To all the folks complaining about the increase in OA prices this past year... 1 1

[jsylvester]

On 5/30/2021 at 9:29 AM, KingOfRulers said:

Or a quality collection that's built with patience, rather than haphazardly throwing money at something.

Of course, if you want to build the grandest collection of them all, money will indeed do that. Just throw more and more money at it. A billionaire throwing $1B into any collectible will find they have a magnificent collection, even if they significantly overpaid for every piece. They're a billionaire, so they still have billions to spare. Most people aren't billionaires or even millionaires though.

I understand the emotionally driven, "needing it now" phenomenon. Tomorrow is never promised, so enjoy as much as you can today. But for me there's a balance between needing it now and patient, disciplined spending. In my opinion, most people let the "needing it now" side of the equation drive their bidding. And not just their bidding on art, but their entire financial life. I suppose that's among the reasons that most Americans are in poor financial health, living in perpetual debt with far less than $10k in savings. 

I like Graham Nolan’s Knightfall OA. I was going to purchase a lot of pages 12 years ago but decided to be patient so only purchased a few. The prices went up every couple years so I kept passing on pieces waiting for a correction. Now those pages are sold to other collectors that are holding them long term. Looking back I should have done a bundle deal but no one can see the future. I never thought OA would be where it is today. I knew it would hold its value but never thought it would catch on to this extent. 

[Xatari]

I really think we may just be scratching the surface of the hobby. I would not be surprised to see another “leveling up” over the next year or two, especially on first appearance stuff. It’s the main focus on what I collect. 

[Rick2you2]

On 5/30/2021 at 10:41 PM, KingOfRulers said:

I'm not focused on the monetary value of the item over the joy that it brings. A balance should be made. I don't forfeit financial responsibility for my desire of ownership of a collectible. If I'm spending thousands of dollars on any asset of this type, I'm going to do it with care.

I love the artwork, the stories, the characters, but I'm not interested in a collectible that costs thousands if I'm not reasonably certain that I can liquidate it at least for cost. And I'm sure not going into financial debt for it. In my opinion, it's not concentrating on the value. It sounds like that because financial value is the topic of this discussion, but really my position is that I am for balance. I am for the mid-point balancing act between joy of the art and financial responsibility. 

I guess my approach is different. I don’t frankly care if I “waste” several thousand dollars on a collectable bit of art if I want it; to me, it is an expense, not an asset. Like a designer table. But, I also won’t spend 10’s of thousands of dollars on a piece even if I would like it. Thinking about value automatically takes the pure fun out of the hobby and makes me look at things differently. As for future savings, I have that covered.

[jsylvester]

On 5/29/2021 at 6:41 PM, Xatari said:

@KingOfRulersI guess it would depend on what you consider once in a lifetime.  I’m talking about pages from the first appearance of major characters. I just don’t see Moon Knight, Shang Chi, Kamala, Miles, Spider-Gwen etc pages coming up every few months. 

First appearances, early appearances, and pages from iconic storylines will continue up as you just don’t see them available. Artists from particular periods on particular characters will also do well. 

[Hockeyflow33]

12 hours ago, jsylvester said:

Am I the only collector that only buys what he loves and have an attachment to my art? 

They're not mutually exclusive. Not everyone loves the same thing and not everyone is spending $1k+ on a page. For those that limit their spending to a few hundred bucks per page you really need to search out quality art at an affordable price. 

[SquareChaos]

I guess more towards the original intent of the thread... I can say this thread has spurred me to get rid of the few slabs I still have, so I guess that's something.

[Unstoppablejayd]

On 5/27/2021 at 12:41 PM, vodou said:

Respectfully and without snark: What great art by great artists is not available on HA in any rolling 12 month period? Could be some outliers but I think you can mostly get whatever you want (by type, not a specific issue and page #) these days at auction if you're willing (and able) to spend more than anyone else that day.

Paul SMith X-men pages

[jsylvester]

6 hours ago, Hockeyflow33 said:

They're not mutually exclusive. Not everyone loves the same thing and not everyone is spending $1k+ on a page. For those that limit their spending to a few hundred bucks per page you really need to search out quality art at an affordable price. 

I understand everyone has different budgets but that doesn’t mean you can’t buy what you love. It would be nice to own a cover but if that’s too expensive buy a panel page. All I’m saying is pages you love don’t need to be expensive. I got plenty of pages inexpensive though they’ve shot up. My problem is I dont sell since I love every page.

