This Probably Won't Go Anywhere, But...

[jingram058]

Why pay for the "privilege" of making someone rich by grading your cards? After listening to all the BS associated with grading, the time, the money, the anxiety, the annoyances and irritations, why do it?

You know your cards better than some evaluator.

If for some reason I were to decide to sell any of my high-value cards; Ruth, Gehrig, Cobb, DiMaggio, Williams, Mantle, etc., etc. etc., I would ask what any like card(s) would sell for, graded or otherwise. If someone doesn't buy it or them, guess what? I don't give a flying f!

Of course I keep my high value items either in a professional grade safe in my house or the bank safe deposit box.

My wife and daughter know what is in my collection, and like me, believe that grading is nothing more than a means to make someone rich.

I don't want my cards encased in ridiculous slabs. I don't care what someone else's opinion(s) of my cards are. If you want to buy them, you'll pay up, or take a walk.

[NonSportDaniel]

Grading is a way to make someone rich...you. It has been proven time and again that graded cards sell for more than raw. There's no point in fighting that whether or not you agree with it.

Do what you want and let others do what they want. Easy peasy.

[ocjack]

I believe what he is saying is that he will price his cards at what he believes the graded value would be based upon his own evaluation of condition. Hence, obtaining the "graded" price without the cost of grading. And that buyers are welcome to pay his price or not. He doesn't give a "f".

And fwiw, I agree with him.

[Chris Counts]

I agree with everything you said, James. There are countless thousands of undergraded, overgraded and altered cards sitting in slabs. Trusting graders is like trusting one of the three-letter news channels or Google's fact-checker to deliver objective news.

[Balticfox]

Originally Posted by ocjack

I believe what he is saying is that he will price his cards at what he believes the graded value would be based upon his own evaluation of condition. Hence, obtaining the "graded" price without the cost of grading. And that buyers are welcome to pay his price or not. He doesn't give a "f".

And fwiw, I agree with him.

So do I!



But neither am I selling any of the cards in my collection. Nor will I be in the foreseeable future.

[Leon]

From an original collection.

It's a shame but if, and when, I sell these they will need to be put in slabs. The answer is always the same, money.

[Snapolit1]

Originally Posted by Leon

From an original collection.

It's a shame but if, and when, I sell these they will need to be put in slabs. The answer is always the same, money.

Based on the information we have seen to date, unfortunately we can't take them with us.......

[Snapolit1]

Originally Posted by ocjack

I believe what he is saying is that he will price his cards at what he believes the graded value would be based upon his own evaluation of condition. Hence, obtaining the "graded" price without the cost of grading. And that buyers are welcome to pay his price or not. He doesn't give a "f".

And fwiw, I agree with him.

What happens when you die and the cards fall into the hands of people who aren't well-versed in value of baseball cards? Do you trust people in the hobby to pay your survivors fair market value for a raw card? I don't.

[BRoberts]

Originally Posted by NonSportDaniel

Do what you want and let others do what they want. Easy peasy.

Thank you!

[Peter_Spaeth]

...

[Al C.risafulli]

Once in a while I'll try and articulate this point, and I'm never quite sure if I'm getting it across the way I want. But I keep trying.

I view things like registry competition, protection from damage, etc. as byproducts (whether good or bad) of the real advantage that grading provides, which is the ability to buy online with some degree of confidence in what you're getting. For those of us who've been in the hobby for a while, of COURSE we know our cards better than anyone, and of COURSE the plastic holder prevents people from really getting to know an issue (i.e. paper stock, printing, etc).

Not long ago, our ability to collect was driven by the cards we had access to, either in our own geographic areas (via shows, trading groups, friends, etc) or folks that advertised in hobby publications. The internet gave us access to an entire universe of cards! Building a complete 1933 Goudey set once was a pursuit that might take a person his entire life. With the internet, and enough money, you could do it in a week!

