For what it's worth.

[Jcfowler6]

If an older gentleman had a collection from his youth and he offered you the opportunity to purchase it for "What you think a fair price is".

How would you determine that price?

Keep in mind he has no knowledge of the hobby he would just know that there is some value there. And he is 80+ years of age.

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[shernan30]

Honesty goes a long way. Explain to him the value you see and tell him what you would be willing to pay.


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[vintagetoppsguy]

I would determine a retail price based on condition and then pay half that.

For example, if the cards have a book price of $10K, but are in Ex/Mt condition (I generally price Ex/Mt cards @ 50-60% of BV), then the retail price would be $5K-$6K. Let’s split it and just say $5500. Then I would be willing to pay half that, which is $2750.

[auggiedoggy]

Honesty goes a long way. Explain to him the value you see and tell him what you would be willing to pay.


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+1

[bn2cardz]

Honesty goes a long way. Explain to him the value you see and tell him what you would be willing to pay.


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+1

Similar to what is seen on Pawn Stars (even if it is faked) they tell the person what the value may be sold retail and then offer a price lower explaining that they will have to go through the work to gain their money back.

If you are buying for your own collection offer what you are comfortable with, similar to what you would put in as your max bid. If you are buying for resale go about it with as much honesty as possible so they don't feel burned by you.

[vintagetoppsguy]

If you are buying for your own collection offer what you are comfortable with, similar to what you would put in as your max bid. If you are buying for resale go about it with as much honesty as possible so they don't feel burned by you.

Yes, agreed.

My repsonse above was based as if I were buying for resale. I usually offer about half what I think I can get. I may have to sit on it a while and have money tied up. If I were buying for my PC, I would probably offer in the 70% range of what I think it would be worth.

[jhs5120]

I was once in this scenario with several raw sets (some incomplete). I explained how I would sell them, how much it would cost to complete the incomplete ones and I gave them a fair estimate of what someone could make off of them with a little effort. Once we established how much they were worth (about $9,000), I offered $6,000.

I think we were both happy with it.

[bbcard1]

I think there are a few factors, but I agree that honesty is the best policy. I have had the opportunity to fleece folks before, but it is not in my DNA.

1) Is it something you are actively seeking, eager to buy and would put in your collection without any intent to resell? In this relatively rare case, I would be willing to pay as much as 90% of what I would expect to pay after scouring ebay, shows, Net 54, etc. If you are lucky, there will one or two cards in the collection like this. Why not? You were looking for them anyway and you get a little discount over what you would have paid.

2) Is it something your would like to have and is desirable to keep and could be immediately liquidated at or near retail. I would probably pay 65-75% of retail. Exceptionally high grade cards fall into this category.

3) Is if ok stuff, like 1950s stars and commons mix that is sellable, but has to be discounted? 35-50% is plenty.

4) the dregs…the stuff you really don't want and are hard to sell, I would figure at 25% or retail or less. You should get it at a price where at worst you can stick it on Net54, get an immediate sell, and make 20% off of any day of the week.

It's sounds complicated the the final percentage really depends on desirably and need and if you are reasonably familiar with the hobby isn't that difficult to figure out.

[SmokyBurgess]

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

Golden Rule (Matthew 7:12)

Pretty good advice.

[vintagetoppsguy]

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

Golden Rule (Matthew 7:12)

Pretty good advice.

Yup. Could be used in a lot of recent threads.

[6-4-3memorabilia]

I just had a similar experience. A person my Dad works with Father died recently at the age of 97, he had thousands upon thousands of cards. She doesn't know anything about them so she sent a few off to be graded. She had some decent items, bunch of T206's (commons) that were graded between 2's and 3's, a 68 Mantle, and a Ryan Rookie (only graded a 3) I bought 5 t206 cards from her all Beckett graded 3's for $30 each, gave her $125 for the Ryan, and $140 for the Mantle becket graded a 6, she has a ton of other stuff so I am going to buy most of what she has. I probably spent close to what they are worth but didn't want to rip the lady off since she does work with my Dad

[I Only Smoke 4 the Cards]

If an older gentleman had a collection from his youth and he offered you the opportunity to purchase it for "What you think a fair price is".

How would you determine that price?

Keep in mind he has no knowledge of the hobby he would just know that there is some value there. And he is 80+ years of age.

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I am a visual learner so I would probably print out the references I was using and sit down and talk about it. That way I could show him what I thought it was worth and why i thought my offer was fair. Depending on what was there you may even want to suggest that individual cards be auctioned with you buying the others. Good luck.

[calvindog]

This is a funny thread: a discussion about how we would treat an ignorant stranger when it comes to valuing their collection they wish to sell. But half the time when we try to sell cards to other collectors out here, we're given offers that are less than 1/2 of what the card is actually worth -- and the sellers aren't ignorant.

[Jcfowler6]

This is a funny thread: a discussion about how we would treat an ignorant stranger when it comes to valuing their collection they wish to sell. But half the time when we try to sell cards to other collectors out here, we're given offers that are less than 1/2 of what the card is actually worth -- and the sellers aren't ignorant.



I think it's interesting but within the hobby with those that know what's going on it's to be expected to negotiate prices.



