Prices of complete sets relative to singles

[joshleon]

Originally Posted by bks14sr

Ahh, didn’t realize vintage cardboard was that abundant and priced on how they’re manufactured/packaged. Figured I’d get some bs responses. But I’ll hold out for actual, as I’ve dealt with plenty of solid people here.

I actually think Elm's response is a pretty good one. There are transaction costs inherent in every sale. Buy one set, one transaction cost, hence it's cheaper.

Another thought I had is to think about it this way: Which cards do people want?

99/100, when buying a 63 Topps card, are buying Aaron/Mantle/Mays over a complete set, or an Earl Francis card. The market for complete sets is much thinner. Therefore it makes sense that when selling a set, to most of the public you are selling the bluechip cards. Set collecting is more niche and won't demand a premium over the big cards.