The problem with this, of course, is that it could be more trouble than it's worth to buy online if all the cards were ungraded. One man's VG/EX is another man's EX/MT. I still remember buying a 1949 Bowman Johnny Vander Meer as a kid from a dealer that called the card MINT. I owned it for a while, and then tried to include it in a trade it back to him, and he told me it was VG at best.

Having that third party evaluation isn't going to be 100% accurate 100% of the time, but if you're buying online, sight unseen or through a scan, having a slab that says "this card is in near mint condition" can give you a reasonable amount of confidence in what is going to arrive in the mail.

Yes, grading has created an entire group of problems that didn't exist in the hobby beforehand, but at its core, I truly believe that grading has done far more good than bad, by allowing us to trust technology and grow our collections.

-Al

[Yoda]

?

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

...

Peter, you wouldn't have a RC of Sancho Panza available by any chance?

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by Yoda

?

Peter, you wouldn't have a RC of Sancho Panza available by any chance?

Very tough short print, on my grail list.

[jchcollins]

Originally Posted by peter_spaeth

...

LOL Don Q.

[BioCRN]

Like it or not, for many people spending more than $20-$100 on a card they care more about PSA/SGC/etc opinion on a specific card moreso than almost any dealer or collector.

If this issue needed to be dealt with by the hobby, it should have been done 20+ years ago. Barring some extremely significant scandal it's probably not going anywhere...and we're not talking about a scattering of over-grading or missed alterations of cards.

At this point it's not only ingrained, but it's rudimentary entry-level collector stuff. The amount of new/novice collectors asking "Should I get this graded?" is extremely common.

Anyone can choose to make their own stand, but the hobby is strongly standing on the ground of grading services having a voice in the value of cardboard.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by BioCRN

Like it or not, for many people spending more than $20-$100 on a card they care more about PSA/SGC/etc opinion on a specific card moreso than almost any dealer or collector.

If this issue needed to be dealt with by the hobby, it should have been done 20+ years ago. Barring some extremely significant scandal it's probably not going anywhere...and we're not talking about a scattering of over-grading or missed alterations of cards.

At this point it's not only ingrained, but it's rudimentary entry-level collector stuff. The amount of new/novice collectors asking "Should I get this graded?" is extremely common.

Anyone can choose to make their own stand, but the hobby is strongly standing on the ground of grading services having a voice in the value of cardboard.

We've already had the major scandal. Nothing changed.

[Seven]

My only issue with grading is that if a card is more valuable then it costs more to grade, which I think is preposterous. Why should it cost me more if I'm grading a 1952 Topps Mantle, then it would if I was grading a 1952 Topps Johnny Mize? The process is identical, it's not like anything should be done inherently different for one card than the other.

[parkplace33]

Originally Posted by jingram058

Why pay for the "privilege" of making someone rich by grading your cards? After listening to all the BS associated with grading, the time, the money, the anxiety, the annoyances and irritations, why do it?

You know your cards better than some evaluator.

If for some reason I were to decide to sell any of my high-value cards; Ruth, Gehrig, Cobb, DiMaggio, Williams, Mantle, etc., etc. etc., I would ask what any like card(s) would sell for, graded or otherwise. If someone doesn't buy it or them, guess what? I don't give a flying f!

Of course I keep my high value items either in a professional grade safe in my house or the bank safe deposit box.

My wife and daughter know what is in my collection, and like me, believe that grading is nothing more than a means to make someone rich.

I don't want my cards encased in ridiculous slabs. I don't care what someone else's opinion(s) of my cards are. If you want to buy them, you'll pay up, or take a walk.

James, you can feel that way, but I truly believe that a majority of the vintage collecting group want high dollar cards in slabs. Period. End of story.

If you want to sell and it is worth over lets say 1k, it should be slabbed. It is just the way it is.

[Peter_Spaeth]

...

