If you have 20k in cash and want to invest in one post-war card...

[Exhibitman]

This:



But in as nice a grade as I could afford with $20K.

[conor912]

I would see if Crazy Uncle is looking for investors. Those guys are really going places.

[notfast]

51 Bowman Mays or 48 Leaf Jackie.

I feel like Mays hasn’t got the bump the Robinson’s have yet though.

[oldjudge]

I’d buy 250 Manny Ramirez rookie cards in PSA10.

[Chuck9788]

One card? ... I'd have to decide between the 1951 Bowman Mickey Mantle and 1952 Topps Jackie Robinson.

[Frank A]

Since you said post war, I would have to say a 1951 Bowman Mantle card. Has picked up a lot of interest and is his true rookie card. Frank

[todeen]

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

This:







But in as nice a grade as I could afford with $20K.

I agree with Bond Bread Robinson, or any major player from that set. It includes some big name stars.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk

[FrankWakefield]

If....
Then I'd hope I talk myself out of it.

Don't invest in baseball cards. Recognize it's a hobby... a piece of cardboard, a bookmark. Buy a card for some intrinsic value: who it depicts, the history of the set it's in, how it was printed, the year of the card as it's tied with something the player or his team accomplished that year... but recognize that it's not an investment.

Here are investments...

An education
A home
Mutual funds
gold or silver bullion (not coin collecting)
Stocks, if you're gonna pay attention to the market, the company...
Bonds

If you're in your 20's and have that 20k to invest, I suggest this investment. Drive out into the country and find 5 acres to buy (this won't work in desert areas, some mountainous areas, so this terrain might not be available). Buy five acres, then plant a bunch of hardwood saplings. Walnut, Cherry, some kind of hardwood trees. Get an agricultural extension agent to get you information and advice. You'll have to go tend them the first year or two; maybe water them or protect them from rabbits or deer. After a few years you can leave them to their own, they'll grow. Wait 30 to 40 years (this is why you need to me a young investor). Then hire someone to harvest the trees and get them to a mill or market. This investment will yield money enough for retirement, putting grandkids through college and/or helping with a down payment on a home... and you still have the 5 acres that you could either sell or convince a grandkid to plant some hardwood saplings.

I'm all about collecting old ball cards. It just bothers me when I hear someone "needs" a certain card. I say it sometimes. I don't need the card, maybe I want it. When I hear a sorority girl say that she invested in some Guess jeans, or a guy investing in a motorcycle, or someone investing in a pontoon boat... or such. Those aren't investments. An investment is something that you and others recognize will grow in value for which there will remain a ready market. You have to live somewhere, so a home is a necessity, it's a special form of investment. An education is special, to... it doesn't mean you'll make more money, it does increase employment opportunities. The rest of the investments need to be something you're willing to part with. You could sell stocks, bonds, mutual funds. A certificate of deposit could be cashed in... do you really wanna be selling baseball cards as you would a few shares of stock? No, you'll be attached to the cards.

Invest in investments, not hobbies.

[notfast]

Originally Posted by FrankWakefield

If....
Then I'd hope I talk myself out of it.

Don't invest in baseball cards. Recognize it's a hobby... a piece of cardboard, a bookmark. Buy a card for some intrinsic value: who it depicts, the history of the set it's in, how it was printed, the year of the card as it's tied with something the player or his team accomplished that year... but recognize that it's not an investment.

Here are investments...

An education
A home
Mutual funds
gold or silver bullion (not coin collecting)
Stocks, if you're gonna pay attention to the market, the company...
Bonds

If you're in your 20's and have that 20k to invest, I suggest this investment. Drive out into the country and find 5 acres to buy (this won't work in desert areas, some mountainous areas, so this terrain might not be available). Buy five acres, then plant a bunch of hardwood saplings. Walnut, Cherry, some kind of hardwood trees. Get an agricultural extension agent to get you information and advice. You'll have to go tend them the first year or two; maybe water them or protect them from rabbits or deer. After a few years you can leave them to their own, they'll grow. Wait 30 to 40 years (this is why you need to me a young investor). Then hire someone to harvest the trees and get them to a mill or market. This investment will yield money enough for retirement, putting grandkids through college and/or helping with a down payment on a home... and you still have the 5 acres that you could either sell or convince a grandkid to plant some hardwood saplings.

