golden age pricing

[blackterror]

I vented this on the general board regarding the new Overstreet pricing thread, but as it pertains to golden age seems equally relevant to bring it here....this is a piece of the thread...so it may not make perfect sense out of context...but I find it to be interesting reading and perhaps good discussion fodder...even if I did scratch it out myself

 

....

 

Anyway, my point...Rangers 3 is a crazy cover in the run...pull out your Gerber and look at the cover in the run...it should break out and be much higher in guide...I guarantee you if a dealer has it in grade you won't get it anywhere near the guide price...this is one of many...long time well known...high demand books...it went up 50 bucks...the Miss Guide misses this one again.

 

Phantom Lady 17 is a FREAKING ICON book for ... of an entire category of comics ... Good girl comics ... which provide the cover feature of Overstreet Price Guide number 8 I might add. I personally feel Overstreet should create a TOP 10 Section for Good Girl Comics...I mean for crying out loud in Overstreet 34 they have the top 10 westerns, sci fi, and horror, on pg 118. What are the Top 10 good girls...I'll tell you this there are more collectors drooling for Phantom Lady 17 in NM than a Gene Autry 1 in NM ... (Hey I like Gene don't get me wrong pardners...and Roy too, Happy Trails), but I find it odd that if Superman is the King of the Heroes, Phantom Lady and Wonder Babe are the Queens...and for looks PL is second to none....yet she doesn't even rate in the top 100 golden/atomic age. What are supposed to believe that there are more collectors going to pony up 14 grand for Tough Kid Squad Comics #1 which was #96 in Overstreet 34 on pg 116 than Phantom Lady 17? Anyway...I don't know what the blank books are worth, but using money as a measuring stick Phantom Lady ought to be more expensive...it will eventually break out....I guess...but not this year.

 

You say it is broken out... OK then I mean PL should break into the Overstreet Top 100 ... it is really there already, but the prices don't say so. Hey if Phantom Lady 17 isn't in the top 100 most valuable comics...would you pick any good girl comic to be in your top 100? I find it hard to believe that no good girl comic makes the price guide top 100 they are sure in demand...is there that great a supply? What are the top 10 most valuable good girl comics as a category?

 

Black Terror 1 ... is a big NEDOR ... I figured the big Nedors for 5k in high grade ... not this year...if BT didn't do it...neither did Fighting Yank or Startling or Exciting (oops #9 exception to the rule)...etc. Nedor's are still cheap...especially the Schomburg covers.

 

Finally, the Wonder Comics 1...look at a Gerber...Hitler is tied to the stake...as far as flag covers go it is one of the most impressive in my opinion...it is a number 1 golden age...it is RARE RARE RARE ... and it is a Schomburg classic...it went up ... $ 125 bucks. this book is a break out book... again the guide is a MISS guide , even if you could find one in 9.2 ... this is a book you could never buy in grade for under 2 grand...

 

I could go on and on with books that should go up (or down) to reflect the market ... Cap 26 and 28 and 46 ... Human Torch 23 ... Ghost 2 (wow) ... Black Terror 20 ... Captain Marvel Adventures 17 ... Exciting 39 .... Miss Fury 2 .... some of the Raboy Masters .... Seven Seas 4 ... Blue Beetle 52 and 54 .... these books even broken out are underpriced in guide to actual sells. Shoot the Blue Beetle 54 just sold on Comic Link in 8.5 for what .... 5 GRAND?

 

Sometimes Overstreet gets it right like when the broke out Batman 11 several years ago (when I say break out, I don't mean just break the book out, but move the price up to reality) ....or Startling 49 ...

 

But the best thing Overstreet could do...would be to move all 9.2 pricing to 9.0 for Golden Age to call attention to it's rarity in stark contrast to silver age and bronze age...so maybe some insufficiently_thoughtful_persons would wake up and see that shelling out 10k or something like that for a Hulk 181 really is nuts...but hey I'm golden age nut so cut me some slack... I think it's nuts that guide suggests we could buy 10 Ranger 3's for one FF #2 ... shoot you couldn't even find 10 Ranger 3's ... if you wanted them at any price in VF or above ... I'm not saying FF2 isn't worth it ... I'm saying the Ranger 3 is not going to be available for Overstreet 35 pricing...a MISS - guide.

 

THE BLACK TERROR

[Thegoldenage]

I agree with most of what you say with two exceptions. First, Wonder Comics 1 is a dead book. Great book and great cover, but it doesn't sell well.

