Auction advice. 1 1

[2Sunny]

I'm looking to buy a few items this year.  So far my limited purchases have been direct buys on MCS, but I'm interested in trying my hand at an auction to try and pick up some early FF books on the cheap.  I will most definitely bid with a low ball price in mind and won't be disappointed if I miss out.  I'd much rather miss out than have buyers remorse if I overpay.  I see that recent auction prices have fallen off a cliff for some lower grade books, and that has peaked my interest.  Personally I'm happy with 6's or above in general so I'm won't be playing that 9.8 game, but I really know nothing about the different pros and cons of the different sites, and I have no idea about any "tools" or "tricks".  For instance:

Can you watch multiple items on some sites without opening several browser windows?

Do all comic auctions end with last second sniping or do some auctions add time if a bid is placed at the last second?

Are some outfits less inclined to have "shenanigans" going on than others?

 

Thanks to any that help.

Edited June 1, 2023 by 2Sunny

[MattTheDuck]

I have only ever bid on ComicLink. Their auctions end at a time certain, so "sniping" is certainly a possibility. One criticism of CL is that they generally don't post the back side of books - now this doesn't mean a thing to the grade the book has, but you have to trust there won't be something there you really don't like/want. You can watch multiple items by opening different windows and refreshing.

Given that you're committed to not overpaying, you could put in early bids on books you want at the price you want to pay and then just let them ride. You'll get notifications if/when you are outbid and if you have more room in your budget you can always go back in.  Personally, I tend not to "chase" books if they go beyond what I think I want to pay, which is usually somewhere around FMV unless I think the book is going to increase in value.  I might then go a little higher.

Good luck!

[theCapraAegagrus]

Pedant: It's, "piqued".

[shadroch]

Mycomicshop has weekly auctions, where a bid in the last two minutes extends bidding by two minutes. 

I'd think it's an excellent way to dip your toe in the auction waters.  

 

[LowGradeBronze]

When the keys all went through the roof the low grade stuff became very much in demand, and up shot the prices, so it makes sense that as prices ease a little at the top end, pressure on the lower grades eases off too. Making a very good opportunity to pick away at your wants list if lower grades are acceptable.

A nice looking VG is very much to my liking and lower if it's a big ticket item. You're wise in avoiding auction fever and walking away when you're outbid. There's always another copy somewhere coming up for sale. Trust in persistence and a little help from lady luck over and above paying too much. Makes for a more rewarding buy. I'm sure many people have books they can hardly bear to look at due to what they paid for them! 

That doesn't happen to anything like the same degree at the lower grade end. It's a nice pool to swim in.

[2Sunny]

On 6/2/2023 at 7:18 AM, theCapraAegagrus said:

Pedant: It's, "piqued".

Wow!  Once upon a time I considered my vocabulary to be above average, but clearly old age is taking it's toll.  I completely forgot "piqued".  Thanks for the reminder!! :D

[2Sunny]

On 6/2/2023 at 11:50 AM, Fraggy said:

WhatNot has both, sudden death like Ebay and Bid Extending where any bid under 10 seconds left adds more time.

Interesting.  I haven't looked at WhatNot ever.  I'll have to take a look now, for sure.  Thanks!

[STANGRY]

Comic Connect does the same thing as mycomicshop - extends the auction if there is another bid.

That is tough especially if you are bidding on multiple items because they are listed so close in time to each other

[Dick Pontoon]

Here's my plan. It's worked wonders for me over decades of collecting.

Don't stress out about bidding or buying. It's only funnybooks!

[Dr. Balls]

The obvious statement here is keep an eye out for the Buyer's Premium, as some houses are more than others. The other problem that can come up is that if you win on a lowball bid, they might try to hook you on shipping. I won a $110 auction (the only one of my lowballs that won) and got served with a $46 shipping fee. I requested a less expensive shipping option, which they gave me - but I wasn't able to get it on the automated check out. I had to contact the auction house specifically for that.

Some auction houses have a minimum buyer's premium on low-dollar items. So if you win one for $45, you could be looking at a $30 Buyer's Premium, and then increased shipping on a single item. You're not going to get $17 Priority Mail shipping at an auction house. If you think $45 is a deal, you may not think the same way if you pay $100 all-in for a $45 item.

The argument that auction houses have better *stuff* than Ebay is valid, but boy - if you're not careful, you'll be paying the lion's share of that on a low dollar item. If you're trying to buy cheap or common, there are several pitfalls with auction houses that destroy potential markup margin if you buy books now to fund future purchases later.

[marvelmaniac]

There is always eBay or Facebook Buy/Sell/Trade groups, some sellers have auctions rather than BIN, you can ask the group for recommendations about the seller(s) from other group members.

The advantages, no fees, you know the price with shipping up front.