BV vs SV - How do you trade?

[Mike121]

I had a private conversation with one of the members yesterday about this and I wanted to get a general idea of how popular each "value" was for trading. I'm sure this will spark a lot of different opinions, but let's keep it respectful, please. This is an honest question, and I'd like to get other thoughts on it.

Here's my take. In most cases, especially for lower end cards, I'm perfectly fine just using the BV. However, on mid-high end cards, I almost always look at the SV before agreeing to a trade. Even though I don't sell my cards and I try to buy as little as possible, I still wouldn't want to trade a card I could sell for $100 for a card I could buy for $60 just because the BVs are the same. I mean, if it were a PC item I might do it anyways, but in most cases I'd decline that trade.

So, while I don't mind trading by BV, there are instances where I just won't do it. I guess I'd say that I use both, depending on the circumstance and who I'm dealing with.

How about everyone else? What do you use to determine whether a trade is fair or not?

 

[cjay101]

Most lower-end stuff i just go off bv. Anything that has substantial SV changes the game. Too many people want to trade for a 75BV card that currently sells for $200 and complain that they don’t go off ebay prices.

 

[bblair_2002]

I had a private conversation with one of the members yesterday about this and I wanted to get a general idea of how popular each "value" was for trading. I'm sure this will spark a lot of different opinions, but let's keep it respectful, please. This is an honest question, and I'd like to get other thoughts on it.

Here's my take. In most cases, especially for lower end cards, I'm perfectly fine just using the BV. However, on mid-high end cards, I almost always look at the SV before agreeing to a trade. Even though I don't sell my cards and I try to buy as little as possible, I still wouldn't want to trade a card I could sell for $100 for a card I could buy for $60 just because the BVs are the same. I mean, if it were a PC item I might do it anyways, but in most cases I'd decline that trade.

So, while I don't mind trading by BV, there are instances where I just won't do it. I guess I'd say that I use both, depending on the circumstance and who I'm dealing with.

How about everyone else? What do you use to determine whether a trade is fair or not?

I feel the same way. Set needs and lower-end stuff I don't mind BV at all,but I'm not gonna trade a hot BV $40 card when they sell for over $100.

A couple weeks ago I offered someone on here a fair trade going by SV and the guy went into a hissy-fit.

 

[Mike121]

Just to be clear, I'm not knocking anyone who does trade strictly by BV. It is certainly the easiest way to do it. No looking up cards on eBay. No arguing about which sale to go based on if there are several and they're not close.

I guess the main reason for this post is that I'm curious if there are folks who do trade solely by BV, regardless of the situation, and why that is?

 

[mm1sub]

I am one of the people who trades by book value. That is why I am usually asking for price checks on here. I am just more interested in making a trade. I just traded some basketball cards that I am pretty sure had a sell value more than a book value. But the cards I list for a trade are being traded for a reason. It is because I do not want them. I have even been to shops where the owner is telling me how much he could sell the card for on Ebay. If that is the case then sell it on Ebay. Another one was telling how valuble the card would be if it was graded. Then get it graded. Maybe I am just different. I have no problem trading an expensive card for a bunch of less expensive cards. But I also get a lot of these cards fairly cheap. So I am not out a bunch of money. But in the end I really feel that a card is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it. I have told more than one person that the last time I checked "the book" was not buying anything.

 

[chief wahoo]

I agree with the sentiments above. If it's a low end trade (base, inserts, or older more seasoned sets) I'm fine trading based on bv.

But with all the crazy volatility in the card market over the past couple of years, you have to be mindful of eBay sales value.

 

[7timecy]

Part of the problem with not solely going one way or another is the consistency. There are traders on here that when it is in there favor they want to go with SV but when it isn't they want to go BV. This is where some traders are having the problem including myself. Most good trade partners try to keep as consistent as possible.

 

[Mike121]

Another one was telling how valuble the card would be if it was graded. Then get it graded.

I've seen this argument before, and I never understood it either, especially where trades are concerned. My card would be worth more if it were graded too, so let's just assume they're both not graded...since they're both not graded!

I like your reasoning behind trading using BV. Cards you don't want are less valuable to you than cards you want. When trading for Tony Parker cards I certainly carry that mindset too. At the same time, I do try my best not to do something too crazy if I can help it. Heck, I've traded Lord knows how many times, for TP9 cards, without ever knowing the BV or the SV of the card I'm getting or trading away.

 

[rajah23]

I trade by BV but I'm not against trading by SV if it is justified. There are a lot of people on eBay selling cards looking to make a quick buck so they jack the price up. I won't trade with someone that tries to get $5 in trade value for a junk wax common just because someone on eBay is selling it for this much. No thank you! I'm not saying eBay is not a good resource but with all things you have to put some thought into any transaction whether a trade or buying. Sometimes you have to respectfully decline a transaction if it doesn't work for both sides.

 

[Mike121]

Part of the problem with not solely going one way or another is the consistency. There are traders on here that when it is in there favor they want to go with SV but when it isn't they want to go BV. This is where some traders are having the problem including myself. Most good trade partners try to keep as consistent as possible.

I think this hit the nail square on the head! It's certainly not just traders here. I've seen this so many times, on every forum I frequent. Heck, I may have done this a time or two! Admittedly, I'm probably not the most consistent. If I had to choose one, it'd be SV, but I'm usually fine with BV in most cases, or just not using either one and just saying "that seems fine to me" sometimes too.