 

Second, I totally disagree with Overstreet and Company lowering the highest grade from 9.4 to 9.2. I believe that the guide should reflect the lowest collectible grade (Good) and the highest collectible grade (Mint). Over the years, Bob has slowly lowered the top grade, from Mint, to Near Mint and now to 9.2. I think this is nothing more than back-door price hiking and should never have occurred.

[adamstrange]

Nice post.

 

You can relax now.

 

I did read a page or two of the thread in the general forum but there were many irrelevant posts to wade through.

 

I don't think I'm as big a fan of Ranger 3 as you are, but I think your point about cover art becoming a more important factor in pricing has been a trend for longer than it should have taken Overstreet to recognize it. From what I've heard, and certainly what I've seen over time in the guide, Overstreet has formulas set to calculate the values of runs Change a parameter and you can change the price on a whole mess of books. That works fine in principle as you can't really individually price every single GA comic. You extrapolate prices from a sample set.

 

What I have seen too little evidence of is shifting the ratio of prices much between books in runs to break out the more sought after issues. There's a lot of work to do this, and if you don't have solid sales data of the breakout issues and you tend to change prices very slowly, then it won't happen overnight. By design, it usually takes a couple years for a breakout book to reach an appropriate level in the guide. For example, the Ranger 3 is probably a tough book to get data for. Heritage hasn't sold one and there's only 3 in the CGC Census, the highest in 8.5.

 

What sales data did Overstreet have to work with to exprapolate the guide price for a 9.2 copy? Absent that, your and the dealer's opinion about the price for a 9.2, while probably correct, isn't necessarily what it should guide for.

 

I was at a pricing confab a few years back. One of the questions that was raised was that there were in fact multiple potential guide prices for a book. There's price that represents the irrational exuberance of two collectors battling it out at auction. There's the top price that a handful of collectors will pay because they are avidly seaching for the book. There's the price that a reasonably interested set of collectors will pay. There's the ebay "unload the book in a 7 days" auction price. There's the price that the local comic shop can sell it for on either coast. There's the price that the local comic shop in the interior of the country can sell it for. Out of all of this range, Overstreet picks a single price for maybe 3 or 4 grades. Even if Overstreet were omniscient when it came to pricing comics, you would still have disputes about pricing depending on which price you were trying to represent.

 

The more I've learned about the hobby and the market for comics, the less I rely on the guide. This is the 8th anniversary of my ceasing to care about the prices. I was actually surprised at the religious following over in the General Thread. Given the data available on ebay, Heritage, GPAanalysis, Comiclink, and CBG, I don't really see much value in looking at the guide for prices. As far as it's ability to provide reference information, Grand Comics Database surpasses the guide in many ways today and will probably be vastly better in 10 years or less. The only reason I bother with the guide is that so many other folks look at it such that it still influences the market more than it should.

 

As far as the examples you cited, if you feel strongly about them then you should pick them up. Back in the 70s Four Color 9 was similar in price to the big hero books. No longer. Just a few years ago high grade SA Marvels were a fraction of GA. Now the big SA keys ones have surpassed all but a handful of the GA books. If you are correct in your picks, you'll have anticipated the market (whether or not Overstreet catches up) and have a cool book and a potential gain. Besides that, you'll be able to say "I told you so!"

[blackterror]

Hey...the Wonder Comics 1 was only an example from a prior thread. The example being a cool esoteric comic...with the appeal of a Schomburg cover...further the Wonder's are not dead ... especially the good girls. Check out the Heritage sells...as for the Wonder 1 ... not to defend it or anything...but interesting only one ever sold on Heritage ... over grade low to mid-grade ... none at Metropolis. I'd say this isn't a dead book, but like so many Golden Age books...scarcer than hen's teeth.

 

That's one of the problems with Golden Age ... so hard to come by that people think it's dead. If nobody ever saw a 57 T-bird or 65 Mustang ... who would want one? Awareness creates demand...out of sight is to be out of mind. ON THE OTHER HAND ... that is one reason I love the golden age so much... there really is a thrill to the chase.... there is fun in the pursuit. It can take years ... even lifetimes to find some of these books...if ever.

