CycleGirl

Yes, well, a trillion dollars isn't what it used to be! I would still argue that the money supply is significantly shrinking relative to its buying power in 2022. Plus, the cost of borrowing has about doubled, so it's not easy to leverage one's existing assets to acquire more. What I'm saying is that I don't think that comics have lost any of their long-term appeal. I believe that the current value stagnation is due to the macro affect that stocks, bonds, real estate and every other asset class is experiencing. I wouldn't expect the trend to change until the macro environment changes and that can't happen until the Fed eases up on their current policy of general demand destruction.

Not saying anything that people don't know, but every type of asset has come down in value (stocks, bonds, comics, crypto...). I think it's fair to say that the most speculative - things like Bitcoin and collectibles - are going to fall the most when the money supply tightens instead of expands. Below is the US M2 money supply. It peaked at the end of 2021. Right now, the Fed is literally pulling billions of dollars out of the system and it's showing up everywhere. People are less likely to buy super expensive comics when their stock portfolio is down 30% and borrowing costs have doubled. Who knows when prices will rebound, but I do think that the Fed will have to change course in 2023 or 2024. Recession seems inevitable the way things are going. If a person has cash, it's going to be a good time to buy these next several months, I think. Always with a long-term view!

I hadn't realized that George (GPA) sifted through Ebay sales so thoroughly. I wonder what the criteria is? Probably better not to let on to it lest people find work-arounds. Anyway, it's good that it's being done.

I was just looking at these three Heritage sales around April 8-9 8.0 for $102,000 7.5 for $78,000 7.0 for $63,000 I believe that these are all-time-highs for these grades. At least they are the highest so far that I'm seeing on GPA. Hopefully this move up will encourage the mid-grades below them to move up as well.

Thanks for putting that together. Considering that GPA on the 7.5 was $30k 12-months ago [ $29.5k (Dec 2020) and $30.0k (Feb 2021) ], the book has still had a great 12-months. I agree with you that it has leveled off over the last 6 months. I think that a person could find a deal in this market. Much better than last summer.

C-Lister here. I guess once you buy a book or two from them, you get glossy catalogs for life because I'm sure it's been a while since I bought anything from there. It is fun looking at all of those beautiful books.

We are enthusiasts, are we not? Some are just more enthusiastic than others!!

I was just looking at the GPA and noticed that there have been sales at most of the mid/high grades in the last few months. It seems like the prices have recovered in the mid-grades. Personally, I think that prices for grades 5.5 to 7.5 have a good potential to rise. The last 7.0 was this Ebay auction. https://www.ebay.com/itm/304322435047 . The book was graded 12/2021, but the seller reports scratches and smudges on the inside of the CGC case. Then the book was relisted due to a non-paying bidder. I suppose that someone got a pretty good deal on this one in spite of some minor issues.

No indeed. Don't worry about where the money goes and pay your fair share. Even Superman should pay his taxes!! There you go! That is how the government sees it. "Revenuers" (ala Snuffy Smith, gotta keep this comic-related) are only interested in interpreting the code so that you will pay the maximum in taxes. Do you really believe that the code will result in you paying your fair share? It's a game, and the winners are those who know the rules best. The taxman does have a point. The federal government did build a lot of roads and schools in Afghanistan, especially schools for girls that we could all feel good about it. Wait... don't think about that. Superman should have set up a non-profit just like pretty much everyone in D.C. does. Foreign governments and corporations can then donate as much as they want to NGOs run by the families of those in power in a way that no tax is paid. Wait... don't think about that either. Our leaders are all paying their fair share, you should too. The only way to pay anything close to your "fair share" is to set up a comic business and somehow avoid the grossly unfair restrictions of hobby classification. Do you think, Bill Gates runs into hobby restrictions when he writes off his private jet flight to a climate conference in Scotland? Why should you for attending Comic Con when later in the year you sell some keys? Knowledge and connections matter just as much to us as they do to the wealthy. Anyway, I don't want to get into politics here. I'm just saying that the tax code will be used AGAINST you. You need to use it in your favor where you can. Unless you plan to file a Schedule C, I would avoid getting form 1099 as much as I could. Unless you are able to document all of your comic related expenses, you'll pay a lot more than your fair share. That's where smaller sellers that haven't been tracking things as a business are likely to get caught up in all this. By default, the IRS will ask for them to pay income taxes on gross sales and that's the problem. I'm trying to decide that if and when I sell my keys (rather than leaving them to my heirs who will get a step-up in basis) if I'll set up an LLC and really try to run it as a business to take advantage of all of the tax breaks such as the Section 199A deduction (worth looking up).

Here are several things that I would suggest. 1) Sell on sites like Ebay that are sure to send both you and the IRS a 1099. Don't use craigslist, the boards, or private channels. 2) Get payment on sites like Paypal on Venmo where you are also sure to get a 1099. Don't use person-to-person cryptocurrency or cash. Everyone should pay their taxes! I'm sure all that military hardware they are shipping to eastern Europe right now will help the people just as much as the stuff we gave to the nice people running Afghanistan. Surely none of it will fall into the wrong hands because we can count on our government to make sure that won't happen.

Here are the results of the C'Link auction that ended on 11/4/2021 X-Men #1 CGC 2.0 $9,151 X-Men #1 CGC 4.0 $16,679 X-Men #1 CGC 6.5 $38,511 The price on the 6.5 was a bit low as these have been selling above $43k . It definitely looks like sales are softening a bit along with the rest of the market. It might be time to pick up some deals.

Who else is looking at the September C'Link auction prices and thinking "I should have bid on that book!" ?

This is well-done! Thank you! I was looking through a few benchmark issues, but this really shows a lot more of the big picture.

I've noticed some easing in prices in the later Silver Age / early Bronze Age books that I've been looking at. I've been able to pick up a few books lately at a bit of a discount from the GPA prices of a couple months ago. Books like FF 48, 52, and GS-XMen1. Although, I'm kicking myself for overpaying a bit on the FF 48 7.0 before realizing that the book had cooled off as much as it had. Oh well, it's a beautiful book and that's what counts.

-20% Life with Archie 46 Origin of Pureheart $10 Betty and Veronica 49 $35 AND Take!

Claim per PM

Purchased a high-grade GS XM #1 from Terry. Terry was great to deal with and very prompt about shipping. When the box arrived, the packaging was A+. Terry is a top-notch seller!

I recently purchased a book from Jeff. The book was 9.8. The transaction and communication were both a 10.0!

That's pretty cool! I literally traded up to get my MH 22 to 6.5 . I'm excited to get a reader that is an actual comic book. Most of my superhero readers are compendiums. There is no substitute for reading an actual Archie comic book.

Take! DeCarlo's Sabrina intro!

Bought a Bats 181 from Mike. Packed well and shipped quickly. Hope to buy from again!!

Take per PM!!

Take GSX #1 7.0 per PM!

It was frustrating to see the FF handled so poorly for so long. On the bright side, it gave so many of us a chance to pick up the book while the prices were relatively low.

C'Link results 7/29 (since they don't appear in GPA). 2.0 OW/W (UK) $7100 5.0 OW/W $23,750 6.0 OW $38,000 8.5 OW/W $105,000 Hmm.... prices are just a little bit down from May/June. I am guessing that the discoloration on the 6.0 and the corner crease on the 8.5 probably were factors. They're still beautiful books.