Down market? Economy effecting the hobby?

[Hawaiian BamBam]

is it just me, but as a seller i have never sold so many $1.00 autos(never before had good autos sell for only $1.00) and on the other hand have never bought so many autos for $1.00 (never before got so many good deals on ebay!) what gives? the economy? bad time to sell cards? great time to buy cards?

 

[Jeffo65]

Overproduction for one thing

 

[Myerburg311]

no one has money.. great buyers market

 

[Fatboycards]

Just like everyone I think the economy has hit the hobby hard, plus I think the greed that the card companies have exhibited also has effected the downturn. Most collector cant afford over priced pack and boxes. And Jeff is spot on as well we are seeing a repeat of the late 80s and early 90s of overproduction.

 

[basebal1fan]

Those are all factors, but the fact that many card shops are going out of business is also a major factor. I was probably most intently focused on collecting a few years ago, when I could go into my local shop and spend countless hours talking about cards and buying cards ect. And at that same time, due to my interest in the hobby, I bought many cards online. But when my local shop closed, my interest in the hobby dwindled and with it, the desire to buy cards online or elsewhere. In fact, I probably wouldn't even collect cards if it weren't for The Bench and other online communities. I'm sure some people had the same problems as me, and just stopped buying cards due to a loss of interest, whether it be because of money or otherwise.

 

[Tim Carroll]

Supply & demand.

Every single year, hundreds of thousands of autographs of some Joe Schmo that will never make the big leagues are produced. Some will be kept by prospectors. Others will be sold to set builders. After holding them for 4-5 years.......well, let's just say that there are more 2002 Jorge Padilla Autographs floating around than 2002 Joe Mauer.

As the years go on, expect those $1 Autos to turn into $.75 autographs.


Tim

 

[timtomadp301]

I've run into people willing to spend more lately than before. There were bagwell autos I was paying $40-50 a couple months ago which are now selling between $60-80. I don't know if this is a slight upturn because of christmas, or if people are being more selective with what they buy.

I'm guessing its an isolated thing, but I have also noticed nicer cards hitting the market lately that have not been available in the recent past.

Dan

 

[Hawaiian BamBam]

thanks all for your input. tim carroll, the problem is the $1.00 autos are "joe schmoe" the $1.00 autos are of retired greats and current superstars.

 

[Hawaiian BamBam]

oh and yes, it is a great buyers market on the bay, but REALLY sucks as a seller

 

[David K.]

Great time to buy on ebay! Best regards, David

 

[RGBII]

My partner and I were discussing this very subject
yesterday after the worst show I have ever had the
task of setting.

We made table fee at 2:00 pm after 5 hours of
staring at other dealers and coffe runs. The only
way that was accomplished was by selling a
BGS 9.5 Strasburg National Sports Collectors
Convention card for $60.00.

The one hour + one-way commute, packing, pricing
and exhibiting durations are completely lost on the
buyers that do drop by the tables and haggle.

I'm not going to let this screed turn into a whine fest
(sellers should know exactly what they're getting into,
I certainly count myself among those) but the
economy is certainly not the lone answer here.

eBay, online trading, the downtrend in the Hobby
itself?

I don't know . . .

but I do know that I'd like to see it change, the
sooner . . .

the better.

Collect Hard!,
RGBII

 

[Hawaiian BamBam]

im torn both ways, as a buyer, its great, i got a hall of famker game used card for my pc on ebay for 69 cents! on the other hand an auto i paid $20.00 for a couple years ago sold for 99 cents......so not sure if im happy or sad with the economy. i think a happy median(and correct me if i am wrong) or one way to make a negative a positive, is sell my cards on ebay and use that money to fund my pc? that way i dont look at it as i lost $19.00 on this card, but, hey i can use this money(even if its just a couple of dollars) to buy some cards that ill add to my pc.

 

[abeabe]

I'm not sure why anyone would buy packs who dosent want base cards. Triple Threads are $175 a box, which gets you 2 packs. You can buy the best hits for same price as that and your favorite players for a fraction of that. My current ebay auction shows exactly that. I have 2 big hits, one #'ed /9 and the other a triple auto/GU starting bid $12.99.

 

[Tim Carroll]

Retired greats and current superstars for $1? Are you talking about single card auctions, or bulk lots that have 300-400 autos in them? Either way, I watch ebay quite often for random autograph auctions.....while decent autographs can be had below $5 - I have never seen $1 superstar or retired greats autos.


Tim

 

[BiggioDiogu759]

No one wants to pay for cards anymore..They all want them cheap as they can.

 

[brewerfan34]

Overproduction for one thing

I agree it seems like the amount of cards out there for how expensive it is to break boxes/packs is out of whack, it is a much better deal to buy a large lot of cards and then make trades out those. Why not buy a large lot of This Day in History inserts, for less than $5.00 delivered, with some duplicates and trade to finish the set?

In fact, I probably wouldn't even collect cards if it weren't for The Bench and other online communities.

Also a good point. Trading here is alot like when I was a kid. It is fun to see member's collections and interact with others from different walks of life and backgrounds.

 

[Hawaiian BamBam]

they were single auctions, nowadays you can get decent autos for under $5.00 on ebay. 2 years ago, they were easily $20.00 autos, case in point. i just sold a brett anderson team usa auto jersey rc on ebay for 99 cents.

 

[BiggioDiogu759]

Who is Brett Anderson

 

[Hawaiian BamBam]

brett anderson is the ace (#1 starter) on the oakland a's pitching rotation.(therir best pitcher going into 2011) i sold another card exactly like this on ebay for $30.00 two years ago, another for $20.00 last year, another for $9.00 earlier this year and one today for 99 cents...see the trend on card values on ebay?

 

[BiggioDiogu759]

Oh ok...Sorry I dont follow prospects