THE AMAZING FANTASY #15 CLUB 39 39

[showcase22gr1959]

3 hours ago, delekkerste said:

A few points:

A 1952 Topps Mantle was something that I aspired to own as a kid, though, though, not being a regular baseball card collector anymore, if I had won a PSA 8 example back in 2011, there would be a price I would have sold it, yes.  On the other hand, I own some comic book and illustration art that is much more meaningful to me than the Mantle (plus, they're one of a kind and irreplaceable; the Mantle card, or an AF 15, is not), and I wouldn't sell those for 10 or even 20x what I paid, let alone the 7 1/2 times the Mantle has appreciated in the past six years.  

Inflation hasn't been spiking up over the past year.  The U.S. Consumer Price Index is up only 1.9% over the past year, and the last 3 months' of data are flirting dangerously with deflationary levels again.  Commodity prices are down from year-ago levels (equal-weighted CRB Index now = 398  vs. 432 a year ago), oil prices are down to sub-$45 from $49 a year ago (and north of $100 in 2011-14 and even higher back in 2008) and the price of gold is $1253 vs. $1290 a year ago.  Food and apparel are deflating like crazy; it's the worst environment for supermarkets and clothing stores in memory.  Bottom line:  there are so many secular deflationary factors (technology - not only in computing/networking/communications, but also in resource extraction, alternative energy, robotics, etc.; globalization; demographics/aging population, etc.) looking ahead that there is no great need to hedge against inflation, IMO.  While, of course, random/short-term fluctuations higher can occur at any time, I think it is the height of foolishness to pay up 30-50% vs. six months ago levels as a hedge against 2%-ish inflation.  That will not pay off in the longer-run.  

You're right that of course no one can pinpoint exactly when a bubble will burst.  Having studied and lived through a number of bubbles, I've seen things can go from ludicrously to surrealistically overvalued before a bubble bursts.  So, if anyone is in AF #15 for short-term speculation, or dealing, I cannot admittedly say with any confidence that now is a bad time to buy (assuming the book will be turned over in the near future).  For those looking to buy and hold for the long-term, though, I have seen enough parabolic rises in price to know that they are always followed - EVENTUALLY - by steep corrections.  The higher the parabolic rise, the harder the eventual fall.  Contrary to my friend Chrisco37's opinion, I don't think the fullness of time will bail people out of buying at these levels; I think it is more likely to be the opposite.

 I provided one example of a hedge. Other hedges; such as, currency fluctuations, economic uncertainty, etc... Inflation has been running much higher the first five months of this year than almost the whole 2016 fiscal year. There now is inequality inflation: with increased health care costs, wage pressure, tuitions, and housing, which is the larger chunk of the inflation. This is an occurring increased expenses for the majority of households in the U.S.A. I understand you feel art is one of a kind and I respect that. I feel Vintage Comics can be very unique on it's own ground. Depends on how it's printed, stored, and it's caretaker. I own books which are irreplaceable and other here as well. It's hard pressed to find any vintage comics 100% with similar characteristics.  Now if you can pinpoint to the time to buy an Amazing Fantasy 15 or other top notch Vintage Comic material in the past for a lower costs for ones collection, that will be conducive . I find everyone is the market in these asset class we have been referring to. Also, the leaders will lead the Vintage Comics: Action 1, Detective Comics 27, Amazing Fantasy 15, and others. I mentioned these top three books first, for they are the blue chips of this industry which will hold up much stronger in a declining market.  These three books has been surviving bull markets, bear markets, and it may continue before mine or your last breath. Maybe the bubble will burst in our next, next, next generation and the folks with this bubble foresight will get it right. Enjoy want you collect, and you will stay a winner. 
 

 

Edited June 18, 2017 by showcase22gr1959

[peewee22]

Collect what you enjoy and enjoy what you collect. Simple math.