 

[zack783]

I think a little bit of both is best. I like to trade BV for BV for pretty much anything $10-$15 and under. It's a lot of work figuring out SV for cards that low in value and in general, Beckett does a good job. It's unlikely that someone will VASTLY under or over-value a card with a BV under $15. That said, it's probably best to look into the sale value of good cards of GOAT type players (Jordan, Trout, Griffey, Brady, etc) before trading on book value. Example: I just sold a Tim Tebow SSP featuring Tom Brady for more than 10x book value. Another seller messaged me on eBay and asked how much I got for it- and let me know he just sold his for just under BV. I think he just listed it based on book value and didn't look into the card enough. I don't want to be on either end of a trade like that.

Disclaimer- I am speaking in favor of Beckett pricing only in the online format, which they are getting better at updating regularly. The print magazines are much more susceptible to inaccurate valuations due to the delayed nature of printed media.

 

[David657]

Part of the problem with not solely going one way or another is the consistency. There are traders on here that when it is in there favor they want to go with SV but when it isn't they want to go BV. This is where some traders are having the problem including myself. Most good trade partners try to keep as consistent as possible.

I think you hit the nail on the head....consistency! I recently had an offer made which seemed fair....then it changed to bv, I countered with bin pricing which was similar to original offer and the person decided that wasn't "fair". I also struggle with bv's when a set/cards aren't listed because they aren't relevant or valuable so then people infer that its rare and/or valuable...ie someone told me a set was priced at 15 but wanted 50 since I asked about it (no other reason)

 

[7timecy]

I think this hit the nail square on the head! It's certainly not just traders here. I've seen this so many times, on every forum I frequent. Heck, I may have done this a time or two! Admittedly, I'm probably not the most consistent. If I had to choose one, it'd be SV, but I'm usually fine with BV in most cases, or just not using either one and just saying "that seems fine to me" sometimes too.

The probably I see with SV is you can't just get one price, I think if both parties can agree on a # then fine. What I have seen is you do a search and come up with a # and then the other party does a search and their # is completely different and again it all depends on what side of the trade goes in their favor.

 

[Mike121]

The probably I see with SV is you can't just get one price, I think if both parties can agree on a # then fine. What I have seen is you do a search and come up with a # and then the other party does a search and their # is completely different and again it all depends on what side of the trade goes in their favor.

I've seen that too. What I prefer is to take the last 3, or so, sales and average them out. The exception would be if one of those is extremely high, or low, compared to the others. Then I'd prefer to swap that one out with another, if possible. You're right, though. It is tricky to find something that matches, perfectly, even that way.

 

[SymphonicMetal]

I always trade by current BV. If a card is really volatile in value, I'll ask for the current OPG price here ot not trade it (or for it) at all.

 

[anglinomics]

I almost always put the bv on trades that I make. And my lists have bv listed with the cards. If I ever would trade for $100 card, I would check ebay. If there is a big difference in cash value, I still use bv, but I would want a premium if I had the higher cash value. For example, If a card is $100, I might want $150 in bv. And I get a lot of offers from people wanting to trade up, that it gets frustrating. If I have a valuable card, I would like to trade for something similar in value. Like 1 card for 1 card. With that said, I rarely ever trade for big cards. And I don't have a problem trading up most of the time, but I might expect a bonus.

 

[cornwellfamily]

I use to go solely by bv but ran into a lot of traders that only go by sv. The main place I find this is at card shows. I would trade for book value on card sites and then get to a show and dealers always went to the phone and looked up the card on ebay before making me an offer. Luckily my son is always with me and he's smart enough to check the ebay prices over a couple of month period instead of what one guy got the card for in a late night steal. I've gotten better and now before a show my son will look at prices on ebay for all the cards I take. It seems that the only place I see book and sale values typically match up is graded vintage otherwise it seems to be a free for all. (I also try to go to ebay when it comes to low numbered cards as Beckett never has those prices)

 

[Shortbus12]

I know I'm an anomaly, but I've gotten to the point that I don't care about BV or SV. All I care about is making a trade. I have 10-20,000 extra cards that I just want to get rid of them for what I need. I had another trader tell me years ago, they're just paper and it kind of resonated with me. He's right. It is just paper and its supposed to be a fun hobby. That's why I've traded $30-40 in favor of other people, because we were both happy. I know not everyone is that way.

I don't like buying cards, but I went to buy some from a local guy a couple of years ago. He kept mentioning that eBay says they're worth this much, or eBay says they're worth that much. I told him, eBay doesn't determine value of the cards, Beckett does. He didn't know who they were. Some people are just in it for the money and it kind of makes the hobby less fun. I have no problem with buying or trading off BV, but SV means nothing to me. As Bryon said, if you want that much money for it, then sell it. It just won't be to me.

 

[David657]

The probably I see with SV is you can't just get one price, I think if both parties can agree on a # then fine. What I have seen is you do a search and come up with a # and then the other party does a search and their # is completely different and again it all depends on what side of the trade goes in their favor.

The probably I see with SV is you can't just get one price, I think if both parties can agree on a # then fine. What I have seen is you do a search and come up with a # and then the other party does a search and their # is completely different and again it all depends on what side of the trade goes in their favor.

I had a weird encounter with someone I successfully traded with a couple of times. He proposed another trade, I looked up the cards he wanted. 1 was a common and the other was a sp (no bv and only a single sale of 50 and an article saying why it was "valuable") I informed him that it wasn't a common and that we'd have to figure something else out. (I wasn't expecting 50 for it, but was explaining the reasoning behind it) his first response was "but it completes the set!" When trying to figure out an amicle trade he got mad and stated that he just wouldn't complete the set then. That encounter was the first thing I thought of when thinking lack of consistency. Lol

 

[metsman1986]

I do a little bit of both depending on the card/cards involved...........If Beckett kept up with sales data better I would go with just BV............I think they are doing a better job of it though...............Like one person mentioned, I get a bunch of offers for the other trader wanting to trade up on a hot or valuable card............