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[ullmandds]

This is a funny thread: a discussion about how we would treat an ignorant stranger when it comes to valuing their collection they wish to sell. But half the time when we try to sell cards to other collectors out here, we're given offers that are less than 1/2 of what the card is actually worth -- and the sellers aren't ignorant.

Agreed...also regarding the lenox/ebay debacle. People are funny!

[Jcfowler6]

It's funny that one of my son's vocabulary words today was - integrity. I think that's the answer to the question. Integrity.


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[I Only Smoke 4 the Cards]

It's funny that one of my son's vocabulary words today was - integrity. I think that's the answer to the question. Integrity.


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One of my favorite quotes is "integrity it what you do when no one is looking."

[Wite3]

Story Time:

About 15 years ago I was in Las Vegas at an annual meeting of a baseball collector's group, OBC (hey guys). Many of the guys would go out on Saturday to golf and then meet up for an early dinner/late lunch somewhere. I don't golf so I generally scouted the baseball card shops or shows happening. This particular time, there was a mall show and my girlfriend at the time was more than happy to spend time at the mall shopping while I walked around. The show was a typical mall show with little in the way of vintage. I think I had bought a Bell Brand from 1961 and a couple of '71 high numbers. As I was walking around one table that had mostly newer stuff and unopened, an elderly gentleman walked up with a plastic shopping bag containing two small three ring binders. He spent about 2-3 minutes trying to get the man behind the glass cases to speak to him and when he finally did he showed him one binder full of late early '90s Nolan Ryans and Pirate cards. The dealer literally told him "I am not interested in that junk" and turned his back to talk to the dealer behind him.

As this happened I noticed the binder he did not show looked like it had a couple of older programs in it. As he walked away from the show, obviously upset, I asked if I could see the programs. He said sure and we sat at a bench in the mall. He pulled them out...2 programs from the 1947 and 1948 Pirates. Both really nice. We chatted about Forbes field and how I was a Phillies fan. He then pulled out an autograph book full of autographs that he got from when he was kid to the time he moved away from Pittsburgh to relocate to Las Vegas...Wagner, Clemente, Stargell, Kiner, etc...all there, all nice. He said he was not selling that but he liked to show it off. He also had a newspaper clipping in the front of the book of him as a kid about how he collected bottles to recycle for his scout troop and was an avid baseball card collector. I asked if he had any of the old cards still. He pulled out the binder with the 90s "junk" and flipped to the back. In pages were 1941 Playballs...lots of them. We flipped through the first two pages and I noticed a Hubbell and Greenberg. He asked if I was interested in buying some or all of them.

I told him I would buy all he had but I only had $50 on me but I could get $300 from the ATM at the mall. I told him they were certainly worth more since he had about 70 of them and at least 2 Hall of Famers.

He said if I sat with him and told him how I became a Phillies fan living in Los Angeles, he would take my $300 and give me the Playballs. I sat with him for about 40 minutes talking baseball, kids, cards, and life. He walked me to the ATM, took out the pages of Playballs and handed them to me and I gave him $300. I walked him to the bus stop (he insisted taking the bus home even though I offered to drive).

I walked back to the show, sat down on the bench and took inventory of the cards...72 cards for $300...the 1941 Playball Set. The last page contained the Williams and Dimaggio. A complete set...I was nearly comatose when my girlfriend came up and said she found a great deal on a pair of shoes...I told her I bought a set of cards and how much it was worth, she nearly fainted.

BTW, I borrowed a beckett from the dealer who blew the man off and showed him what I had bought. He asked where I found that, I told him an elderly gentleman with some binders in a plastic bag sold them to me...he asked for the beckett back and told me to walk away.

The OBC guys at lunch all were floored when I walked in with the set and told the story.

I called Earl from the hotel that night and told him I could not take the set for just $300 and he told me that sitting with him was the highlight of his week and he would much rather have the set in "the hands of a true fan of baseball and cards than a person who could not be bothered to give an old man five minutes of his time."

I was very happy and still am with this transaction.

Earl was 81 years old. We exchanged phone numbers and although I spoke to him a few times in the next couple of years, we never saw each other again.

To answer the original poster: Respect...it really comes down to that. If both parties are happy with the deal, then it is a great deal. No matter the value. My time with Earl + $300 was equal to a vg-ex 1941 Playball set.

Joshua

PS Still have the original set. Love it to death.

[the 'stache]

Interesting question, Jon.

In order to determine a fair price, I'd use Card Target, and for any cards not appearing there, I'd look at the recent sale history on Ebay.

For somebody not familiar with the hobby, I'd take as much time as necessary to walk him through each card. I'd show him the results of my research, and ask for his input. I'd then make a fair offer.

I'd be curious about the history of the collection. If he knows nothing about the hobby, how did he come to have them?

Since they are a personal collection, I'd likely keep them for myself. I'm sure they'd have a nice resale value, but some cards are meant to be kept together.

The bottom line, though, is that I would treat him with respect.

[freakhappy]

Great story, Joshua...very enjoyable read.

I think your story was filled with a lot of valuable tidbits. Having integrity and respect for people and the hobby sure do go a long way. And I believe if we do follow certain guidelines in life and in this hobby, we will be rewarded for it :)

[shernan30]

Awesome story Joshua. It's nice to hear there are still good people in the world.


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[Jcfowler6]

Joshua,

Thanks for sharing that story. I am sure the experience is far more valuable that the cards.


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