[delekkerste]

3 hours ago, showcase22gr1959 said:

 I provided one example of a hedge. Other hedges; such as, currency fluctuations, economic uncertainty, etc... Inflation has been running much higher the first five months of this year than almost the whole 2016 fiscal year. There now is inequality inflation: with increased health care costs, wage pressure, tuitions, and housing, which is the larger chunk of the inflation. This is an occurring increased expenses for the majority of households in the U.S.A. I understand you feel art is one of a kind and I respect that. I feel Vintage Comics can be very unique on it's own ground. Depends on how it's printed, stored, and it's caretaker. I own books which are irreplaceable and other here as well. It's hard pressed to find any vintage comics 100% with similar characteristics.  Now if you can pinpoint to the time to buy an Amazing Fantasy 15 or other top notch Vintage Comic material in the past for a lower costs for ones collection, that will be conducive . I find everyone is the market in these asset class we have been referring to. Also, the leaders will lead the Vintage Comics: Action 1, Detective Comics 27, Amazing Fantasy 15, and others. I mentioned these top three books first, for they are the blue chips of this industry which will hold up much stronger in a declining market.  These three books has been surviving bull markets, bear markets, and it may continue before mine or your last breath. Maybe the bubble will burst in our next, next, next generation and the folks with this bubble foresight will get it right. Enjoy want you collect, and you will stay a winner. 
 

 

We will have to agree to disagree on the future course of AF 15 (and AC 1 and Tec 27 for that matter).  Not only do I think that all three books are ridiculously overvalued at this point, but I also think that the long-term demographics of this hobby do not and will not support prices continuing to escalate higher for the "next, next, next generation".   

As for your claim that inflation is on the upswing, the numbers speak for themselves (again, not that it isn't totally asinine to be buying assets that were already expensive 6 months-ago at 30-50% even higher prices to hedge against any inflation that isn't requiring wheelbarrows of cash to buy a loaf of bread):

CPI for 2016:  +2.1%

CPI for the first 5 months of 2017:  +0.5%

PPI for 2016:  +1.7%

PPI for the first 5 months of 2017:  +1.2%

Average Hourly Earnings (Wage) Growth for 2016:  +2.9%

Average Hourly Earnings (Wage) Growth for the 1st 5 months of 2017:  +1.0%

Equal-Weighted CRB Commodity Index % Change for 2016:  +10.9%

Equal-Weighted CRB Commodity Index % Change for YTD 2017:  -5.3%

I am curious to see if the privilege of owning this book will outweigh owners' economic self-interest when the bubble starts to really deflate.  I'm particularly curious to see how those hoarding multiple copies will react - I can see a lot of true collectors continuing to hold the book come hell or high water, but what about those who own multiple copies for investment?  

Edited June 19, 2017 by delekkerste

[peewee22]

19 minutes ago, delekkerste said:

We will have to agree to disagree on the future course of AF 15 (and AC 1 and Tec 27 for that matter).  Not only do I think that all three books are ridiculously overvalued at this point, but I also think that the long-term demographics of this hobby do not and will not support prices continuing to escalate higher for the "next, next, next generation".   

As for your claim that inflation is on the upswing, the numbers speak for themselves (again, not that it isn't totally asinine to be buying assets that were already expensive 6 months-ago at 30-50% even higher prices to hedge against any inflation that isn't requiring wheelbarrows of cash to buy a loaf of bread):

CPI for 2016:  +2.1%

CPI for the first 5 months of 2017:  +0.5%

PPI for 2016:  +1.7%

PPI for the first 5 months of 2017:  +1.2%

Average Hourly Earnings (Wage) Growth for 2016:  +2.9%

Average Hourly Earnings (Wage) Growth for the 1st 5 months of 2017:  +1.0%

Equal-Weighted CRB Commodity Index % Change for 2016:  +10.9%

Equal-Weighted CRB Commodity Index % Change for YTD 2017:  -5.3%

I am curious to see if the privilege of owning this book will outweigh owners' economic self-interest when the bubble starts to really deflate.  I'm particularly curious to see how those hoarding multiple copies will react - I can see a lot of true collectors continuing to hold the book come hell or high water, but what about those who own multiple copies for investment?  