[balltrash]

While your opinions on the topic are understandable I do believe that you are doing your wife and daughter a disservice by relaying those feelings. At some point they may have to deal with selling a collection should you leave it behind and there is just no way you would be able to convince me that (unless they are deeply involved in the hobby with you) they will be able to navigate selling raw cards without getting taken advantage of. I would imagine an attempt which will end in either underselling the material or not being able to sell it at all (if they believe that they not getting a fair offer) ending with ultimately selling for far less than it is worth just to end the frustration.

Originally Posted by jingram058

Why pay for the "privilege" of making someone rich by grading your cards? After listening to all the BS associated with grading, the time, the money, the anxiety, the annoyances and irritations, why do it?

You know your cards better than some evaluator.

If for some reason I were to decide to sell any of my high-value cards; Ruth, Gehrig, Cobb, DiMaggio, Williams, Mantle, etc., etc. etc., I would ask what any like card(s) would sell for, graded or otherwise. If someone doesn't buy it or them, guess what? I don't give a flying f!

Of course I keep my high value items either in a professional grade safe in my house or the bank safe deposit box.

My wife and daughter know what is in my collection, and like me, believe that grading is nothing more than a means to make someone rich.

I don't want my cards encased in ridiculous slabs. I don't care what someone else's opinion(s) of my cards are. If you want to buy them, you'll pay up, or take a walk.

[Delray Vintage]

I don’t like having to grade cards. The reality is you need to if you want someone to buy your high value cards. I was burnt in the early days of my collecting finding many of my raw cards were trimmed, altered, or over graded. So now I only buy graded cards and am happy to do so. Eventually me or my heirs will need to sell the collection I have built. When that happens I know it will be a lot easier to get a fair price.

There will be no revolt against the grading companies. It is in high value collectors’ interest to use them.i don’t understand grading commons, reprints or many modern cards with massive supply.But if you have a 52 Mantle you have to get it graded given few ungraded pass the authenticity test.

[Balticfox]

Originally Posted by Delray Vintage

I was burnt in the early days of my collecting finding many of my raw cards were trimmed, altered, or over graded.

When was this? And surely the trimmed/altered cards you bought weren't from standard post-War Topps sets?

Originally Posted by Delray Vintage

But if you have a 52 Mantle you have to get it graded given few ungraded pass the authenticity test.

You really think so? Reprinted/counterfeit or just trimmed? And have the grading companies not demonstrated abject incompetence, fraud even, at detecting trimming?

[homerunhitter]

Originally Posted by Delray Vintage

I don’t like having to grade cards. The reality is you need to if you want someone to buy your high value cards. I was burnt in the early days of my collecting finding many of my raw cards were trimmed, altered, or over graded. So now I only buy graded cards and am happy to do so. Eventually me or my heirs will need to sell the collection I have built. When that happens I know it will be a lot easier to get a fair price.

There will be no revolt against the grading companies. It is in high value collectors’ interest to use them.i don’t understand grading commons, reprints or many modern cards with massive supply.But if you have a 52 Mantle you have to get it graded given few ungraded pass the authenticity test.

Perfectly said and I couldn’t agree more! Too much fraud and bad people in our hobby nowadays to trust anything but graded cards when it comes to resale. I personally would rather collect raw cards however as mentioned above, the trimmed, altered, fake cards have forced my hand to only buy graded. When it comes time to sell, all I need to do is box them up and send them to a consignment company to sell for me then just wait for the check to come in! Can’t really do that with raw cards. Plus with raw cards what’s to say when our families go to a LCS to sell, some greasy fat owner won’t be like “ oh yeah, these 1950s cards are worth like $2 each. I’ll give you $100 for this lot! (I feel it’s better for heirs of cards to send in graded cards to a consignment service vs trying to sell raw cards to a LCS)

[LEHR]

Originally Posted by balltrash

While your opinions on the topic are understandable I do believe that you are doing your wife and daughter a disservice by relaying those feelings. At some point they may have to deal with selling a collection should you leave it behind and there is just no way you would be able to convince me that (unless they are deeply involved in the hobby with you) they will be able to navigate selling raw cards without getting taken advantage of. I would imagine an attempt which will end in either underselling the material or not being able to sell it at all (if they believe that they not getting a fair offer) ending with ultimately selling for far less than it is worth just to end the frustration.

