Posted By:
boxingcardmanBut always fun to rehash on a lazy Friday afternoon.
The first place to start is knowledge and appreciation of the items themselves. If you learn the cards and learn the game(s) you will buy nice things you will enjoy and that in itself is a great thing.
If I was looking to invest money in cards on a strict profit-related basis, I would look for cards that derive their values from who is depicted and what sets they are in, not from condition, and would decide whether to go for quick scores or longer term appreciation.
The problem with so-called condition rarities, IMO, is that you are one slab from losing money. Low pop is great until it falls one card over the line to hi pop. I also would prefer to have my money spread in ten mid-grade first-rank prewar HOFers than one high grade star or a few high grade commons. The market for Ty Cobb and Walter Johnson is a blue chip one; the market for Joe Shlabotnik in an 8 is a much thinner one.
I'd avoid most anything postwar since it can all be readily be purchased on Ebay; not much hope for price gains there except as an overall market increases.
I'd look for issues that are underappreciated right now. If every 1920s Ruth is $500 except for strip cards at $100, I'd opt for 5-10 strip cards.
I would look to scarcer (regional) issues over mainstream issues if looking at postwar cards. My experience has been that a tough regional of a HOFer or popular player has a ready audience even when that same player's mainstream card can be a tough sell.
If the idea is quick gain versus long term appreciation, I would be looking to get into auction bulk lots, break them and sell them. The auctioneers routinely cluster together all sorts of stuff that would and should sell for more, so there is a great opportunity to break it up.
If you are really investment-oriented, you need to look away from baseball cards and into other sports and nonsports. The gains to be had in those areas are oftentimes much greater than in baseball cards.
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