Can anyone explain why higher priced copies sell, while lower ones sit...?

[miraclemet]

I have a few books in my "watch"list on ebay that just stay there after months and months of relisting, and Im interested, but either its not the top of my want list, or I dont have the cash and then when that changes I go to my watch list and go buy the book I've been stalking... sometimes without checking to see if there are cheaper copies around.

 

granted Im usually doing that with CGC SS Sketches (so one of a kinds) or GA books (and there are rarely more than one copy for sale on ebay at any given point).

 

but still... I it "buy it now"and dont look back... I probably should!

[shadroch]

Someone explain to me how MCS gets the prices it gets on ebay while we are at it. Its really unbelievable some of the prices they get for their books.

 

Because they likely have a dedicated customer base that goes to them regularly. Not saying it's smart to not research before buying but that's probably it. Some people like the familiarity. Let's face it, even Mile High has its own customer base. It's mind boggling but true. They'd have to or they would have gone under years ago.

 

I've seen similar things before. I remember having this type of discussion on another board (non-comics books) years ago. Someone started a thread asking why anyone would be dumb to way overpay by buying from a particular web site in question when you could get the same items on ebay for a lot cheaper. Someone from that web site found the thread and tried to defend their overpricing (yeah, that went well as you might imagine ) but in the end they were actually realizing their asking prices because people were interested in buying (and overpaying) from a source they trusted.

 

MCS has a huge base,but that doesn't explain their eBay sales as the base knows anything listed on eBay is available cheaper on the MCS site.

[Squad008]

I have wondered this myself and have come to some conclusions as to why this happens. Here are my thoughts:

 

Book A is listed as buy it now with an accurate description of NM and is actually a 9.4 selling for $100.00. Book B is an auction item that is EXTREMELY BEAUTIFUL has NICE SHINE or MUST BE SENT TO CGC IMMEDIATELY and sells for $200.

 

Why buy a 9.4 for cheaper when you could get a book that needs to be sent to CGC immediately and that ends up grading at 9.4 or below? i.e. some people are dumb.

 

Also, when people are honest then the buyer knows that the best they will get is a 9.4. I think that people are always hopeful that they are going to get lucky and find that book that grades at a 9.8. So when your honest about the grade then it takes the gamble out of the auction.

 

I've seen plenty of 9.0 to 9.2 books that sell in auctions higher than the same book already graded. Probably for the same psychological reason, the bidder is hoping that the comic they are buying is going to grade higher.

 

Good example: Batman 251. People are paying a ton of money for ungraded versions that are probably 8.0 or below when there are CGC 8.5's selling for the same price and sometimes lower.

 

I like to think of it as the CGC lottery.

 

[90sChild]

Nobody is talking about about fixed vs auction format so far. Fixed items always get less views, especially 30 day items. I typically sort by auction only and ending soonest and redo most of my searches daily. You are more likely to find cheaper prices that way. Fixed style listings typically sit longer with a chance to sell for more. Now it gets a little weird when the auctions start to sell higher than the fixed listings, usually due to a big change in demand (ie new movie news/rumors). Some people just dont go back and check fixed listinfs to see what has been sitting around for whatever reason.

 

[drotto]

I put many items up as BIN or BIN with best offer. I am not in a rush to sell anything. This is not how I make a living. So a list BIN at the lower range of recent sales and just let it sit there. It may not sell fast, but rarely have I not had an item sell eventually.

[cousin itt]

Interesting sample case: a voldemort 6.0 of ASM 13 sitting unsold with a BIN of 599:

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Amazing-Spider-Man-13-CBCS-FN-6-0-1st-Appearance-of-Mysterio-Not-CGC/262629596356

 

A CGC 5.5 same book but lesser PQ just sold for 891:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Amazing-Spider-Man-13-CGC-5-5-1st-Appearance-Mysterio-/112162216022

 

Are voldemort books really that unappealing to folks?

[AJD]

Interesting sample case: a voldemort 6.0 of ASM 13 sitting unsold with a BIN of 599:

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Amazing-Spider-Man-13-CBCS-FN-6-0-1st-Appearance-of-Mysterio-Not-CGC/262629596356

 

A CGC 5.5 same book but lesser PQ just sold for 891:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Amazing-Spider-Man-13-CGC-5-5-1st-Appearance-Mysterio-/112162216022

 

Are voldemort books really that unappealing to folks?

 

I'll go Voldy with no qualms. But the eye appeal on that CGC 5.5 is off the charts. The Voldy book looks accurately graded, but not near as nice as the CGC one. Plus auction dynamics are weird sometimes.

[Skull Squadron]

I've seen two common reasons why a more expensive graded book sells over a less expensive one. One, if the cheaper one has a crack or requires a reslab and two if the more expensive one has an inner well and the cheaper one does not. Anyway, just a common trend I've been seeing. As far as raw books..I have no idea

[VintageComics]

Interesting sample case: a voldemort 6.0 of ASM 13 sitting unsold with a BIN of 599:

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Amazing-Spider-Man-13-CBCS-FN-6-0-1st-Appearance-of-Mysterio-Not-CGC/262629596356

 

A CGC 5.5 same book but lesser PQ just sold for 891:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Amazing-Spider-Man-13-CGC-5-5-1st-Appearance-Mysterio-/112162216022

 

Are voldemort books really that unappealing to folks?

 

I'll go Voldy with no qualms. But the eye appeal on that CGC 5.5 is off the charts. The Voldy book looks accurately graded, but not near as nice as the CGC one. Plus auction dynamics are weird sometimes.

It's an unequal comparison.

 

For one the CGC listing has a straight on scan rather than a two small picture on an angle, so it's much easier to judge how nice the CGC listing is, favoring it.

 

In additional, it's in an old CGC label and this appeals to a larger segment of buyers (for many reasons, whether they believe it's less likely to be pressed, more likely to be undergraded, etc).

 

So not a good comparison for this particular discussion by the OP unless you want to prove that other factors do affect the final price, which in this case I believe they do.

[VintageComics]

Assume all other things are equal. Assume it's a 9.8 White pages of an 80's book that is common as dirt.

 

Can anyone tell me why a copy priced at $92 with free shipping sits, while MULTIPLE other copies sell for more, one as much as $145ish.

 

Can anyone explain that to me...?

 

Madness!

 

How often do you see it happen?

 

I'd say once in a while it happens because people want to pump their books and will actually have friends set high sales buy allowing them to pop their BINs in an effort to make the rest of their inventory sell for more.

[RockMyAmadeus]

Assume all other things are equal. Assume it's a 9.8 White pages of an 80's book that is common as dirt.

 

Can anyone tell me why a copy priced at $92 with free shipping sits, while MULTIPLE other copies sell for more, one as much as $145ish.

 

Can anyone explain that to me...?

 

Madness!

 

How often do you see it happen?

 

I'd say once in a while it happens because people want to pump their books and will actually have friends set high sales buy allowing them to pop their BINs in an effort to make the rest of their inventory sell for more.

 

Not often, because I only check GPA when I'm listing, or received an offer I want to confirm, but I have seen it before. This last situation was several CGC 9.8s, same book, same grade, same general quality of production...and no less than FOUR different sales, two BINs, one "auction" (that started ABOVE my BIN), and an unknown sale, probably MCS. The person who bid could have gotten my essentially identical copy for $11 less without having to wait for the auction to end.

 

Literally all other things were equal.

 

It's crazy.