 

Anyway...Wonder 1 merely an example of a cool Golden Age book that will not sell for under 2 grand if you had a copy in 9.2....and you can take that statement to the bank...whether it's dead or not...and it represents an entire host of esoteric golden age books (in demand and priced accordingly above Overstreet) ... I'm not pluggin Wonder 1 ... so much as I'm saying a Golden AGE #1 Schomburg Hitler Flag Cover is listed as being less than 2 grand....the GUIDE is a MISS GUIDE ... do you get my point? it's not the Wonder 1 I'm pumping ... it's the MISS GUIDE .... I'm pounding ....

 

Any way I appreciate your response ...

 

Any ideas on the top 10 good girl comics by price ... Wouldn't that be a great addition to the Overstreet ... would you be more interested in the top 10 westerns or good girls .... judging by all the posts on breast....errrr....I mean head light covers ... just look on any board ... that's where the interest is.... again read my first post ... I love Westerns ... not meaning to degrade them, but say ... let's here it for the ladies.

 

Really ... now Seven Seas 4 ... ... wotta woman ... that book is cheap in guide... compared to some others... or hey Shock Suspense 6 ... perhaps that should be the most expensive EC ... if you ever try to buy one in high grade ... you'll find out no thanks to the MISS GUIDE that it pretty darn well is. Hey it's not about whether we have or can afford these books, but the money should tell us something about the book...after all Overstreet DOES RANK them by price ... I can't fathom why the ladies RANK so low... with the exception of the Wonder Babe are there any other woman in the Top 100 ... and she really isn't a good girl ... so much as a Super-Heroine ... well she's both, but you know what I mean. Hey the first appearance of Magic Lasso ... that's a relatively inexpensive book ... Sensation #6....

 

THE BLACK TERROR

[nearmint]

I'd love to find a nice 6.0 - 8.0 copy of Wonder Comics #1. I can't afford the 7k Metropolis is asking for the Church copy.

[adamstrange]

.the GUIDE is a MISS GUIDE ...

 

If they ignore the good girls, wouldn't that make it a "Mister Guide?"

[shrunkenhead]

I'd love to find a nice 6.0 - 8.0 copy of Wonder Comics #1. I can't afford the 7k Metropolis is asking for the Church copy.

 

Cheapskate!

[skybolt]

There are other Good Girl art issues that need to be broken out or increased in value.

 

Wings Comics #91 (and a few others), Junior Comics #9-16, a few classic cover Fight Comics, Blue Beetle #49, Planet Comics #65. Even some of the Jungle Comics, Sheena, and Jumbo Comic covers sell better than others.

[the blob]

on any of these hard to find GA books to guide is just a guess anyway

 

seriously, how can there be a 9.2 price when the folks at Overstreet don't even know a 9.2 exists? it's just a guess.

 

if you have it in a slab (so people aren't worried about resto) and have the look of a reputable seller, the market will tell you what it's worth

[skybolt]

on any of these hard to find GA books to guide is just a guess anyway

 

seriously, how can there be a 9.2 price when the folks at Overstreet don't even know a 9.2 exists? it's just a guess.

 

if you have it in a slab (so people aren't worried about resto) and have the look of a reputable seller, the market will tell you what it's worth

 

Overstreet has many GA dealers as advisers. If these dealers can break out these classic cover issues and sell them for 2 or 3 times guide on their websites, then they should recommend a change in the guide.

[blackterror]

Hey some great posts...Adam Strange in particular.

 

But as for the last post...from the blob...great point...as it takes us back to ground zero. My point is that the "guide" is in actuality a "MISS - GUIDE" or as somebody said...a Mister Guide that was really funny pun...I laughed out loud.

 

Anyway...granted blob the prices are guesses...but they are horrible guesses...they are out of touch with reality. A guide even a guess guide when prepared by professionals should do a little better job. Take the Wonder 1 ... Near Mint would love to have ... Metropolis has an ungraded CGC 9.2 uhhhh... I wouldn't be surprised a former CGC slabbed 8.0 to 9.0 they cracked out or else it would be in a slab ... how long has that book been for sale on the Metropolis site nearmint?

 

Anyway, Nearmint knows that we'd have a better chance of getting hit by lightning than finding a slabbed Wonder 1 in high grade for less than 2 grand...but Overstreet guesses we can. I know that when I buy high grade golden age...I rarely get at guide prices...I'm not to sure I ever have...I'm not saying this is wrong or deals can't be found...but what I am saying is guide isn't guide....it's worse than a bad guess on a lot of high demand golden age books...the seller know it, the buyers know it...and Overstreet ought to do a better job of reflecting it.

