I don’t think “avoid” is at all correct. For those who want it, the pwcc (or goldin or eBay, or whatever) vault can be a very solid way to safely store cards while legally avoiding state sales tax. Think of the vault as a safety deposit box located in a state that does not charge sales tax (in PWCC’s case, Oregon). Your cards will be sent there and stored, and no sales tax will be charged so long as the card remains there for a certain period of time (not sure exact length but my guess is at least one year). Presumably the card is safe from fire, water, theft, etc. I am sure you will have to pay a monthly or annual fee to store the card in the vault. There may be some fee-break to you if you decide to sell any cards held in the vault with the vault owner/AH; at the least, you don’t have to pay the shipping and deal with the logistics of sending the card(s) to the AH, since they already have it/them in their vault. Personally, I have no issue with vaults, including PWCC’s, and I think that for some, particularly those “investing” in cards, the vault is a great tool.
Although I consider my collection assets, and I fully view them as investments, I have never used a vault. First, I want to hold the cards myself, look at them when I want, and sell/trade then quickly without logistical issue. Second, I don’t believe that any AH with a vault is the proper AH to sell cards in my collection, so I see no personal benefit on that front; my collection is all old and rare and PWCC, Goldin, and EBay tend to attract more shinny and modern stuff. Third, I just don’t feel comfortable trusting anyone else (or at least these options) with the care of my large store of value (my collection); let alone do I want to pay a fee to do so. That is not a knock on them specifically, but I like to control my own destiny and I think I would fell that way about most outfits other than banks and security companies.
|