Why are almost all Golden and Silver Age comics going for over book price??

[october]

Why would I use Ebay for a market gauge of raw books?

 

Very few Ebay sellers are accurate graders of raw books.

 

 

Indeed. Raw sales on this forum and dealer wall prices (minus a certain percentage for the inevitable haggle) are a better gauge.

[blazingbob]

And with all the "Ebay sucks" threads on these boards I'm amazed anybody on this forum would buy raw books off it.

 

But of course the way around that is to bid low, hope you win it and the grade pans out.

 

But then how would a buyer of Ebay raw know what to value their book at?

 

Well my book is a fine which is a FN/VF on Ebay Therefore the book is worth $xx?

[Topnotchman]

There are many regional show dealers who buy there wall books off of Ebay and mark them up for the show. So wondering why there prices are higher than Ebay is because they bought them on Ebay and are flipping them at shows.

[lou_fine]

The cost of listing books on eBay is low, though most sellers do pay 13% in eBay and PP fees, when items sell.

 

 

Are you serious that sellers have to pay 13% for their eBay and PP auction fees when something sells?

 

Seems pretty outrageous considering that CC and I assume CL charges less than that for their auction fees. Seems like a much better deal to go with the auction houses then since they will do all of the work and possibly even pick up all of the shipping charges for you.

[paperheart]

The marvel cinematic universe, its one of the biggest contributing factors. Many people have started collecting and speculating on books because of it. Just look at the attendance at comic conventions lately, many of the people that go aren't going for comics they are going because super heroes are the in thing now. I have heard people talking to dealers at shows asking things like "which characters are going to be popular soon"

 

I think by 2018-2019 when infinity wars is in full swing we will see the pinnacle of the age of comic price madness. Its going to take an economic collapse at this point to bring book prices back to normal. Remember when werewolf by night 32 was a 120$ book in 8.0, good times. Anyways hopefully those of us who have been collecting for 20+ years will be able to get those book we forgot about 3-5 years ago before all this madness started

 

Werewolf by Night 32 is an excellent example of a hot first appearance which has double or tripled in value over Overstreet in the past few years. However try finding a buyer for Werewolf by Night 2-31 in VF grade. You would be lucky to get half guide out of those books. So many titles and so many comics which bring such a sad fraction of guide. Many are blinded by the spotlight shown on the ultra hot keys which have exploded in value.

 

so true.

[01TheDude]

The cost of listing books on eBay is low, though most sellers do pay 13% in eBay and PP fees, when items sell.

 

 

Are you serious that sellers have to pay 13% for their eBay and PP auction fees when something sells?

 

Seems pretty outrageous considering that CC and I assume CL charges less than that for their auction fees. Seems like a much better deal to go with the auction houses then since they will do all of the work and possibly even pick up all of the shipping charges for you.

the total in fees is about 13% -

 

10% being for the book/shipping and ~3% the pay pal transaction fee on the sale.

[lou_fine]

The cost of listing books on eBay is low, though most sellers do pay 13% in eBay and PP fees, when items sell.

 

 

Are you serious that sellers have to pay 13% for their eBay and PP auction fees when something sells?

 

Seems pretty outrageous considering that CC and I assume CL charges less than that for their auction fees. Seems like a much better deal to go with the auction houses then since they will do all of the work and possibly even pick up all of the shipping charges for you.

the total in fees is about 13% -

 

10% being for the book/shipping and ~3% the pay pal transaction fee on the sale.

 

Are you saying that eBay takes 10% of the cost of the book plus 10% of the cost of the shipping as their cut?

 

This certainly sounds egregious considering that they are not really doing any of the heavy lifting at all for you.

[Cat-Man_America]

Bubbles are produced by real world economic factors. With comics factors include superhero film popularity, portfolio investment considerations, major auction sales analysis (prices realized), etc. There is nothing shallow about the shallow end as a healthy market sustains collectible interest at all levels.

 

Will agree to disagree, then. Also, if your shoeshine guy ever gives you tips on hot comics, it might be time to re-think the suggestion that this time the particular circumstance are different.

 

The froth I think I've observed is e.g. the details-about-new-movie hype that drives certain books like first appearances of villains, etc., which imo is likely not sustainable a few years after the movie is forgotten. [but I've been wrong before and will certainly be wrong again.] And other e.g., merely anecdotal: Marvel Spotlight 5 strikes me as a once-hot key that's cooled.

 

No problem with your disagreeing, but you're not thinking big picture.

 

It's like comparing speculative stocks to growth stocks, they exist in the same world, but one is subject to quick returns or losses and the other maintains steady growth over long term investment. Most Bronze to Modern books are volatile, they can rise or fall quickly based on a variety of factors (like those I mentioned), but fluctuations don't threaten the stability of a market which is supported by Gold and Silver (Age). A bubble could occur in Silver because of the numbers of graded books and unknown numbers of ungraded books in boomer collections, but the market for SA is generally strong and stable.