So do you think your art collection is not subject to this "bubble burst" ?

[delekkerste]

36 minutes ago, peewee22 said:

So do you think your art collection is not subject to this "bubble burst" ?

Of course it's not going to be immune to this bubble bursting.  I haven't put a dime of fresh money into my collection since 2015 (all purchases from January 2016-present have been fully offset by matching sales), and am actually looking to take some money off the table completely this year.  I've also taken my stock portfolio down from about 99% invested in the first quarter of the year to about 77% invested now (and that number is only going to continue to decline the more stretched valuations become). 

Not only that, but, many in the art hobby know that I have a unique system for accounting for my art holdings.  While of course I insure my collection for its full value and obviously base my buy/sell decisions and tax reporting on actual purchase and sale numbers, I mentally carry the value of my collection well below its current fair market value.  I've been collecting (mostly higher-end) art for almost 15 years (what you see on my ComicArtFans page represents only about 30% of my collection), so, of course my collection has meaningfully appreciated in value.  But, on the spreadsheet where I track my art collection, I carry the value of my collection at a mere 65% of my cost basis.  

In fact, whenever I buy a new piece, I automatically mark it down by a minimum of 20%, and usually more like a third to a half (heck, sometimes even more if I think that a piece is not going to hold its value).  It's like a bank taking a reserve for future losses - I do that with every piece that I buy, building in a cushion for the inevitable future bubble bursting.  That way, I am mentally prepared for my collection to withstand an enormous hit before its market value comes anywhere near where I am carrying my collection on the books.  Many collectors I know have this notion that they will always be able to at least get what they paid out of their collections, not realizing how much they've spent at fairly high levels in recent years.  When the bubble bursts, and, more importantly, when the underlying demographics of the comic/comic art hobby turns (which may not happen for another 15-20 years, though, it could conceivably happen a lot sooner), I can tell you with metaphysical certainty that there is not enough money or interest in the younger generations to clear the market at ever-escalating prices.  

Most art collectors I know couldn't buy their collections over again if they had to; those in the younger generations, with poorer economic prospects, who won't have had the benefit of building nest eggs from the kinds of investment returns we saw in the '80s-present (for now...), and whose interests have been splintered into an infinite number of different directions post-1995 (the Internet era), will simply not have the aggregate interest or resources to do so either.  Prices will have to fall to put the market back in equilibrium.  The best case scenario is that the top 1% of material will hold up while everything else goes in the crapper (kind of like sports cards today), though, I wouldn't be surprised to see an across-the-board stagnation/decline eventually.  

In my own personal case, I never collected comic art for financial gain - I collect it because I love it.  That said, I've accumulated enough over the years that there's a decent amount of non-core holdings that I can trim given my view that prices are unsustainably high for the long-run.  However, I fully intend to keep the core of my collection far beyond the optimal time to sell, and will undoubtedly suffer along with the other true collectors when the demographics of this hobby inevitably turn for the worse.  And, I'm OK with that, given that I love my collection, and because my art & collectibles holdings are a meaningful, but minority, amount of my holdings.  I'm not so sure that those who have a higher % of their wealth in collectibles and/or who are actually relying on their collections to appreciate to meet their financial objectives will have the luxury of doing likewise, however.  

Edited June 19, 2017 by delekkerste

[peewee22]

1 hour ago, delekkerste said:

Of course it's not going to be immune to this bubble bursting.  I haven't put a dime of fresh money into my collection since 2015 (all purchases from January 2016-present have been fully offset by matching sales), and am actually looking to take some money off the table completely this year.  I've also taken my stock portfolio down from about 99% invested in the first quarter of the year to about 77% invested now (and that number is only going to continue to decline the more stretched valuations become). 