I'm all about collecting old ball cards. It just bothers me when I hear someone "needs" a certain card. I say it sometimes. I don't need the card, maybe I want it. When I hear a sorority girl say that she invested in some Guess jeans, or a guy investing in a motorcycle, or someone investing in a pontoon boat... or such. Those aren't investments. An investment is something that you and others recognize will grow in value for which there will remain a ready market. You have to live somewhere, so a home is a necessity, it's a special form of investment. An education is special, to... it doesn't mean you'll make more money, it does increase employment opportunities. The rest of the investments need to be something you're willing to part with. You could sell stocks, bonds, mutual funds. A certificate of deposit could be cashed in... do you really wanna be selling baseball cards as you would a few shares of stock? No, you'll be attached to the cards.

Invest in investments, not hobbies.

This response seems very out of touch and dated.

[maniac_73]

Originally Posted by notfast

This response seems very out of touch and dated.

Actually it sounds like an excellent response from someone with life experience that isn't swayed by what Gary Vee is telling people to buy this week,

[notfast]

Originally Posted by maniac_73

Actually it sounds like an excellent response from someone with life experience that isn't swayed by what Gary Vee is telling people to buy this week,

Except the fact that buying 5 acres of land for $20k isn’t even remotely possible in easily 50% of the country. A quick google search shows that successful stories like this are extremely few and far between and more of an “old wives tale” than a reasonable source of income.

Not sure what Gary Vee has to do with anything though.

I’d love to go back 20-30 years and buy some vintage baseball cards. You could be very close to a millionaire if you kept the right cards until today...There’s not much else you could “invest” in that would give that type of return.

[todeen]

Originally Posted by notfast

Except the fact that buying 5 acres of land for $20k isn’t even remotely possible in easily 50% of the country. A quick google search shows that successful stories like this are extremely few and far between and more of an “old wives tale” than a reasonable source of income.



Not sure what Gary Vee has to do with anything though.



I’d love to go back 20-30 years and buy some vintage baseball cards. You could be very close to a millionaire if you kept the right cards until today...There’s not much else you could “invest” in that would give that type of return.

I do agree $20k for 5 acres seems highly under priced. In WA State, most rural areas have 10 acre minimums for subdivision. Thus 5 acres would be closer to a city, increasing the property value significantly.

However, regardless of price, the advice to invest in land that is usable is good advice in and of itself.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk

[cardsagain74]

Originally Posted by notfast

Not sure what Gary Vee has to do with anything though.

That probably comes from the general views of the crowd that doesn't like talking heads like Gary Vee causing price increases and possible speculative bubbles.

It's as if the very shiny other side of that coin (it causing your own cards to go up in value and providing more liquidity for the market) doesn't even matter much.

Too easy to focus on just the negative sometimes, I guess

[maniac_73]

Originally Posted by notfast

Not sure what Gary Vee has to do with anything though.

Gary Vee has brought in the Day Trading and Gambling "Bros". Hypes up junk wax to his huge audience to raise the prices and then dumps the mass quantities he bought dirt cheap. The bubble bursts on that card and he starts the cycle over again with another card.

[drcy]

55T Jackie Robinson and 49 Leaf Satchel Paige

[investinrookies]

Anything Jackie Robinson and the 52T Mantle appear to be the early majority here and rightfully so.

[cardsagain74]

Originally Posted by maniac_73

Actually it sounds like an excellent response from someone with life experience that isn't swayed by what Gary Vee is telling people to buy this week,

No, it's not. It's mostly conjecture.

I'm not going to break it all down, because that would take forever. But a couple of highlights: the lack of enough intrinsic value does not mean that something is not an "investment". Many collectibles, including comic books and baseball cards, have had a generally strong and liquid market for at least 40 years now. Anyone not categorizing goods like those as investments being highly unrealistic.

