbyists in the back room / convention deals that comprise so much of our hobby. Until there is a way to track motive.....studying "investment" strategies where none may even exist, is weak conjecture. I know lots of collectors who will puposely lose money on a book when something more desirable comes along.....I am in this group. GOD BLESS...

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

[shrunkenhead]

. I know lots of collectors who will puposely lose money on a book when something more desirable comes along.....I am in this group. GOD BLESS...

 

 

Ditto. Years ago, I was totally adverse to this practice and I consequently let a number of amazing deals pass me by. I've since changed my tune.

[jimjum12]

You gotta do what you gotta do. By the way, none of my opinions are meant as a slight to anyone's efforts at establishing permanent sales records....I have the utmost respect for George at GPA. GOD BLESS....

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

[HRCostigan]

Thanks guys. To be clear, this is not about investment, and I understand that collecting GA books is not something that can be compared to a commodity.

 

Basically, and this sounds silly because it is, I'm trying to decide how I should feel about seeing a 8.0 C/OW book sell for less than I recently paid for a 7.0 White of the same book, both auctions from the same venue. I'm happy with mine, so nothing else really matters... but I'm just curious how the greater community sees such things, if this is somewhat "normal", etc.

[jimjum12]

Thanks guys. To be clear, this is not about investment, and I understand that collecting GA books is not something that can be compared to a commodity.

 

Basically, and this sounds silly because it is, I'm trying to decide how I should feel about seeing a 8.0 C/OW book sell for less than I recently paid for a 7.0 White of the same book, both auctions from the same venue. I'm happy with mine, so nothing else really matters... but I'm just curious how the greater community sees such things, if this is somewhat "normal", etc.

 

....there are many factors at play....other defects and detractors that may have influenced the sale price......also, your acquisition of the 7.0 took you out of the equation of serious buyers. PQ is difficult to analyze as a factor, because CGC doesn't apply the designation to the cover stock itself....only the inner pages. If the inner cover was heavily tanned, it's a deal breaker for many. Vintage books with untanned cover stock are not a given.....I personally don't care for tanning....especially halos. GOD BLESS....

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

 

P.S. It always helps to know which book we're analyzing.

[HRCostigan]

All Top 8. Actually I was wrong about the 8.0, it's OW/W. The biggest factor, as you point out, was probably me being out of the equation on the more recent copy, as I would have pushed the price up if I were still in the market.

[Comicdey]

Really though. Page quality. Quality of production, color and defects some people just don't like on the grade effect te price dramatically at times.

[rjpb]

Thanks guys. To be clear, this is not about investment, and I understand that collecting GA books is not something that can be compared to a commodity.

 

Basically, and this sounds silly because it is, I'm trying to decide how I should feel about seeing a 8.0 C/OW book sell for less than I recently paid for a 7.0 White of the same book, both auctions from the same venue. I'm happy with mine, so nothing else really matters... but I'm just curious how the greater community sees such things, if this is somewhat "normal", etc.

 

There is a fair market range, rather than specific fair market value for comics, independent of page quality and quality of pressing. Frequently that range can overlap with grades above and below. Throw in the vagaries of the auction format, and a certain percentage of books will realize prices that fall outside that expected range.

So as long as you are happy with what you paid for what you got, it may be that the buyer of the 8.0 just got a great deal.