 

Still looking for someone to suggest the top ten good girl comics by price in the Overstreet. Is Wonder Woman considered a good girl or something different ... then what Phantom Lady 17? Is that the most valuable Good Girl comic?

 

Another question... if you had to buy one and you had the money would you pay 14 k for Tough Kid Squad Comics #1 which is number 96 on last years Overstreet most expensive golden age comics...or Phantom Lady 17 if it was also $14 k and you had to buy one or the other? I'm not asking you to do something else...this is a complete hypothetical...stay on topic...I would take the Phantom Lady 17 especially if I could get it like Overstreet says for 1/2 as much ... in reality you might could get a discount on the Tough Kid Squad. but you wouldn't on the PL. Why do we collectors know this...the dealers know this...but Overstreet doesn't reflect this? Of course I could be wrong...many of you may be drooling for the Tough Kid Squad.

 

Yes, we know in many cases Overstreet is a guess...but I submit it could be a better guess...and I submit...if they don't address the pricing directly...then one more aggressive move is needed like last year and that is to move the golden age top guide price to 9.0 next year...and finish what the guide started last year...that called greater attention to when and at what point the prices really do begin to become guesses...because for better or worse the Overstreet still presnts itself as a guide and not as a guess...and if I were the editors...I would take this to heart...that we don't want to have a book that is perceived as a book of guesses...but the best "GUIDE" not perfect...not exact ... but the best "GUIDE" possible .... I shudder to think of a little old lady going to a dealer with an original high grade golden age collection with a trusty Overstreet she picked up at Barnes and Noble and being blown away when the dealer offers her 1 percent above the highest price in guide on her collection...she would have been torched as much as the Church family and she had the guide to help her...little did she know the guide was only a guess and that many of the books in her treasured golden age collection were worth multiples of guide.

 

I think guide should do a better job of protecting an original owner collection owner of high grade golden and atomic age esoteric books...seriously...if someone had a deep good girl collection in 9.4 that his father owned ... and sold them at guide would that be wise...how about wise plus 10% ... heck no....guide is off by a lot more than 10% ... get it? I remember when Greg Manning auctions sold a Seven Seas 4 at least 5 years ago in CGC 9.0 for 3 grand or so ... uhhh in guide years later it is at $925 ... it may be a grand this year.... If you had Seven Seas 4 in CGC 9.2 and you sold it for 2 times guide you would still be getting ripped since you would have sold it for 33% less than it sold for 5 years ago in lower grade.

 

These are not isolated instances...OH WELL BACK TO WORK

 

BLACKTERROR

 

what will I find on this thread when I get back ... will it live and gather steam or will it die and fade away pick a point in this and just let your fingers click away...let's chew on this some golden agers...since it's reached the point where Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in CGC 9.8 sells for more than most golden age books

 

THE BLACK TERROR

[skybolt]

I would definitely take the Phantom Lady issue.

[the blob]

furthermore, many of the real world prices you're discussing are for slabbed books

 

if OPG is for raw books --- well, that Wonder 1 in "9.2" is really an 8.0 with a bit of resto --- so maybe the $2K guide price is appropriate?

 

as for the little old lady --- we don't know whether those books will command multiples of guide until the market says so and that often requires them to be sent to CGC for grading and checking.

 

how much do you think I could get for my raw Wonder 1 if i put it up on ebay unslabbed claiming it is a 9.2?

[nearmint]

Let's see some scans of your Wonder #1.

[the blob]

a facsimile copy of the front of wonder 1 will be sitting atop a pile of king conans and marvel two in ones in my next "these are my grandpa's comics" auction along with a copy of sensation 1 and captain america 1.

[nearmint]

a facsimile copy of the front of wonder 1 will be sitting atop a pile of king conans and marvel two in ones in my next "these are my grandpa's comics" auction along with a copy of sensation 1 and captain america 1.

 

Come on, Blob. Grandpa ALWAYS has an Action #1. You'd better add one, or everyone will know the auction is fraudulant.

[rjpb]

I will gladly pay full guide for a low to mid grade Nedor Wonder #1

[RareHighGrade]

There was one year in the 1990's when Overstreet vastly increased its prices on all books to "more accurately reflect the market." The market crashed that same year and did not come out of its recession for several years. There are a lot of collectors and dealers who have theories of why the market crash was tied to the sudden price increases. Perhaps some of them will share those theories in this thread. Assuming there is any validity to those theories, Overstreet may be seeking to avoid a repeat of that situation.

