2021 Exit Strategy

[ALBB]

yes, sad story ,no doubt

I'm glad my collection is and has always been lower grade/ beat up/ for fun stuff.

Im sure it has $ value...but it was never something I needed to rely on for - " cashing out purposes " down the road

[JollyElm]

(Author's note: this is a blatant attempt to add a bit of humor to the proceedings, so any investment advice given should be taken with a bucketful of salt.)


My advice? Sell everything right now and put all of your money into buying as many of these cards as possible!! The Gregg Jefferies Rookie Card train is on the verge of leaving the station, and the next stop is Huge R.O.I. Town...so it's time to climb on board!!!!!

GreggJefferiesRookie.jpg



There are quite a few of us on the site going through serious and problematic health issues, so you're definitely not alone. It is tough, but we're all with you. Some people have offered some top notch advice so far, which is excellent. Hang in there!!!

[Casey2296]

$375,000 invested in dividend paying stocks, laddered Cd's, etc. paying an average of 5% yield gets you $1562.50 in monthly income. There are also income producing ETF's/funds that yield higher than 5%.

Not sure if your card holdings have that much value, this is just an example.

[bcbgcbrcb]

Don’t worry, I had my share of Jeffries rookie cards back in the late ‘80’s. Just one question, is your’s the Tiffany version or just regular Topps? I know better than to buy that junk wax stuff now, only looking for the premium cards.

[JollyElm]

Originally Posted by bcbgcbrcb

Don’t worry, I had my share of Jeffries rookie cards back in the late ‘80’s. Just one question, is your’s the Tiffany version or just regular Topps? I know better than to buy that junk wax stuff now, only looking for the premium cards.

Merely junk wax stuff???? The God of must-have cards, the Gregg Jefferies Rookie???????? You can't be serious, my friend. Wow, I've never realized two collectors could be so far apart on bankable hobby knowledge.

[The Detroit Collector]

Hey Phil,
I am very sorry to hear about the health.
You have given me great knowledge and advice. I wish I could return the favor, but I don't have the answer.
There is a ton of great advice in here. I hope everything works out for you.

[Mark17]

Originally Posted by JollyElm

Merely junk wax stuff???? The God of must-have cards, the Gregg Jefferies Rookie???????? You can't be serious, my friend. Wow, I've never realized two collectors could be so far apart on bankable hobby knowledge.

Second worst advice I've ever heard: Invest in Gregg Jefferies rookies.

Worst advice I've ever heard: Invest in 1989 Topps Gregg Jefferies non-rookies.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by Mark17

Second worst advice I've ever heard: Invest in Gregg Jefferies rookies.

Worst advice I've ever heard: Invest in 1989 Topps Gregg Jefferies non-rookies.

Right up there with the relentless urgings of dealers at local shows I used to attend to buy this and that and the other wax box because they were "drying up."

[glchen]

Phil, I'm definitely very sorry to hear about your health situation and wish the best for you on that front.

Financially for your questions, I think a lot of the posters have already given their advice. From my side, the first thing I thought of, was first to make sure that you maximized your tax benefits through all of this, if it were relevant. It may not have much of an impact if you don't have much of an income these days. However, if you did have capital gains that you needed to offset with capital losses, make sure to take those things into account.

The next thing was imagining what I would do in your situation. First, this could happen to anybody, so I wouldn't beat yourself up too much on this. In hindsight, everything is 20/20, so obviously now, everyone can say that you should have just invested all of that money that you made from selling your Negro league cards and bought Tesla or Nvidia stock. Back then, no one had a clue, and lingering too long on it will only hurt your mental health. Just accept the situation and move on.

As others have said, I'd first take stock of what your expense are each month, which you said in a later post are around $1500. First sell a little more than that, so that you are comfortable and not stressed out about the situation too much. When we are under too much stress or mental pressure, that will usually be when we make mistakes with your investments and financial decisions. So first sell enough so that you are not under this pressure.

For what to sell first, I would use your hobby knowledge. I only collect Ruth/Gehrig cards, so I know all of those cards very well, and am not close to being any kind of expert at HOF Rookies. But with your knowledge and expertise, I would first sell those cards that you think would be least likely to go up in the next couple of years, that is, you would expect those cards to have the worst ROI from their current market levels (not from the price you purchased them at). Even though what you said was that you mainly focused on the major HOFers and stars and not the minor ones, my guess would be to sell the least well known or in demand cards first. For example, keep the Mantles and Jackie Robinson's and sell the Karl Malone's and Tim Duncan's. Some cards for a player may be more likely to go up than another for the same player. For example, Goudey Ruth's are usually more in demand than Ruth's strip cards even if some of the strip cards may be much rarer. The cards with better eye appeal are usually more well liked and in demand by collectors, so even in the strip cards, the W516's are much more in demand than the ugly W512 strip cards for Ruth. Again, these are just examples, and I'm deferring to your expertise here.

Next, once you have a basic nest egg where you're not too worried about paying your rent and your bills for the next few months, put together a longer term plan. For example, for your health, determine what your reasonable capabilities are? Can you spend 7-8 hours per day, scanning through ebay, looking for deals where you can make certain profits, re-listing and flipping cards or other things? In order to do these things, you need to have a spending budget and a plan. I usually make a profit, selling cards on ebay, but for me, it's like a secondary hobby to support my card collecting. It's not something where I feel the pressure to make money to support my livelihood. For myself, if I don't make any money or even lose money, it's really not a big deal, but it's not the same situation as you.

For example, the normal thing to do, would be to put most of your cards on ebay with a high BIN price, perhaps even about your purchase price, and then see if anyone bites. You never know. But that way, you will get the price you want. However, with that approach, you may not get any sales for months, and that won't put food on the table. So you would need to put together a strategy that works for your situation.

Finally, for your last question, I think the 1985 Star Michael Jordans can easily shoot up in the future. I'd personally try to hold onto them, but again, you know your situation the best, so you'll have to make that decision as part of your overall strategy.

Good luck, Phil, and definitely wish the best for you.

[Rhotchkiss]

Originally Posted by Casey2296

$375,000 invested in dividend paying stocks, laddered Cd's, etc. paying an average of 5% yield gets you $1562.50 in monthly income. There are also income producing ETF's/funds that yield higher than 5%.

Not sure if your card holdings have that much value, this is just an example.

I agree with this ^^^.

I have no clue what you own or what it’s worth, but in your situation, I would convert cardboard to cash and consult with a financial planner. I think it’s fine to keep collecting lower price cards, but, unfortunately, I feel your days investing in cards are likely at an end and you need cash flow and a much less risky/volatile asset

[Peter_Spaeth]

From Phil's last question it's pretty clear he is not interested in the big picture advice people are giving. He's just going to keep trickling out cards to meet his immediate cash needs and his only question is which ones.

[Snapolit1]

Personally I would sell what I need to every month and not look back. Regret is not going to get you anything. Just bite the bullet and sell what you need to get by. Your present needs and happiness are more important. And if you sell a little at a time you can drag it out and maybe some cards will bounce back a little.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by Snapolit1

Personally I would sell what I need to every month and not look back. Regret is not going to get you anything. Just bite the bullet and sell what you need to get by. Your present needs and happiness are more important. And if you sell a little at a time you can drag it out and maybe some cards will bounce back a little.

And what if they decline precipitously? Then where is he?

[Casey2296]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

From Phil's last question it's pretty clear he is not interested in the big picture advice people are giving. He's just going to keep trickling out cards to meet his immediate cash needs and his only question is which ones.

I'm not sure what Star Jordon Rookies are worth but Phil (great name) says he over invested in them. The trick is to have your residual income cover your monthly nut, sell the highest value cards until you can set up an income producing portfolio so you know your basic needs will be met, then play with the rest if you want.

Phils mistake was thinking his incredible foresight in collecting Negro players would transfer to his decisions at the height of the market, (I can't even name the top 5 team sports), those were heady times rife with opportunities to lose money if you were drinking the kool-aid, I overpaid for a few cards then too.

The difference is collector/investor dynamic.

I would almost guarantee Phil was a collector of NL and when he sold them he turned into an investor. As a collector I still spend too much on awesome cards, it's my hobby and I love it, but I would never consider myself an investor, I'm not that smart when it comes to cardboard. I just collect what I love.

I feel like we should all meet Phil and have an intervention to square him away so he can get back to being a collector. I'm sure Leon has some rented space in a basement in Cleveland where this could take place.