why are autographs going for so cheap!

[hawaiian bam bam]

why are autographs going so cheap on EBAY? It seems like i am the only one in the entire hobby overpaying for autographs on ebay because as im listing/selling my autographs on ebay, im averaging about 20-30% of what i paid for them! as i buyer its great, but as a seller im not getting even close to what i paid for them.for example an autograph i bought on here for almost $200 sold for auction at $40! i should change my user id to "buy high sell low!"

[egbeachley]

You bought fakes and were shilled in the process?

[Republicaninmass]

Autographed gum cards are through the roof! Maybe give an example?

[Sladge34]

As Chris mentioned in an earlier thread.. Gfa autographs on ebay are almost all fake and selling for dirt cheap. Rbisportsinc and a few others have plenty of these items for sale. Like in earlier threads, it's amazing ebay or the FBI does not step in and stop this.

[theshleps]

I am presently selling alot of multisigned cards on ebay from the 1950's-1970's. I have for the most part been disappointed in the prices (seller is batrachel). I think the buy it now prices can be so inflated that most of us that sell at auction only get a small fraction of that price. So if we bugh via buy it now we can be disappointed. Also depending on the item there are only a small number of interested parties.
Another factor is most of us don't have the time to scour ebay for items we need. I was selling some Jewish items for instance and I first emailed all the Jewish buyers and they did much better
Nice vintage HOF items are doing better than ever. So are 1933's and tobacco signed cards. Other things may be taking a hit

[egri]

Autographed gum cards are through the roof! Maybe give an example?

Ted, are you noticing that across the board, or just for HOFers/tough signers?

[MacDice]

Great topic. Here are my opinions as a lower level budget collector…I think that it is several factors why autograph prices are. The economy has been difficult for a lot of us these last few years and there is a lot of autograph stuff out there. Since the 80’s a ton of stuff has been signed. Sellers are often trying to generate money because they are trying to fund another project or liquidating which gives the buyer some negotiation leverage. The number of collectors is also getting smaller; the high end stuff buyers are usually “older” collectors who are starting to look more at retirement and fixed income planning. And collectors are looking at long-term ROI. I am working on a 1957 set and I often struggle do I really want to spend $200-$300 on a common player who died in the 1970’s versus buying several signed HOF items in that same price range. ¬ I know the 1957 card may be harder to find but so will be another buyer at some point. I also collect a lot of signed Seattle Mariners stuff that I know has very little value thus I refuse to pay much for it. Not going to pay a player $5 to sign an 1987 Mariners card when I can get Wade Boggs to sign a card for $5

[Republicaninmass]

Ted, are you noticing that across the board, or just for HOFers/tough signers?


I havent been following too many common players aside from 52 topps. So mostly the tougher and hof'ers. Have you been seeing a decline in the 57s? It seems like lately I am outbid on everything.


The cards I was told I was "trying to retire on" all sold at asking or higher on ebay except for

Hoak died in 1969 priced now at $350, us_caine sold a fake for 70$, no others have come to market

Spooner now priced at $300, very weak one sold for $229, no others have come to market since the other one in worse shape I sold for $300

Say what you want about price history, but since cardtarget sold out, they have stopped pricing autographed cards. This was a huge resource for pricing data, and I think it helped "stabilize" prices at least for newcomers. There are so few of these tough signers, and hof'er to go around, it is pretty much buy it when you can. If there is a buy it now, be it overprices, most collectors will pull the trigger. With auctions, I guess you never know who is looking, or has the items on their email list.

[perezfan]

If the original Poster bought from dealers, and is now selling in true auction format, that probably explains the losses. That's just the way it is, and applies to all phases of memorabilia (not limited to autographs).

Of course there are a few exceptions, but overall you're going to take a bath on most items. If I were selling, I would switch to a Buy It Now format, with "Best Offer" option. It's pretty risky otherwise...

[egri]

I havent been following too many common players aside from 52 topps. So mostly the tougher and hof'ers. Have you been seeing a decline in the 57s? It seems like lately I am outbid on everything.


The cards I was told I was "trying to retire on" all sold at asking or higher on ebay except for

Hoak died in 1969 priced now at $350, us_caine sold a fake for 70$, no others have come to market

Spooner now priced at $300, very weak one sold for $229, no others have come to market since the other one in worse shape I sold for $300


Yes and no. The February before last, and again last summer at around this time, Jim Stinson put up a huge lot of signed 53s, and I was surprised at how low a lot of the tough signers and high numbers went. Then in December, he put up a trio of tough ones (Hoak, Drews, Hal Rice) and they all sold at or above what I was expecting.

