Marketwatch 10-reasons-comic-books-are-the-best-investment

[warlocke]

Haha! Words of wisdom, indeed. I'm sure you're right, but every bit helps. Living in San Francisco is already difficult enough.

[delekkerste]

I bought the four cheapest 9.8s sold between 2009 and 2011. I was sure that I'd make money on them, and I needed to. Each one went for about half of what a 9.8 went for a few years earlier. Since then, I've seen about twenty copies come to market and sell for significantly less than I paid. It's been a nightmare. I suspect that lots of 9.4s and 9.6s were pressed and resubbed around the time of my purchases, because the registry count nearly doubled in 2011. 93 copies doesn't sound like many to me. I guess it is, though. I love the X-Men, but they're sending me to the poorhouse.

 

Same could be said for Hulk #181s (last time I checked, 9.8s were selling for like 1/3rd of their peak prices), GL #76s, X-Men #94s, etc. Warehouse finds have been much less important in dictating the fate of these books than CPR-related upgrades, greatly loosened grading standards and general inability of demand to keep up with this increased supply, which has necessitated a drop in price to clear the market. And it's not like it's just these few books, either - just look at MutantKeys' timely sale of his 9.8 Copper X-Men run a few years ago (he could easily buy them back now for nickels and dimes on the dollar). And look at where the non-keys sold in the Schmell sale of SA books.

 

Bob (namisgr) is right; most books have fallen to the wrong side of peak pricing over the past 5 years. I'm not even sure if books like those HG Action #1s and that $1.1 million AF #15 are unaffected...we just don't know since they have not been resold.

 

Like I said earlier, we've just lived through a true Golden Age of comic book collecting the past dozen years. Third party grading, Internet distribution, superheroes becoming a box office smash and pop culture phenomenon, demographics lining up perfectly, multiple asset bubbles, record low interest rates and a weak US dollar, etc. all conspired to revalue the comic book market higher. I'd be very surprised if the next dozen years look anything like the last dozen years. I think we've seen the best conditions we're likely to see, and I wouldn't be surprised to see a lot of books priced in 2025 at the same levels they were in 2013, much as we see items in 2013 rebroadcasts of 1998 Antiques Roadshow episodes with updated prices showing most items having gone nowhere or even fallen in value during this period. And that's even with all the tailwinds antiques, art and collectibles have had during this period!

 

[bababooey]

Thanks for digging up those threads. I'm not convinced that GSXs were a major find with the Mile High II collection. I think that was the X-Men Annual #1, but could be wrong. Regarding Heritage, yes, that sounds familiar now. I suspect that the individuals who suckered me into buying my copies already knew about the warehouse find. Does anyone know when Heritage made their discovery? By the way, I do have a perfectly centered copy with white pages, if anyone with Iron Man #55 (whatever that is) money is interested.

I'm sorry for how this worked out but you are speculating in this hobby based on your knowledge & others are doing the same.

 

I also think information on discoveries of this nature is held close by key players in the market - buying on price dips or trying to find a bottom doesn't work very often if a book is already showing signs of losing value on the market. If you're buying retail, you are buying it at 80% return so it's hard to turn that around quickly.

 

In most collector's minds "warehouse find book" is the kiss of death value-wise on anything post '65 - if the notion or perception is that a book is readily available then the price will drop regardless of whether that is true or not.

 

 

 

 

[adamstrange]

I would not be surprised to see some high-budget, high-profile comic book movies totally bomb in the next couple of years and the influence of the genre on Hollywood start to decline. Nothing stays en vogue forever - I think we have been living in the Golden Age of both comic book movies and high-end comic book collecting over the past dozen years.

Predicting that Hollywood would produce a couple bombs is really going out on a limb

 

I think the superhero movie genre is now a permanent part of the movie landscape. It was only with 2001 and Star Wars that sci-fi became a high profile genre used by filmmakers to tell many kinds of stories and much of that was due to advances in special effects.

 

I think that recent advances in CGI have done the same for the superhero film. CGI and the other trend toward rollercoaster style action flicks that sell worldwide assure a continued market for superheros even if some fail.

[mintcollector]

Maybe high grade keys isn't the way to go? I've always felt that 9.6 and 9.8 copies were just so over priced. The market on those books is tiny because the average collector just can't afford the book.

 

The way to go, in my opinion, is mid grade books. They might not appreciate as quickly, but they will gain money. Heck, look at AF 15s today. Low grade copies continue to climb. I think the same can said for books like Avengers 1 and FF 1.

 

I'd imagine with a book like GSX 1 that is a fluke. A warehouse find doesn't happen every day. Now you are stuck in the waiting game unfortunately. It'd just take a lot longer for them to appreciate, but they will eventually. Or does someone that knows the market better disagree?

 

You have to look at price spreads. Buying a 9.8 book and paying multiples for it just because only three are listed in the census at present time, is a 'fool's game.' For example, I paid $1100 for my GSX 1 in 9.4 and would make money if I sold. Buying this book in 9.6 or 9.8 is not wise due to the price increase you pay from a 9.4 to a 9.6 and 9.6 and a 9.8. The same can be said for Tomb of Dracula #1. I can get a 9.4 for $300; heck I paid a little less than that for mine. Why would I buy a 9.8 for $1500 when it used to sell for $3000?

 

Look at the price spreads for Strange Tales 135 and Tales of Suspense 52. For the price of these books in 9.4 you can buy several 9.2 copies. Why would you pay the difference? As more copies surface or get pressed and resubmitted, the census numbers will only increase putting downward pressure on higher graded copies. Finding the maximum optimal grade for each book is the 'key' to successful 'investing' should one want to undertake this kind of venture.

 

 

[metropoliscomics]

http://video.foxbusiness.com/v/2608985977001/comics-worth-millions-in-investments/