SUBJECT: BEWARE Steve Verkman, Keith Vari, Leland�s, Clean Sweep & Paragon auctions

BobbyStrawberry · #1 02-05-2025, 03:03 PM

I haven't had any personal interaction with the parties involved, but it sure seems like OP ended up with a very bad deal. I can't imagine getting only 60% of the proceeds of my collection from an AH.

conor912 · #2 02-05-2025, 11:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BobbyStrawberry

I haven't had any personal interaction with the parties involved, but it sure seems like OP ended up with a very bad deal. I can't imagine getting only 60% of the proceeds of my collection from an AH.

Say you have an item with a fmv of $1000 and you consign it to an ah with a 20% bp and a 20% consignor fee. If a buyer is willing to pay fmv, that would but his high bid at $833 and change. Then 80% of that would be the consignor�s cut�in this case $666, or 67%. So 60% of the hammer, plus a cut of the bp, plus help with grading fees seem about right to me�but what do I know.

Peter_Spaeth · #3 02-05-2025, 11:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by conor912

Say you have an item with a fmv of $1000 and you consign it to an ah with a 20% bp and a 20% consignor fee. If a buyer is willing to pay fmv, that would but his high bid at $833 and change. Then 80% of that would be the consignor�s cut�in this case $666, or 67%. So 60% of the hammer, plus a cut of the bp, plus help with grading fees seem about right to me�but what do I know.

Nobody charges seller's fees any more, do they? At least not in the sports auction biz.

conor912 · #4 02-05-2025, 11:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

Nobody charges seller's fees any more, do they? At least not in the sports auction biz.

Well that�s the best thing I�ve heard in a while!

Republicaninmass · #5 02-06-2025, 07:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by conor912

Well that�s the best thing I�ve heard in a while!

Nobody consigns anymore, its too busy

jayshum · #6 02-06-2025, 07:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

Nobody charges seller's fees any more, do they? At least not in the sports auction biz.

Considering the OP posted a screenshot from the Clean Sweep website saying the following - "We charge a 10% commission on all items that sell for $500 or more and 15% for lots that sell for under $500." - I'm not sure that's an accurate statement. Maybe on items of high enough value it's true, but probably not in general for everything.

gunboat82 · #7 02-06-2025, 10:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

Nobody charges seller's fees any more, do they? At least not in the sports auction biz.

Last year, I reached out to Huggins & Scott to inquire about consigning these cards:

1928 Tharp's Ice Cream Babe Ruth #6 (Throwing) SGC 1
1928 Tharp's Ice Cream Lou Gehrig #26 SGC 35 (2.5)
1933 George C. Miller Jimmie Foxx SGC 1.5

I was told that their standard commission is 20% from the seller (on top of the 20% buyer's premium they receive), but they would reduce my fees to 5% only if I gave them all three cards to sell.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Huggins Rep

It�s our posted standard commission. Given the quality of the three items and being a first time consignor; we would offer to reduce your rate to 5%. Certain collections require a higher commission than others. Several variables go into what commission we offer sellers, which is a case by case basis.

Someone from SCP Auctions reached out to me unsolicited on this site and tried to get me to consign through him with a 10% consignor fee (down from his standard 15%), leaving me with only 90% of the hammer price:

Quote:

Originally Posted by SCP Rep

Standard is 15%, but in this price range, have been able to get that down to 10%. Even lower if very high priced cards. Got 5% for a 52 Mantle SGC 2, for example

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gunboat82

To be clear, that's a 10-15% seller's commission on top of the buyer's premium?

Quote:

Originally Posted by SCP Rep

10% max when working with me. And yes, i was only quoting you what comes out of your proceeds. The buyers premium is where SCP makes its money, promarily, which is why zero sellers commissions are fine when price of item is high enough

So, yes, there are auction houses charging seller fees if they can get away with it, even for marketable cards that are already graded/authenticated.

jayshum · #8 02-06-2025, 10:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gunboat82

Last year, I reached out to Huggins & Scott to inquire about consigning these cards:

1928 Tharp's Ice Cream Babe Ruth #6 (Throwing) SGC 1
1928 Tharp's Ice Cream Lou Gehrig #26 SGC 35 (2.5)
1933 George C. Miller Jimmie Foxx SGC 1.5

I was told that their standard commission is 20% from the seller (on top of the 20% buyer's premium they receive), but they would reduce my fees to 5% only if I gave them all three cards to sell.

Someone from SCP Auctions reached out to me unsolicited on this site and tried to get me to consign through him with a 10% consignor fee (down from his standard 15%), leaving me with only 90% of the hammer price:

So, yes, there are auction houses charging seller fees if they can get away with it, even for marketable cards that are already graded/authenticated.

Thanks for posting some actual information about what AHs charge for commissions. Clearly it's negotiable so contacting multiple AHs makes sense. So many people like to say that sellers shouldn't pay anything to an AH, but that doesn't look to be accurate unless you have a very high priced or highly desirable item.

Peter_Spaeth · #9 02-06-2025, 11:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jayshum

Thanks for posting some actual information about what AHs charge for commissions. Clearly it's negotiable so contacting multiple AHs makes sense. So many people like to say that sellers shouldn't pay anything to an AH, but that doesn't look to be accurate unless you have a very high priced or highly desirable item.

If someone has to pay a seller's premium on top of having their take reduced by the buyer's premium, makes even less sense in many cases to consign to an auction house, IMO.

jayshum · #10 02-06-2025, 11:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

If someone has to pay a seller's premium on top of having their take reduced by the buyer's premium, makes even less sense in many cases to consign to an auction house, IMO.

Sure, there are other avenues a seller has, but they all have pros and cons. Not everyone wants to deal with trying to sell things themselves. Even if they do, finding the way to get the most exposure to the right people can be challenging. Posting on net54 is free but what percentage of the card collecting community does it actually reach?

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