[JadeGiant]

2 minutes ago, jsylvester said:

I understand everyone has different budgets but that doesn’t mean you can’t buy what you love. It would be nice to own a cover but if that’s too expensive buy a panel page. All I’m saying is pages you love don’t need to be expensive. I got plenty of pages inexpensive though they’ve shot up. My problem is I dont sell since I love every page.

That sounds like the opposite of a problem to me 

[jsylvester]

Just now, JadeGiant said:

That sounds like the opposite of a problem to me 

I should clarify it’s more a problem that my wife wants a renovation and she sees the current prices  Im doing everything I can to hold onto everything. 

[Will_K]

2 hours ago, Unstoppablejayd said:

Paul SMith X-men pages

Standing by...

https://comics.ha.com/itm/original-comic-art/story-page/paul-smith-and-bob-wiacek-x-men/p/122124-108005.s?ic2=mytracked-lotspage-lotlinks-12202013&tab=MyTrackedLots-101116

Not the consignor... won't be a bidder.

Edited June 2, 2021 by Will_K

[jsylvester]

18 hours ago, Xatari said:

I really think we may just be scratching the surface of the hobby. I would not be surprised to see another “leveling up” over the next year or two, especially on first appearance stuff. It’s the main focus on what I collect. 

We’re in the middle of reaching a new baseline now. Everything is reminiscent of 2011/2012 from the comic book market to the OA market. 90s OA once snubbed is being snatched up like I’ve never seen. Everyone’s saying prices are too high yet buying privately. Once collectors know the higher prices are the market norm they’ll have no choice but to accept it themselves. 

[JadeGiant]

1 hour ago, jsylvester said:

I should clarify it’s more a problem that my wife wants a renovation and she sees the current prices  Im doing everything I can to hold onto everything. 

Yeah, well that IS a problem. 

[Rick2you2]

3 hours ago, jsylvester said:

We’re in the middle of reaching a new baseline now. Everything is reminiscent of 2011/2012 from the comic book market to the OA market. 90s OA once snubbed is being snatched up like I’ve never seen. Everyone’s saying prices are too high yet buying privately. Once collectors know the higher prices are the market norm they’ll have no choice but to accept it themselves. 

Sure they have a choice. They could not buy it. There is a lot of other art out there, you know, and with the epidemic nearing an end, there may be a price drop as people buy different things. In today’s Wall Street Journal, it was reported that we are coming out of this recession in a way not seen before. That may be the case here, as well.

Edited June 2, 2021 by Rick2you2

[jsylvester]

35 minutes ago, Rick2you2 said:

Sure they have a choice. They could not buy it. There is a lot of other art out there, you know, and with the epidemic nearing an end, there may be a price drop as people buy different things. In today’s Wall Street Journal, it was reported that we are coming out of this recession in a way not seen before. That may be the case here, as well.

Of course collectors have a choice not to purchase art. I’m talking about the collectors that are secretly trying to buy pages while saying prices are too high publicly. I’m fine with a pull back or correction. I’ve been waiting for a correction for over a decade though so I’m not the best predictor. Maybe the whole art market free falls. Either way I’m holding onto the art that is nostalgic and special to me.

[vodou]

58 minutes ago, Rick2you2 said:

In today’s Wall Street Journal, it was reported that we are coming out of this recession in a way not seen before.

Well sure. I don't think anybody has ever seen treason to this extent before either.

Nonetheless, WSJ is dead wrong.

[vodou]

22 minutes ago, jsylvester said:

I’m talking about the collectors that are secretly trying to buy pages while saying prices are too high publicly.

That's too many times to count now with that. Who are these mystery collectors trying to steal all your prizes away for a quarter market?

[jsylvester]

9 minutes ago, vodou said:

That's too many times to count now with that. Who are these mystery collectors trying to steal all your prizes away for a quarter market?

I was only explaining that everyone had a choice. Not naming people and can’t blame them for trying. I’ll admit I’ve tried talking the market down while trying to buy privately myself. 

[vodou]

2 minutes ago, jsylvester said:

I’ll admit I’ve tried talking the market down while trying to buy privately myself. 

A specific piece under negotiation, which is okay if it's salient points in play, or 'the market' as a whole?

[jsylvester]

4 minutes ago, vodou said:

A specific piece under negotiation, which is okay if it's salient points in play, or 'the market' as a whole?

Both. To be fair I always thought the market was high and it was a gut punch when pages from certain stories doubled or tripled in a small timeframe. Ive seen a lot of these jumps in the past and can understand they feel risky so see it both ways.