Sure you could lose your shirt if something highly unexpected goes really wrong. Just like you if you bought GE stock in the last 20 years (which was considered for decades to be the hallmark of a "safe", low risk stock of an impenetrable conglomerate behemoth). Or if you ventured into the restaurant business and that new place went belly up.

And yes, I know, diversification and the long term returns of the overall stock market. But tell me how your stock portfolio did if you needed to grow you money from 1930 to 1950. Or from 1960 to 1980. Even if you could count on the future results of the market being as amazing as the last 100 years overall (which you can't, or even close), there could easily be long problematic periods that ruin your expectations.

Anyway....there is nothing wrong at all with conflating hobby and investment. And that's how many of them function, regardless of what anyone's opinion is.

But there's a lot wrong with categorizing all these different ventures that fit the conventional wisdom of "investment" as rock solid ideas that could never hurt you that badly, while brushing off other ideas that not even be any riskier in the end.

[todeen]

Originally Posted by cardsagain74

No, it's not. It's mostly conjecture....



And yes, I know, diversification and the long term returns of the overall stock market. But tell me how your stock portfolio did if you needed to grow you money from 1930 to 1950. Or from 1960 to 1980. Even if you could count on the future results of the market being as amazing as the last 100 years overall (which you can't, or even close), there could easily be long problematic periods that ruin your expectations.

Or 2000 - 2009 when 10 year Bond Yields were beating the market! (2000-2009 my dad refers to as the lost decade)

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk

[Huysmans]

Originally Posted by maniac_73

Actually it sounds like an excellent response from someone with life experience that isn't swayed by what Gary Vee is telling people to buy this week,

Yep, sound logic and common sense.... for the majority of us anyway.

[bbcard1]

I just wouldn't do it right now. The market is moving too fast which is normally a bad time to buy anything.

[cardsagain74]

Originally Posted by Huysmans

Yep, sound logic and common sense.... for the majority of us anyway.

Of course it is. An "investment" plan that's highlighted by the assumption of buying real estate for a fraction of market value (and then going to the trouble of managing what's going on with the planting and eventual selling off of trees for 30 years).....that's much more logical than putting away a '52 Mantle for a long time.

It's one thing to go along with his many misconceptions about the topic. But it's simply comical to snidely hint that those who disagree aren't using sound logic or common sense

[buymycards]

Originally Posted by notfast

This response seems very out of touch and dated.

Franks response is 100% spot on. Collecting is a lot more fun than investing or selling on eBay.

[cardsagain74]

Originally Posted by buymycards

Franks response is 100% spot on. Collecting is a lot more fun than investing or selling on eBay.

As noted above, his response is nearly the opposite of spot on. There's no point in breaking down even more of the misconceptions than I already did. Others have already gotten into major possible issues with the real estate and tree part of it since.

Yep, if someone wants to collect for just the fun of it, then that's great. But that has nothing to do with the viability of cards functioning as an investment, or so much else that was said.

[Mark17]

Originally Posted by FrankWakefield

If you're in your 20's and have that 20k to invest, I suggest this investment. Drive out into the country and find 5 acres to buy (this won't work in desert areas, some mountainous areas, so this terrain might not be available). Buy five acres, then plant a bunch of hardwood saplings. Walnut, Cherry, some kind of hardwood trees. Get an agricultural extension agent to get you information and advice. You'll have to go tend them the first year or two; maybe water them or protect them from rabbits or deer. After a few years you can leave them to their own, they'll grow. Wait 30 to 40 years (this is why you need to me a young investor). Then hire someone to harvest the trees and get them to a mill or market. This investment will yield money enough for retirement, putting grandkids through college and/or helping with a down payment on a home... and you still have the 5 acres that you could either sell or convince a grandkid to plant some hardwood saplings.


Invest in investments, not hobbies.

This is unusual, but great advice. I wish I had done this when I was young. The only danger, and I've heard of this happening, is that when the stand of hardwoods reaches maturity, thieves might come in and cut them down, if the land is too remote for you to keep an eye on.

