Would never post a topic:

[nwpassage]

So I'll post someone else's. I am completely interested in peoples opinions, and I'm sure it's been beat to death, but still..................I'm not sure sur exactly what I'd do.

 

"DeadPoolJr. Offline

The Post-man always rings twice. Uhm... ring ring?

 

 

Registered: 05/19/12

Posts: 1817

Loc: New Jersey

 

 

Originally Posted By: october

 

The idiotic "old lady with an Action 1" chestnut is the board's version of Godwin's Law.

 

Can we at least change it to a middle aged man's Detective 27 or something?

Ok, middle aged man is selling his recently passed father's items at a garage sale. Middle aged man is well off as you can tell from the car in the drive way, and size of the house. You see a box of comics, nothing that special, but rare for what you would find at a garage sale, just some beat up old comics, only worth a few dollars a piece. You ask the guy how much for the whole box, he says 70, you counter with 50, and reach an agreement on 50. Once you get home you start going through the box since you only saw the surface at the sale. Every layer peeled reveals a nice set of books then the last.

 

First some fifty Dells, then some 50's war comics you know those are valuable a guy on the internet told me. Some pre-code horror, you've already made some money back, then boom you reach pay dirt, golden age super hero! Detective comics! Starting with #40 you work your way back 39 is there, and you take a deep breath and look underneath it. Yes! #38 the first Robin! Your exited now you just scored a major find, that shouldn't even be possible with more books still underneath it. You keep going finding issue after issue until you see it, #31 one of the most classic covers of all time. Your ecstatic you just found 2 of the most valuable comics, with still a few left. You regain composer, and continue to go through your find of one in a million, 30, 29,28, and that's where you stop, and look.

 

Right underneath 28 there seems to be 1 comic left, and if it continues to follow the numbers in your head you know what it must be. Slowly you lift the comic on top of it off, and what does it reveal!? Detective comics #27, the FIRST BATMAN! You are in shock you just found the second most valuable comic, plus many other multi thousand dollar books that you paid less then hundred dollars for.You didn't know they were in the box at the time you bought them. He was old enough o use the internet, and do research. Do you go back, and tell the gut what you found, and what there worth? I wouldn't... "

 

 

 

 

 

[kav]

I'd give him 10K at least once I sold it

[nwpassage]

I think what peaks my interest is that I purchased a small collection off someone at work to help them out financially, and after sitting on pounds of drek, and a modicum of decent fodder, I stepped on a gem. I of course informed him it was there, and let him know I felt it was part of the deal. He never felt differently about it, but if I ever sold it I'd still feel bad. It was a nice key, in nice condition, and from an era I love so I love having it. Still, he was a young man building a family who I'm sure his wife told him to get rid of the stupid comics, and now I know he lost his job.

 

 

Still keeping the book.

[nwpassage]

I'd give him 10K at least once I sold it

 

Yeah, pretty much what I'd do too. Thanks for responding, I'm a pretty good thread-killer, and one post by me should have been the end.

 

 

 

[kav]

Bwah ha ha ha

[techvoodoo]

what grade is the Tec27?

[dupont2005]

How big is the box? How often do you buy a box of comics without flipping through it? A fifty dollar box of comics sounds like a shortbox, a longbox at most? Especially if 50's Dell was at the top of the stack. I figure just because of the era it would be worth flipping to the back of the box to see what else from the 50's was in there.

 

In the scenario you paint, I'd send them a few bucks. In real life I'd have seen the Tec 27 and all that GA horror before I bought it, and I'd have informed the guy it was worth some money. I'd probably tell him a low figure of what I think it's worth (simply because I'm not a GA expert or a great grader) and offer one of two things. All the money I have at the moment, or to sell it on consignment for around 20%. The man's wealth would have nothing to do with it. I'd treat a rich man just as fairly as I'd treat a poor man.

 

By the way, I know of people who would flip through it, and only buy the good stuff, and if it was a dollar they'd still try to haggle down to 50 cents.

[shadroch]

Where does it end?

You buy an old desk as part of a group of 100 desks in a building about to be demolished. Inside one you find eight comics and a birthday card. The comics have sat undisturbed for almost seventy years, and include a Detective 27.

Do you share your wealth with you workers who moved the desk? With the guy who sold you the desk? Do you hire Frank Cannon to rack down the kid who the comics were intended for?

 

If you sell a book for $200,000 and only give the guy $10,000 of it, are you really any better than the guy who gives nothing? If you feel guilty, can you really ease that guilt by returning five percent of the worth?

Its either a fair business deal where you paid the mans asking price or you robbed him.

Giving him a few crumbs after the fact is mealy mouthed, at best.

 

 

 

[dupont2005]

Lets say you buy an old couch at a yard sale. When you get it home you find a hundred grand cash stuffed inside. What do you do?

 

There's been a couple news stories of people giving the money back.

[dupont2005]

If you sell a book for $200,000 and only give the guy $10,000 of it, are you really any better than the guy who gives nothing?

It doesn't matter what you sell it for or what you give him, what matters is letting the guy know he has a fortune on his hands. If he decides to let it go to you for a fraction of FMV because he knows he's in over his head with it, that's fine. He's not gonna get a hundred grand at a yard sale, right?