This. All of this.

If the cards are valuable it's highly likely the OP's family will eventually be taken advantage of, or, the cards will eventually be consigned by a family member and graded anyway.
Even if a "honest" dealer buys the cards for what the OP or his family thinks is a fair price, but then grades the cards and sells them for multiples of what was paid for them, hasn't the OP still been robbed? Only in the last scenario the OP robbed himself.


No one has to participate but grading is here to stay. At this point it's like riding around horse pulled buggy and complaining about the horseless carriage.

[sbfinley]

I’m just always confused why people that spend hundreds to thousands of dollars on essentially pictures of dudes are so aghast that other people spend a couple dozen more dollars to put the picture of the dude in a plastic case.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by sbfinley

I’m just always confused why people that spend hundreds to thousands of dollars on essentially pictures of dudes are so aghast that other people spend a couple dozen more dollars to put the picture of the dude in a plastic case.

Because they think that by facilitating the transition of cards from collectibles to investments, grading has caused their acquisition costs to increase.

[packs]

Haven't they always been investments though? The Wagner T206 has been an expensive card since it was printed. We've all seen the old Wanted Ads where people are constantly offering big money even at a time when cards were selling for pennies.

[Balticfox]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

Because they think that by facilitating the transition of cards from collectibles to investments, grading has caused their acquisition costs to increase.

Precisely!

Originally Posted by NonSportDaniel

It has been proven time and again that graded cards sell for more than raw.

Not to me they don't. I won't pay a premium for a card just because it's slabbed. As a result, I usually just pass over slabbed cards.

[JollyElm]

For me, there's a simple way of looking at this particular issue...

Getting a card graded isn't about ME as a collector, it's about the NEXT PERSON who will eventually own it - whether it is me selling it in the future or my eventual heirs doing it after I’ve become nothing but the dust on someone’s coffee table.

Ninety nine times out of a hundred (yes, this a generalized stat, so keep your pants on, contrarians, and don't start doing a deep dive into the numbers to try to disprove it - just finding enough supporting data showing the same card being sold before and after grading will be an extremely tough hill to climb, but I digress), a graded card will sell for more than its ungraded counterpart, so it just makes moving cards on to the next owners (for me or said heirs) that much easier.

[ALBB]

Originally Posted by JollyElm

For me, there's a simple way of looking at this particular issue...

Getting a card graded isn't about ME as a collector, it's about the NEXT PERSON who will eventually own it - whether it is me selling it in the future or my eventual heirs doing it after I’ve become nothing but the dust on someone’s coffee table.

Ninety nine times out of a hundred (yes, this a generalized stat, so keep your pants on, contrarians, and don't start doing a deep dive into the numbers to try to disprove it - just finding enough supporting data showing the same card being sold before and after grading will be an extremely tough hill to climb, but I digress), a graded card will sell for more than its ungraded counterpart, so it just makes moving cards on to the next owners (for me or said heirs) that much easier.

Agreed !

[Yoda]

Originally Posted by JollyElm

For me, there's a simple way of looking at this particular issue...

Getting a card graded isn't about ME as a collector, it's about the NEXT PERSON who will eventually own it - whether it is me selling it in the future or my eventual heirs doing it after I’ve become nothing but the dust on someone’s coffee table.

Ninety nine times out of a hundred (yes, this a generalized stat, so keep your pants on, contrarians, and don't start doing a deep dive into the numbers to try to disprove it - just finding enough supporting data showing the same card being sold before and after grading will be an extremely tough hill to climb, but I digress), a graded card will sell for more than its ungraded counterpart, so it just makes moving cards on to the next owners (for me or said heirs) that much easier.

Yes, Elm, but think of what a fine learned piece you would be.

[Balticfox]

Originally Posted by sbfinley

I’m just always confused why people that spend hundreds to thousands of dollars on essentially pictures of dudes are so aghast that other people spend a couple dozen more dollars to put the picture of the dude in a plastic case.

Originally Posted by darwinbulldog

...but if the question is why someone wouldn’t rely on the opinion of a stranger who's trying to sell them the card in lieu of the opinion of a stranger who's not trying to sell them the card, well, that's a bit silly.

Originally Posted by Touch'EmAll

But I honestly feel the chances of getting what you pay for is better with slabbed cards vs. raw (thru the mail sight unseen).

All very good points indeed. And arm's length card grading by a third party would certainly have its merits. The problem though is the speed at which it's degenerated into abject folly, e.g. the $33,600 that a slabbed Topps 1975 Dave Roberts card just fetched when nigh identical Dave Roberts cards are available anywhere else for $3.36. (Try explaining that to the man-on-the street.)

Sorry, but some of us reserve the right to sneer rather than cheer.

[raulus]

Originally Posted by Balticfox

All very good points indeed. And arm's length card grading by a third party would certainly have its merits. The problem though is the speed at which it's degenerated into abject folly, e.g. the $33,600 that a slabbed Topps 1975 Dave Roberts card just fetched when nigh identical Dave Roberts cards are available anywhere else for $3.36. Try explaining that to the man-on-the street.)

Sorry, but some of us reserve the right to sneer rather than cheer.

Even those of us that are into graded cards are mostly (entirely?) shocked and appalled by the craziness of the price on that card. Even as a hard core set registry goon, I wouldn't come anywhere close to paying that kind of a premium. Give me a solid PSA 9 for under 1% of that price and that's good enough for me.

[Mike Eisenbath]

Some people like to collect vintage, some modern.

Some prefer baseball, others basketball or football or (really?) wrestling. Or Pokémon.

Some grimace if a card isn't centered to near perfection, others will happily scoop up a stack of beaters.

And ... some people will only put raw cards in their binders and boxes while others prefer their cards graded and encased in plastic. Still others of us have a healthy mix of the two.

Honestly, my baseball card collection is no better or worse than your rookie quarterbacks or ultra-modern hoops. Good restaurants have a varied menu for a reason. I never would criticize your collecting taste. I bristle when someone criticizes mine.

The only person with a better collection than yours is you when you add your next card.


Sent from my SM-S921U using Tapatalk

[Fred]

Probably a stupid question - but...

How many people have purchased an over-graded slabbed card because they thought the card would be valued for future sale based on the number on the flip (rather than on the technical grade it really should be)?

If you own raw cards and don't want to spend the money to have them graded, then nothing wrong with having the ability to hold the actual cardboard rather than a cold plastic slab.

[Casey2296]

Originally Posted by Mike Eisenbath

Some people like to collect vintage, some modern.

Some prefer baseball, others basketball or football or (really?) wrestling. Or Pokémon.

Some grimace if a card isn't centered to near perfection, others will happily scoop up a stack of beaters.

And ... some people will only put raw cards in their binders and boxes while others prefer their cards graded and encased in plastic. Still others of us have a healthy mix of the two.

Honestly, my baseball card collection is no better or worse than your rookie quarterbacks or ultra-modern hoops. Good restaurants have a varied menu for a reason. I never would criticize your collecting taste. I bristle when someone criticizes mine.

The only person with a better collection than yours is you when you add your next card.


Sent from my SM-S921U using Tapatalk

Well said Mike +1

[conor912]

Originally Posted by jingram058

I don't want my cards encased in ridiculous slabs. I don't care what someone else's opinion(s) of my cards are. If you want to buy them, you'll pay up, or take a walk.

I feel the same way. That said, I’m not going to sit here and pretend I don’t understand why people feel differently. During WWII, your priorities were God, country, family in that order. Now they’re money, money, family (maybe).

[Touch'EmAll]

Take into consideration a collector and/or investor financial state.

