Cards = Investments

[Bocabirdman]

If you collect cards for the fun of it and eventually sell them for less than you paid for them, it can be viewed as, "Hey I enjoyed my time in the hobby and got a good piece of cash back.". If the same negative cash flow occured after holding them as an investment you would feel bad about the whole affair.

[pcoz]

Originally Posted by Bocabirdman

If you collect cards for the fun of it and eventually sell them for less than you paid for them, it can be viewed as, "Hey I enjoyed my time in the hobby and got a good piece of cash back.". If the same negative cash flow occured after holding them as an investment you would feel bad about the whole affair.

Mike, I don't think these are mutually exclusive thoughts. I enjoy my Babe Ruth RC immensely, but if I got back half of what I paid, I don't think I'd be happy just to get back a good piece of cash, even with the enjoyment I had owning it. But maybe it's just me. This is a hobby, but it's also a business with tremendous worth. Card collecting isn't Las Vegas, it's a calculated risk in a tangible asset of value. Any item in the world you're putting money into, you'd want to get back some return whether you could afford to lose the money or not. My cards give me much enjoyment, but also give me another asset class in my long-term investment portfolio. I'll tell you in 20 yrs how it goes!

[Bocabirdman]

Originally Posted by pcoz

Mike, I don't think these are mutually exclusive thoughts. I enjoy my Babe Ruth RC immensely, but if I got back half of what I paid, I don't think I'd be happy just to get back a good piece of cash, even with the enjoyment I had owning it. But maybe it's just me. This is a hobby, but it's also a business with tremendous worth. Card collecting isn't Las Vegas, it's a calculated risk in a tangible asset of value. Any item in the world you're putting money into, you'd want to get back some return whether you could afford to lose the money or not. My cards give me much enjoyment, but also give me another asset class in my long-term investment portfolio. I'll tell you in 20 yrs how it goes!

I am not suggesting to overpay for a card then years later, give it away. Also, there is a big difference between a Ruth RC and anything in my collection. If I hold on to 2000 $20 cards and in twenty years decide to sell them for $35000, it is a better return than most other hobbies would yield. My "hobby" would have cost me $400 bucks a year Plus, I would have enjoyed those cards for all those years. No pressure to make a profit. No worrying about the market going up or staying flat.

[ullmandds]

So what do y'all think of Jason Leblanc's "investment" strategy in purchasing the 1865 Brooklyn Atlantics CDV. Definitely a thin market for a "card" such as this.

[Mrc32]

Not how I would have invested $92,000. I guess it just depends on if he has money to burn. I would classify spending that much on a baseball card as a risky investment no question. But his goals and his resources available for investment are surely different than mine.

[Bridwell]

For me, stashing some cash in baseball cards has turned out to be a good investment. If not for cards, I'd spend some of the money in a way where 5 years later I have nothing to show for it. For example, vacations, buying expensive clothes, golfing trips, or decorating the house. With cards, they have maintained their value and even increased a little.