[the blob]

"There was one year in the 1990's when Overstreet vastly increased its prices on all books to "more accurately reflect the market." The market crashed that same year and did not come out of its recession for several years."

 

When was this? The market doldrums of, let's say, 1996-1998 or so had more to with the vast glut of early 90's dreck totally weighing down the market, new comic purchases dropping fast, which caused what, about 50-75% of all comic shops to close, which then resulted in even more inventories getting dumped on the market (and many shops not being willing to buy collections, which eroded collector confidence), which depressed things even more.....

 

Not sure anything OPG did then had anything to do with that.

[adamstrange]

Hey some great posts...Adam Strange in particular.

 

But as for the last post...from the blob...great point...as it takes us back to ground zero. My point is that the "guide" is in actuality a "MISS - GUIDE" or as somebody said...a Mister Guide that was really funny pun...I laughed out loud.

 

Anyway...granted blob the prices are guesses...but they are horrible guesses...they are out of touch with reality. A guide even a guess guide when prepared by professionals should do a little better job. Take the Wonder 1 ... Near Mint would love to have ... Metropolis has an ungraded CGC 9.2 uhhhh... I wouldn't be surprised a former CGC slabbed 8.0 to 9.0 they cracked out or else it would be in a slab ... how long has that book been for sale on the Metropolis site nearmint?

 

Anyway, Nearmint knows that we'd have a better chance of getting hit by lightning than finding a slabbed Wonder 1 in high grade for less than 2 grand...but Overstreet guesses we can. I know that when I buy high grade golden age...I rarely get at guide prices...I'm not to sure I ever have...I'm not saying this is wrong or deals can't be found...but what I am saying is guide isn't guide....it's worse than a bad guess on a lot of high demand golden age books...the seller know it, the buyers know it...and Overstreet ought to do a better job of reflecting it.

 

Still looking for someone to suggest the top ten good girl comics by price in the Overstreet. Is Wonder Woman considered a good girl or something different ... then what Phantom Lady 17? Is that the most valuable Good Girl comic?

 

Another question... if you had to buy one and you had the money would you pay 14 k for Tough Kid Squad Comics #1 which is number 96 on last years Overstreet most expensive golden age comics...or Phantom Lady 17 if it was also $14 k and you had to buy one or the other? I'm not asking you to do something else...this is a complete hypothetical...stay on topic...I would take the Phantom Lady 17 especially if I could get it like Overstreet says for 1/2 as much ... in reality you might could get a discount on the Tough Kid Squad. but you wouldn't on the PL. Why do we collectors know this...the dealers know this...but Overstreet doesn't reflect this? Of course I could be wrong...many of you may be drooling for the Tough Kid Squad.

 

Yes, we know in many cases Overstreet is a guess...but I submit it could be a better guess...and I submit...if they don't address the pricing directly...then one more aggressive move is needed like last year and that is to move the golden age top guide price to 9.0 next year...and finish what the guide started last year...that called greater attention to when and at what point the prices really do begin to become guesses...because for better or worse the Overstreet still presnts itself as a guide and not as a guess...and if I were the editors...I would take this to heart...that we don't want to have a book that is perceived as a book of guesses...but the best "GUIDE" not perfect...not exact ... but the best "GUIDE" possible .... I shudder to think of a little old lady going to a dealer with an original high grade golden age collection with a trusty Overstreet she picked up at Barnes and Noble and being blown away when the dealer offers her 1 percent above the highest price in guide on her collection...she would have been torched as much as the Church family and she had the guide to help her...little did she know the guide was only a guess and that many of the books in her treasured golden age collection were worth multiples of guide.

 

I think guide should do a better job of protecting an original owner collection owner of high grade golden and atomic age esoteric books...seriously...if someone had a deep good girl collection in 9.4 that his father owned ... and sold them at guide would that be wise...how about wise plus 10% ... heck no....guide is off by a lot more than 10% ... get it? I remember when Greg Manning auctions sold a Seven Seas 4 at least 5 years ago in CGC 9.0 for 3 grand or so ... uhhh in guide years later it is at $925 ... it may be a grand this year.... If you had Seven Seas 4 in CGC 9.2 and you sold it for 2 times guide you would still be getting ripped since you would have sold it for 33% less than it sold for 5 years ago in lower grade.

 

These are not isolated instances...OH WELL BACK TO WORK

 

BLACKTERROR

 

what will I find on this thread when I get back ... will it live and gather steam or will it die and fade away pick a point in this and just let your fingers click away...let's chew on this some golden agers...since it's reached the point where Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in CGC 9.8 sells for more than most golden age books

 

THE BLACK TERROR

 

Could the guide be better? Yup.

 

Do realize that dealers are the major source of input for the guide and their agenda isn't always served by accurate prices. They do express concerns about prices rising too fast as that will make the books no longer seem like a bargain. Also, it will generally make it more difficult for them to purchase copies of sought-after issues as many owners of books will rely on the guide price. If the price moves up incrementally, then it will make it easier for the dealer to purchase at 50-70% of guide for a "hot" book that they can then flip for a quick, tidy profit.

 

Rarehighgrade makes a good point about collector pyschology. Comics are not like stocks -- purchased based on earnings estimates or dividends, they are bought partly based on confidence that other collectors want it and will continue to drive up the price for it. Typically, the best way to achieve this is to create a string of steady incremental price increase which collecrs, being human, will continue ad nauseum. (There's been considerable research done on the patterns of thinking and decision-making of human beings, and the strength and weaknesses of those patterns. If you have not read much about this, I would highly recommend it as pretty much everyone is vulnerable. It's astonishing how poor our decision-making is.)

 

Another pyschological factor is that "bad events" such as a price drop are remembered far more than "good events". Overstreet avoids the bad events by raising prices using a moving average that gives considerable weight to old prices for the books. Prices don't move up as fast, and therefore seldom suffer the heart-rendering price-drops. For years, the guide has moved up at a pace between the two extremes of too much and too little. And note that even if Overstreet were not intentionally trying to do this, he is still relying on market reports from the advisers, who are all dealers and who are aware of the effects I describe. It was much discussed at pricing confab I was at.

 

To cite another example, have folks noticed that Heritage removed estimates from the comic auctions a while back? They had arguments about estimates where it was felt that if estimates were done realistically they would cause fewer bidders to bid (a bad thing as even little guys can help create the perception of demand for a book) and cause likely purchasers to chase after other books thinking that the accurately estimated item would cost to much (this was a worse thing as you never want to eliminate the likely purchasers from bidding to their top level).

 

So, you ask, doesn't keeping the price down reduce the price the dealers can charge. For some dealers it does, but not typically the bigger dealers who are likely to be the advisors. They know where to find a customer to pay the multiple when they get in a really cool cover in a run.

 

Regarding the Seven Seas 4, which is a very cool cover that I personally rate as the #2 good girl cover, I would argue that some caution was in order on that book. It sold within a year of purchase at G. Manning for less than the 3 grand price -- can't remember how much, but it was on ebay so maybe someone here can chime in. This is the danger of using one of the upper tier of prices that I mentioned. Sure it was worth more than Overstreet had it at in the guide, but not as much as the top auction price.

 

Sidenote: I'd be interested in seeing a list of the top 10 (by price) good girl comics, if anyone wishes to post that. Heck, I'd love to see someone post their top 10 good girl covers regardless of price. And it would be equally nice to see a post of the top 10 good girl interior stories.

 

As far as the guide protecting the little old lady, I don't know that the guide can do that. Will she know to buy a price guide? Can the dealer convince her that her NM book is really a Fine? Or that it not's really popular and point out in the front of Overstreet that you can't get full guide price for your comic? (BTW, some of the little old ladies get the idea that their vg copy is really NM and that the dealer is trying to rip them off when they really aren't. I have heard/seen a few of the stories and believe it's also part of human nature to think that what we have is unbelievably valuable when it isn't.) The best protection for her is probably an auction house, as the transactions are relatively transparent. It's always surprised me how few auctions there were in comics as in there were far more in many other hobbies. eBay and Heritage have been a significant shift in the way comics are sold.

 

The other issue that you have with setting prices based on estimates of knowledgeable advisers (I'm specifically alluding to doing this in the absence of actual sales) is that the pricer leaves himself open even more to being manipulated by the advisors. If an advisor can create steady increases for books they have but haven't sold, then can create an artificial demand in the marketplace for their books that ultimately isn't correct or sustainable as the buyers are not collectors but "flippers" flopping to the next hot commodity.

 

In case everyone doesn't know, Bob O's contract with Diamond allows him full editorial control over guide prices. He doesn't have to listen to Geppi and doesn't inform him of the prices before everyone else.

 

For all the reasons in this post and the earlier post, I prefer the maximum of raw pricing data, and the minimum of "guidance." I can fill in the blanks for myself, thank you.