 

I'm not knocking contemporary Bronze & Modern books at all, but given the numbers produced, variants, collectors buying multiples, higher grade paper composition and dependence on media attention or celebrity artist(s) is it any wonder that even at the highest grades there always appears to be a bubble on the horizon? Like I said, BIG picture thinking pays better dividends.

[Chaseman210]

The cost of listing books on eBay is low, though most sellers do pay 13% in eBay and PP fees, when items sell.

 

 

Are you serious that sellers have to pay 13% for their eBay and PP auction fees when something sells?

 

Seems pretty outrageous considering that CC and I assume CL charges less than that for their auction fees. Seems like a much better deal to go with the auction houses then since they will do all of the work and possibly even pick up all of the shipping charges for you.

the total in fees is about 13% -

 

10% being for the book/shipping and ~3% the pay pal transaction fee on the sale.

 

Are you saying that eBay takes 10% of the cost of the book plus 10% of the cost of the shipping as their cut?

 

This certainly sounds egregious considering that they are not really doing any of the heavy lifting at all for you.

 

They take 10% of the total cost, and then PayPal takes 3%.

[1Cool]

The cost of listing books on eBay is low, though most sellers do pay 13% in eBay and PP fees, when items sell.

 

 

Are you serious that sellers have to pay 13% for their eBay and PP auction fees when something sells?

 

Seems pretty outrageous considering that CC and I assume CL charges less than that for their auction fees. Seems like a much better deal to go with the auction houses then since they will do all of the work and possibly even pick up all of the shipping charges for you.

the total in fees is about 13% -

 

10% being for the book/shipping and ~3% the pay pal transaction fee on the sale.

 

Are you saying that eBay takes 10% of the cost of the book plus 10% of the cost of the shipping as their cut?

 

This certainly sounds egregious considering that they are not really doing any of the heavy lifting at all for you.

 

Not sure what you mean by "heavy lifting". They don't actually do much other then bring buyers and sellers together which in most cases is the difference between a sale and no sale.

[grayzr]

The marvel cinematic universe, its one of the biggest contributing factors. Many people have started collecting and speculating on books because of it. Just look at the attendance at comic conventions lately, many of the people that go aren't going for comics they are going because super heroes are the in thing now. I have heard people talking to dealers at shows asking things like "which characters are going to be popular soon"

 

I think by 2018-2019 when infinity wars is in full swing we will see the pinnacle of the age of comic price madness. Its going to take an economic collapse at this point to bring book prices back to normal. Remember when werewolf by night 32 was a 120$ book in 8.0, good times. Anyways hopefully those of us who have been collecting for 20+ years will be able to get those book we forgot about 3-5 years ago before all this madness started

 

Werewolf by Night 32 is an excellent example of a hot first appearance which has double or tripled in value over Overstreet in the past few years. However try finding a buyer for Werewolf by Night 2-31 in VF grade. You would be lucky to get half guide out of those books. So many titles and so many comics which bring such a sad fraction of guide. Many are blinded by the spotlight shown on the ultra hot keys which have exploded in value.

 

Agreed, many think that because keys are exploding in price that every book is going up as well. Its the age of key nose bleed prices, I think that sounds better

[Buzzetta]

Overstreet, other than looking up non important filler issues or as a source of knowledge is becoming a relic as a reflection of the current market. Overstreet was the tool for regional mail order of days gone by in my opinion. If you want to see what something is currently worth go check out eBay... everyone else is.

 

But what are the ebay bidders consulting to determine how much they want to bid? Can't be solely prior ebay trades. I think Overstreet is still used for the filler, at a substantial discount of course.

 

They are consulting what is out there and what is being asked.

Prior sales

Frequency of sales.

Disposable income. A firefighter is making $70k + in NY while a firefighter in Florida is making $40-50k a year. (Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/firefighter-salary-state-map-2015-5) Which means that while the price of a NM98 is around $750-800 in 9.8, the NM98 in 9.8 is a bit more 'expensive' to the person that is a firefighter in Florida than the person that is a firefighter in NY.

 

There are a lot of factors.

[Buzzetta]

Why would I use Ebay for a market gauge of raw books?

 

Very few Ebay sellers are accurate graders of raw books.

 

I can understand Ebay CGC sale references but then GPA would be the tool to use.

 

To see what people are getting for what they are paying for. If someone pays money for something no matter what it is advertised with and they are comfortable with their purchase then that is the value they assigned to it.

 

If someone advertises something as NM and the book really looks like a VF, and someone paid $100 for it... I believe that is still a gauge as to what someone is willing to pay for a VF item.

[lou_fine]

The cost of listing books on eBay is low, though most sellers do pay 13% in eBay and PP fees, when items sell.

 

 

Are you serious that sellers have to pay 13% for their eBay and PP auction fees when something sells?