I was at a bar once, about 25 years ago, and this old guy sitting next to me started telling me about a stand of mature black walnut trees he knew of, that were worth thousands of dollars. My entrepreneurial mind starts racing, and I'm thinking, maybe I could buy land like that cheap, and then harvest the trees off it. But the guy would never tell me where it was...

Anyway I agree. Buy land and plant valuable trees, or buy a rental property and build equity. Gambling on a piece of cardboard is not an investment as much as it is a gamble.

That said, early 1950s Mays, Aaron, Clemente would be my best gambles.

[RCMcKenzie]

I know which one I would rather have...

[rats60]

Originally Posted by FrankWakefield

If....
Then I'd hope I talk myself out of it.

Don't invest in baseball cards. Recognize it's a hobby... a piece of cardboard, a bookmark. Buy a card for some intrinsic value: who it depicts, the history of the set it's in, how it was printed, the year of the card as it's tied with something the player or his team accomplished that year... but recognize that it's not an investment.

Here are investments...

An education
A home
Mutual funds
gold or silver bullion (not coin collecting)
Stocks, if you're gonna pay attention to the market, the company...
Bonds

If you're in your 20's and have that 20k to invest, I suggest this investment. Drive out into the country and find 5 acres to buy (this won't work in desert areas, some mountainous areas, so this terrain might not be available). Buy five acres, then plant a bunch of hardwood saplings. Walnut, Cherry, some kind of hardwood trees. Get an agricultural extension agent to get you information and advice. You'll have to go tend them the first year or two; maybe water them or protect them from rabbits or deer. After a few years you can leave them to their own, they'll grow. Wait 30 to 40 years (this is why you need to me a young investor). Then hire someone to harvest the trees and get them to a mill or market. This investment will yield money enough for retirement, putting grandkids through college and/or helping with a down payment on a home... and you still have the 5 acres that you could either sell or convince a grandkid to plant some hardwood saplings.

I'm all about collecting old ball cards. It just bothers me when I hear someone "needs" a certain card. I say it sometimes. I don't need the card, maybe I want it. When I hear a sorority girl say that she invested in some Guess jeans, or a guy investing in a motorcycle, or someone investing in a pontoon boat... or such. Those aren't investments. An investment is something that you and others recognize will grow in value for which there will remain a ready market. You have to live somewhere, so a home is a necessity, it's a special form of investment. An education is special, to... it doesn't mean you'll make more money, it does increase employment opportunities. The rest of the investments need to be something you're willing to part with. You could sell stocks, bonds, mutual funds. A certificate of deposit could be cashed in... do you really wanna be selling baseball cards as you would a few shares of stock? No, you'll be attached to the cards.

Invest in investments, not hobbies.

Good luck with that. We planted Walnut trees on a piece of family farm land 40 years ago. Asked a friend who owns a tree service and he says he has wood he has saved from trees that he has cut down and no one wants to buy it. Can’t sell the farm land. Can’t sell our house after a job transfer. Real estate is a terrible investment. I wish I had invested it all in old baseball cards and just rented. At least my cards are easy to sell and I will be set for retirement.

[Yoda]

The best '54 Bowman Ted Williams I could find. Love that card and its' story.

[buymycards]

Originally Posted by rats60

Good luck with that. We planted Walnut trees on a piece of family farm land 40 years ago. Asked a friend who owns a tree service and he says he has wood he has saved from trees that he has cut down and no one wants to buy it. Can’t sell the farm land. Can’t sell our house after a job transfer. Real estate is a terrible investment. I wish I had invested it all in old baseball cards and just rented. At least my cards are easy to sell and I will be set for retirement.

That is interesting. In this area of Wisconsin we can easily get $1000 or more for a mature walnut tree.

[Bigdaddy]

Any answer that does not conclude with one card produced between 1945 and 2020 obviously does not answer the OP's question.

[ajjohnsonsoxfan]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/1948-Leaf-J...4AAOSwdg9fEzlw

[todeen]

Originally Posted by buymycards

That is interesting. In this area of Wisconsin we can easily get $1000 or more for a mature walnut tree.

Walnut still pulls a premium in SE WA too!

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk