Where is the market?...is a "crash" coming

[Exhibitman]

Why does the market have to "crash"? If past performance is any indication of behavior, what is most likely to crash is level of activity on scarce and rare vintage cards. A lot of would-be sellers elect to sit it out for a while when prices level off or decline. If you look at price data for certain cards, there are often gaps of years with none sold, followed by multiple sales in a relatively short amount of time.

What is the "market" anyway? There is a vast difference between the market for a 1914 Ruth Baltimore News card, a 1933 Goudey Ruth card, and an Ohtani sparkly signed card. The latter two are commodities: you can get one any day of the week if you have the money. The Ruth is a true rarity. Commodity cards are more volatile, IMO, because the owners include many who make their livings selling cards and who need to keep the cash flow going. They can only differentiate their goods by price. A rarity, you can set the price and anyone who wants it has to pay it.