 

Seems pretty outrageous considering that CC and I assume CL charges less than that for their auction fees. Seems like a much better deal to go with the auction houses then since they will do all of the work and possibly even pick up all of the shipping charges for you.

the total in fees is about 13% -

 

10% being for the book/shipping and ~3% the pay pal transaction fee on the sale.

 

Are you saying that eBay takes 10% of the cost of the book plus 10% of the cost of the shipping as their cut?

 

This certainly sounds egregious considering that they are not really doing any of the heavy lifting at all for you.

 

Not sure what you mean by "heavy lifting". They don't actually do much other then bring buyers and sellers together which in most cases is the difference between a sale and no sale.

 

That's exactly what I mean, eBay and PP don't do very much for you and yet they take 13% off the top leaving you with only 87%.

 

Yet if you go with one of the comic book specialty auction houses such as CC or CL, they have the brand name and built-in customer base, they do the listing for you, they review the books for you for possible pedigree status designation, they do up all of the Customs paperwork to expedite the books across the border, they send the books out for grading with probably faster turnaround times, and all this shipping is normally all done on their dime.

 

That's what I mean by the heavy lifting and you can get all that for less than what eBay & PP is charging you and they really do nothing in return for you.

[F For Fake]

The cost of listing books on eBay is low, though most sellers do pay 13% in eBay and PP fees, when items sell.

 

 

Are you serious that sellers have to pay 13% for their eBay and PP auction fees when something sells?

 

Seems pretty outrageous considering that CC and I assume CL charges less than that for their auction fees. Seems like a much better deal to go with the auction houses then since they will do all of the work and possibly even pick up all of the shipping charges for you.

the total in fees is about 13% -

 

10% being for the book/shipping and ~3% the pay pal transaction fee on the sale.

 

Are you saying that eBay takes 10% of the cost of the book plus 10% of the cost of the shipping as their cut?

 

This certainly sounds egregious considering that they are not really doing any of the heavy lifting at all for you.

 

Not sure what you mean by "heavy lifting". They don't actually do much other then bring buyers and sellers together which in most cases is the difference between a sale and no sale.

 

That's exactly what I mean, eBay and PP don't do very much for you and yet they take 13% off the top leaving you with only 87%.

 

Yet if you go with one of the comic book specialty auction houses such as CC or CL, they have the brand name and built-in customer base, they do the listing for you, they review the books for you for possible pedigree status designation, they do up all of the Customs paperwork to expedite the books across the border, they send the books out for grading with probably faster turnaround times, and all this shipping is normally all done on their dime.

 

That's what I mean by the heavy lifting and you can get all that for less than what eBay & PP is charging you and they really do nothing in return for you.

 

This is true, and is probably worthwhile for big ticket items, but when it comes to the cheaper stuff, it's easier to just eat the 13% and do it yourself. If I buy a collection and have a bunch of $5-$20 books to sell, I'll make more selling them on eBay than I would selling them at a LCS, where they'll offer me about 10-50% of perceived market value, if they want them at all. The auction houses aren't going to mess with that stuff, Sometimes I can blow stuff out at MCS, but all in all, eBay is still the best venue to recognize the best price for low-level books, even after their cut.

[grebal]

Also, Lou, to be fair, the 'best' two alternatives to ebay I've found charge sellers of auctions same or more, but like you said they do much of the work (scanning, write-ups, shipping). Possibly even higher fees apply to consignment, haven't researched it.

 

ebay, open a 'store' and reduce fees to 9% (from 10) + 3% = 12%

[arguably, might occasionally get top dollar for the avg Joe-hobbyists for valuable service of reaching worldwide buyers, but they suck suck suck, so there's that]

 

comiclink - sell CGC 10% fees, non-CGC 10-25% fee depending on books[they make buyer add 3% for cr. cards which could affect bid] [might get smaller audience than if properly listed on ebay]

 

comic connect 13% fees (10 of Final sale and 3 for net cc charges) [anti-snipe rule might get better final bid, but possibly smaller audience than ebay] [no fees to buyers could help final bid]

 

heritage - they charge Texans sales tax so don't even look at them ; )

 

my comic shop - I forget, but considered them not optimal for some reason

[october]

And with all the "Ebay sucks" threads on these boards I'm amazed anybody on this forum would buy raw books off it.

 

I buy raw books almost exclusively off of there. Where do you think I get the junk that I sell to all of you dealers?

[Comicdey]

Because they undergrade raws so heavily :-)

[01TheDude]

eBay is a venue you can make use of if you find it works for you--- they provide a service. They charge for that service and most who use it just consider it a cost of doing business. If I were selling something high dollar - sure, I would consider other avenues as well. But most what I put on there is small potatoes. I price my items taking that cost into consideration and pass it on to the buyer-- just like most businesses would.

 

So anyone who argues that they don't earn the percentages they charge-- well, maybe they just don't get the whole scenario or fail to understand that in many cases, it is simply the best alternative currently.