Edit: It might have had something to do with the number of cards he had; the first two times, he had a few dozen cards listed; the third time it was just the three.

[bbcard1]

There is a considerable premium attached to getting a living player to sign your item in your presence at a show. It is the rough equal of new car smell.

[mrmopar]

Honestly, my impression is that your buying habits were impulsive. You obviously bought what you wanted when something came up and seemed to do very little shopping around. You also changed focus several times and tried to sell stuff too quickly. You have also changed your seller ID several times. That might make it hard for repeat buyers to find you again.

For that matter, I swear you were going by another name on one of the other boards too. I can't remember it now, but I want to say it started with a H. What gives there, as your profile says Al here.

[Scott Garner]

If the original Poster bought from dealers, and is now selling in true auction format, that probably explains the losses. That's just the way it is, and applies to all phases of memorabilia (not limited to autographs).

Of course there are a few exceptions, but overall you're going to take a bath on most items. If I were selling, I would switch to a Buy It Now format, with "Best Offer" option. It's pretty risky otherwise...


+1

[brooklynbaseball]

Prices on the few categories I collect have indeed gone down considerably in the past couple of years. The hof plaque postcards have mostly bottomed out and as a result the harder to find cards show up less frequently. I think the ridiculous fees the newer inductees are charging also is having an effect on the amount of collectors willing to consider continuing on. The Perez Steele sets have mostly maintained their value, and I do see many more items coming to auction. Lastly, aside from the higher end baseballs, Mickey Mantle items seem to have taken a 25-35% hit. The plethora of counterfeits, a perceived "glut" of items, and a general disenchantment with the opinions of the TPA's might also be having an effect. I can now pick up many Mantle items at about 60-70% of what I have paid before.

[hawaiian bam bam]

Thank you all for yours advice, I appreciate it. I think the problem is auctions on eBay. I think as mentioned here , listing fixed price listings with a best offer option might be the best solution so I dont get shocked when the auction ends too low and maybe only run auctions only for items i know will sell at a decent price. I think also the bad economy must play a role as well. Thank you again.

[hawaiian bam bam]

As Chris mentioned in an earlier thread.. Gfa autographs on ebay are almost all fake and selling for dirt cheap. Rbisportsinc and a few others have plenty of these items for sale. Like in earlier threads, it's amazing ebay or the FBI does not step in and stop this.

what is/are gfa autographs? (i really have never heard of that or know what it is) thanks

[awz50]

what is/are gfa autographs? (i really have never heard of that or know what it is) thanks

There are hundreds of fake mantles on eBay with a GFA certification

[thetruthisoutthere]

what is/are gfa autographs? (i really have never heard of that or know what it is) thanks

Which GFA are you referring to?

If you're referring to Guaranteed Forensic Authenticators (Stephen Rocchi), stay away.

Stephen Rocchi (GFA) took over "authenticating" duties for John House, CEO of AtAuction in certing thousands upon thousands of Mickey Mantle, Joe DiMaggio, Willie Mays, Ted Williams, Whitey Ford, Billy Martin, etc. forgeries.

Rocchi and GFA assumed "authenticating" duties in Sept. 2011 for AtAuction after John House had employed Chris "I Never Saw An Autograph I Didn't Like" Morales, Ted Taylor (TTA/Stat Authentic) and Drew Max (AAU) for years.

I have yet to see one (not one!!!) Mickey Mantle, Joe DiMaggio, Willie Mays, Ted Williams, etc. autograph "authenticated" by Rocchi that is actually authentic.

Not one since Sept. 2011.

[T206Collector]

In my opinion, a signed tobacco/gum card from the player's playing days is far more interesting than a signed HOF plaque, or a Callahan or Fleer or Golden Press, TCMA, Perez-Steele, etc.

It is only natural that as more money moves in the direction of signed cards from playing days that the balance of the signed stuff take a hit. I won't even consider a signed item unless it is on a tobacco or gum card.

[Republicaninmass]

Agreed, I think we are going to see another 2-3x increase for some of the tougher signatures in the early 50s and pre war. Advanced collectors can put almost any set together in a week over eBay. It's only natural they search for a more difficult challenge

[jimjim]

I think a lot of the problem is that most collectors under the age of 35-40 are more focused on current players. They have no problem spending $100 on a Carlos Correa autograph (price that was charged today at Tristar show) instead of buying vintage. It is pretty insane how much these new guys and new HOF inductees charge, but people seem ok with paying the high prices.