[kav]

Let's say you find a stack of GA books by a dumpster valued at 1.5 mil

Do you knock on doors, asking who dumped them?

Let's say you see an old lady taking them out to the trash-do you stop her and inform her of the value?

Let's say someone breaks into your car and drops an Action #1 that he found in the dumpster and you find out who was the culprit-do you give it back to him after he pays for the damage?

Let's say-

[dupont2005]

Let's say you find a stack of GA books by a dumpster valued at 1.5 mil

Do you knock on doors, asking who dumped them?

Is that anywhere near the same as knowing exactly who the owner is before you even come in possession of it?

[kav]

Let's say you find a stack of GA books by a dumpster valued at 1.5 mil

Do you knock on doors, asking who dumped them?

Is that anywhere near the same as knowing exactly who the owner is before you even come in possession of it?

No but what about my other two scenarios?

Also, if you dont know the owner but can easily find out but you dont, doesn't that make you mealy-mouthed?

[dupont2005]

Also, if you dont know the owner but can easily find out but you dont, doesn't that make you mealy-mouthed?

If you find something in the dumpster worth a fortune, you had a windfall. Congratulations. If you find something worth a fortune in someone else's possession and relieve them of it through either falsehoods or withholding information, I'd say you are. I think letting people know they have something special is the right thing to do. If they let you buy it anyway, awesome.

[KPR Comics]

Was there any $ in the card?

[FineCollector]

If you tell someone that they're giving away a fortune, they're either still going to sell it, and feel regret that they didn't look into it further, or keep it, and lose it to some shark later down the road who will somehow convince her it's a reprint, or some such garbage. Hopefully, you're not a shark, and it's better off with you.

 

If it's in your means to up the asking price to something fair, you should do so. If you're flipping, you're still making money. If you're keeping them, you know you're still getting a bargain.

 

In the case of the hidden Detectives, I assume you're not walking around with thousands, so you should buy them, and not mention anything. Once you sell them, go back and give her an envelope with some cash in it. Don't confuse her with market details and an itemized breakdown, just tell her that one of the books was expensive, and you think she's entitled to half. You don't have to give her half, but she won't question "half", she'll feel good about it, and you'll have done your duty as a decent human being.

[ComicConnoisseur]

If you tell someone that they're giving away a fortune, they're either still going to sell it, and feel regret that they didn't look into it further, or keep it, and lose it to some shark later down the road who will somehow convince her it's a reprint, or some such garbage. Hopefully, you're not a shark, and it's better off with you.

 

If it's in your means to up the asking price to something fair, you should do so. If you're flipping, you're still making money. If you're keeping them, you know you're still getting a bargain.

 

In the case of the hidden Detectives, I assume you're not walking around with thousands, so you should buy them, and not mention anything. Once you sell them, go back and give her an envelope with some cash in it. Don't confuse her with market details and an itemized breakdown, just tell her that one of the books was expensive, and you think she's entitled to half. You don't have to give her half, but she won't question "half", she'll feel good about it, and you'll have done your duty as a decent human being.

This.

[dupont2005]

If you tell someone that they're giving away a fortune, they're either still going to sell it, and feel regret that they didn't look into it further, or keep it, and lose it to some shark later down the road who will somehow convince her it's a reprint, or some such garbage. Hopefully, you're not a shark, and it's better off with you.

 

If it's in your means to up the asking price to something fair, you should do so. If you're flipping, you're still making money. If you're keeping them, you know you're still getting a bargain.

 

In the case of the hidden Detectives, I assume you're not walking around with thousands, so you should buy them, and not mention anything. Once you sell them, go back and give her an envelope with some cash in it. Don't confuse her with market details and an itemized breakdown, just tell her that one of the books was expensive, and you think she's entitled to half. You don't have to give her half, but she won't question "half", she'll feel good about it, and you'll have done your duty as a decent human being.

I don't really have a problem with that. I'd still inform them before I took it, and if some snake screwed them later it's not my fault. I would feel good knowing I wasn't that snake. I have a feeling if a guy has a $50 box of comics at a yard sale and you tell him "This is worth a lot of money, I have $1500 in the bank and I'll give it all to you for the box" they'll probably be very happy and not turn you away just to get suckered out of it by the next guy.

[Dr. Balls]

I'd have fun with my guilt. I'd sell the comic, buy a vintage 1959 Cadillac, then I'd ram their house with it. I'd apologize profusely and offer to pay for the repairs. Then afterwards, I'd slip them an extra $100 and say "there's a little something extra because I feel guilty." but I wouldn't tell them it's for the comic, that way they'd be grateful, but would have no idea I totally profited from their box of books.

[thunsicker]

Not in the same ballpark, but I bought a Hulk 271 off the boards as a raw 9.4 and after getting it pressed and graded it came back a 9.8. I sent the seller half the difference between my cost (price + pressing fee + grading fee) and the price of a 9.8 at the time. Partially that's because I decided it was out of focus for me and I wanted to offload it to get some things that were in focus for me. I would hope I would do the same if the comic was a Detective #27.