Some of us are wealthy enough outside of our cards that we are more free to do as we please with our cards. If you are fortunate enough to have a good paying job, own a home(s), have a retirement pension, and have a significant chunk of change in other investments, then go ahead enjoy the hobby as you like - slab or raw, pass your cards down, take them to the grave, whatever your heart desires.

However, some of us are not that fortunate. For us our cards represent an honest part of our retirement savings. We need to maximize our card value holdings to help fill out our retirement income. Thus we grade our cards so we can realize all we can out of our holdings. We are trying to do the best we can with what we have.

We are all in different boats in this thing called life.

[jingram058]

My situation is we own our pool home outright, no mortgage, have 3 very lucrative pensions. Since I retired from the Navy, my medical is free other than the mandatory Medicare, which is automatically deducted from my Navy retirement. I'm doing fine.

I have some very nice, highly desirable, high end cards and memorabilia. Yes I have some beaters. None of my high end cards are anything less than high end, and would grade accordingly.

I'm not trying to set up cards as some sort of investment. I don't care about that sort of thing. That's when it stops being a hobby for me. Your mileage may vary, and that's fine, just not my bag.

Thus, I'm not going to pay one cent for someone's opinion of my cards. When either I or my wife or daughter ever sell them, they will go for whatever like graded examples go for or they won't be sold. Period, end of discussion.

Every graded card I have ever had has been cracked. I like raw cards; I have no desire for bulky, cumbersome slabs of plastic.

As Howard Cosell would have said, I told it like it is. For me. I am not going to help someone, somewhere get inherently rich opinonating or verifying the authenticity or whatever over my cards.

[G1911]

Originally Posted by jingram058

My situation is we own our pool home outright, no mortgage, have 3 very lucrative pensions. Since I retired from the Navy, my medical is free other than the mandatory Medicare, which is automatically deducted from my Navy retirement. I'm doing fine.

I have some very nice, highly desirable, high end cards and memorabilia. Yes I have some beaters. None of my high end cards are anything less than high end, and would grade accordingly.

I'm not trying to set up cards as some sort of investment. I don't care about that sort of thing. That's when it stops being a hobby for me. Your mileage may vary, and that's fine, just not my bag.

Thus, I'm not going to pay one cent for someone's opinion of my cards. When either I or my wife or daughter ever sell them, they will go for whatever like graded examples go for or they won't be sold. Period, end of discussion.

Every graded card I have ever had has been cracked. I like raw cards; I have no desire for bulky, cumbersome slabs of plastic.

As Howard Cosell would have said, I told it like it is. For me. I am not going to help someone, somewhere get inherently rich opinonating or verifying the authenticity or whatever over my cards.

I like that the argument cards are not or should not be about money is prefaced with a paragraph about being well-off financially and a pool home. Those who do not receive three pensions and do not get their needs taken care of by the taxpayers might understandably have to deal with money at some point as a reality. I like cards as a hobby and not an investment people but there's nothing wrong with other people making money and these frequent screeds are pointless anger.

[OhioLawyerF5]

Originally Posted by jingram058

When either I or my wife or daughter ever sell them, they will go for whatever like graded examples go for or they won't be sold. Period, end of discussion.

This quote seems a bit delusional to me. It's not how the market works, and most likely not how your heirs will feel either.

[jingram058]

Well, sorry, but they feel the same as me. It is what it is to me, still a hobby. I am well off. But I have other things to do and buy other than cardboard, and someone else's greed doesn't define my hobby.

[darwinbulldog]

Bold to predict that the thing we never shut up about would go nowhere, but if the question is why someone wouldn’t rely on the opinion of a stranger who's trying to sell them the card in lieu of the opinion of a stranger who's not trying to sell them the card, well, that's a bit silly.

[Fred]

Originally Posted by Touch'EmAll

Take into consideration a collector and/or investor financial state.

