Why are Autos so cheap on EBAY right now?

[Hawaiian BamBam]

Why are autos so cheap on ebay right now? as a seller on ebay i can barely sell superstar autos for $5.00! autos like ryan zimemrman, francisco liriano, clayton kershaw and hanley ramirez all sell for $5-8 dollars! a johan santana auto picture just sold for 99 cents..yes johan santana! even the hottest players in the game, matt kemp and jose reyes autos are being sold on ebay for less than $10 dollars! what is going on in the hobby in regards to autographs! i think it is the bad economy that is causing this,or maybe the autograph market is crashing? as a seller it sucks, but as a buyer its great! your thoughts please.

 

[cardboardcrazy]

IMO it is the amount of auto's being put into products. They are flooding the market.

 

[David K.]

The law of supply and demand...no demand.....so bargain prices for autos! Best regards, David

 

[mintman2]

Agree with all.

Market saturation + bad economy = lower prices.

 

[cdahlk2001]

ebay is a buyers market. if you go to a shop youd pay 25-50 for an auto. is the photo PSA? if not its just "word" that its good. cards all depend if band-aid or on card. what set and so on....

 

[mikefri]

They are just leveling to their real worth like all other cards have done.

 

[yankfancali]

I agree theres just so many autos anymore. The best autos are still usually expensive, you mention clayton kershaw, his 06 bowman chrome auto is still expensive

 

[greyminis]

Too much supply for sure. That doesn't seem like it's going to change as every release has a number of parallels and an autograph checklist. I can't think of a player whose autograph I've wanted that I haven't been able to pick up at a decent price if I just stay disciplined. And ebay is, for the most part, a buyer's market unless you happen upon a tough card that more than one collector is searching for.

Beyond that, why pay $400-$500 for a Bryce Harper autograph when clearly he's going to sign a ton and at some point or other you'll get one for $100. Look at what Strasburg was going for during the frenzy. And now you can pick up one of his T206 framed on card autographs for $150. Better than paying $1000 for his A&G autograph if you ask me.

 

[Texas Brave13]

I think these card companies are creating so many AU's and GU's and subsets of subsets, or paralleled of this and that, that the buyer can afford to be chosey and get what he thinks is the best AU for his buck.

 

[Ajax44]

RC's were the way to go, then they started with insets, then numbered inserts, then game used, then autos, then game used auto, then RC game used auto, then patch auto, then 1/1, then printing plates, then $200 packs....................

Oversaturation. An auto'd card today is like pulling an Ultra insert in 1994.