Some of us are wealthy enough outside of our cards that we are more free to do as we please with our cards. If you are fortunate enough to have a good paying job, own a home(s), have a retirement pension, and have a significant chunk of change in other investments, then go ahead enjoy the hobby as you like - slab or raw, pass your cards down, take them to the grave, whatever your heart desires.

However, some of us are not that fortunate. For us our cards represent an honest part of our retirement savings. We need to maximize our card value holdings to help fill out our retirement income. Thus we grade our cards so we can realize all we can out of our holdings. We are trying to do the best we can with what we have.

We are all in different boats in this thing called life.

If the cards were purchased well before this recent price runup (which has been going on for a few years now), then there may be some legitimacy to this, but purchasing cards today seems like a big risk if it's considered part of a retirement plan.

I wonder what a financial adviser would say about considering cardboard a part of a retirement strategy. But then again, my guess is there are not many financial advisers with enough hobby know how to really address this. I wonder what percentage of a retirement portfolio would be a "safe" amount of money to tie into cards as an investment vehicle.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Quote:
Originally Posted by jingram058 View Post
When either I or my wife or daughter ever sell them, they will go for whatever like graded examples go for or they won't be sold. Period, end of discussion.

Originally Posted by OhioLawyerF5

This quote seems a bit delusional to me. It's not how the market works, and most likely not how your heirs will feel either.

I wouldn't call that delusional. For all we know he could have some pretty "interesting" cards that are raw that people would absolutely pay for. As an overall strategy for all cards, perhaps a bit ambitious.


That reminds me, I need to put together something for my family in case I get hit by a bus in the next couple of days.

TJ - do you practice estate planning? If so, it'd be neat to hear some thoughts you have for card board investing. For example, designating them for inheritance, etc.

[Touch'EmAll]

Fred, yes over 90% of my cards were purchased before the big covid run-up. I was fortunate they have grown in value significantly. So much so that they now represent the majority of my retirement savings. I do own my own home outright, however, I have no pension or company retirement plan as I am self-employed. I did not plan it that way, but I guess I lucked out to have the chips fall where they may. It will be difficult to part with them some day when money is needed for retirement. Until then, I enjoy my cards very much, take pride in ownership, and love collecting the lesser cards I can afford. Yes, I agree purchasing big cards at today's prices could be more risky than ever before. This past year I have invested what I could into Bitcoin, not big cards. Again, I thank my lucky stars Bitcoin has done well and has a bright future. Between shrewd investments, a little luck, and the smarts to save what I can and not over spend, I should be fine come retirement in a few years.

[Balticfox]

Originally Posted by Touch'EmAll

Yes, I agree purchasing big cards at today's prices could be more risky than ever before. This past year I have invested what I could into Bitcoin, not big cards. Again, I thank my lucky stars Bitcoin has done well and has a bright future. Between shrewd investments, a little luck, and the smarts to save what I can and not over spend, I should be fine come retirement in a few years.

Somebody should point out the detail that neither cards nor Bitcoin kick off any income stream let alone one that's likely to grow. Nor are they actually capable of kicking off an income stream. Meaning as financial instruments I wouldn't call either an "investment". Just speculations, and rather rank ones.

[Peter_Spaeth]

NM.

[raulus]

Originally Posted by Fred

I wonder what a financial adviser would say about considering cardboard a part of a retirement strategy. But then again, my guess is there are not many financial advisers with enough hobby know how to really address this. I wonder what percentage of a retirement portfolio would be a "safe" amount of money to tie into cards as an investment vehicle.

My experience is that financial advisors will suggest 5% to 10% in “alternative assets” is fine. Usually I see that in connection with someone who is trying to push a particular investment, like forestland.

At the moment, while my own percentage tied up in cardboard has declined recently, due to a focus on other assets recently, plus a run up in the price of other assets recently, I still have an uncomfortably high percentage tied up in cardboard. The good news/bad news is that I don’t really need the cardboard for my retirement, and also have never really been focused on the investment element, but every little bit helps.