Not only that, but, many in the art hobby know that I have a unique system for accounting for my art holdings.  While of course I insure my collection for its full value and obviously base my buy/sell decisions and tax reporting on actual purchase and sale numbers, I mentally carry the value of my collection well below its current fair market value.  I've been collecting (mostly higher-end) art for almost 15 years (what you see on my ComicArtFans page represents only about 30% of my collection), so, of course my collection has meaningfully appreciated in value.  But, on the spreadsheet where I track my art collection, I carry the value of my collection at a mere 65% of my cost basis.  

In fact, whenever I buy a new piece, I automatically mark it down by a minimum of 20%, and usually more like a third to a half (heck, sometimes even more if I think that a piece is not going to hold its value).  It's like a bank taking a reserve for future losses - I do that with every piece that I buy, building in a cushion for the inevitable future bubble bursting.  That way, I am mentally prepared for my collection to withstand an enormous hit before its market value comes anywhere near where I am carrying my collection on the books.  Many collectors I know have this notion that they will always be able to at least get what they paid out of their collections, not realizing how much they've spent at fairly high levels in recent years.  When the bubble bursts, and, more importantly, when the underlying demographics of the comic/comic art hobby turns (which may not happen for another 15-20 years, though, it could conceivably happen a lot sooner), I can tell you with metaphysical certainty that there is not enough money or interest in the younger generations to clear the market at ever-escalating prices.  

Most art collectors I know couldn't buy their collections over again if they had to; those in the younger generations, with poorer economic prospects, who won't have had the benefit of building nest eggs from the kinds of investment returns we saw in the '80s-present (for now...), and whose interests have been splintered into an infinite number of different directions post-1995 (the Internet era), will simply not have the aggregate interest or resources to do so either.  Prices will have to fall to put the market back in equilibrium.  The best case scenario is that the top 1% of material will hold up while everything else goes in the crapper (kind of like sports cards today), though, I wouldn't be surprised to see an across-the-board stagnation/decline eventually.  

In my own personal case, I never collected comic art for financial gain - I collect it because I love it.  That said, I've accumulated enough over the years that there's a decent amount of non-core holdings that I can trim given my view that prices are unsustainably high for the long-run.  However, I fully intend to keep the core of my collection far beyond the optimal time to sell, and will undoubtedly suffer along with the other true collectors when the demographics of this hobby inevitably turn for the worse.  And, I'm OK with that, given that I love my collection, and because my art & collectibles holdings are a meaningful, but minority, amount of my holdings.  I'm not so sure that those who have a higher % of their wealth in collectibles and/or who are actually relying on their collections to appreciate to meet their financial objectives will have the luxury of doing likewise, however.  

I highlighted & underlined the most important line in your reply. 

[jabats]

I agree with much of the above except the reported "demographic problem" of the hobby.

of course we have the "old guard", collectors in their 50s, 60s and 70s who own what are now extremely valuable books (less so when they originally acquired them)

And, the market for golden and silver age westerns, cartoon animals, etc does not seem to be picking up new and younger collectors at the same rate it's losing the older collectors. As far as I'm aware, these sub niches within the hobby have already stagnated or are in decline price wise.

contrast that with golden age and silver age key superhero books. If anything I am surprised by all the collectors in their 30s and early 40s. I'm not just talking about Hulk 181s, I see younger (30something) collectors chasing Cap 1s, Superman 1s, AF15s, Hulk 1s, etc.

the popularity of superheroes has never been higher.

look at the lines outside a comic con or at an Avengers movie. All the young faces, teens, 20s and 30somethings. Of course not all will start collecting comics. But many do. And many of those who do, gravitate towards bronze, silver and golden age books. I know I did.

[delekkerste]

 

2 hours ago, delekkerste said:

 

In my own personal case, I never collected comic art for financial gain - I collect it because I love it. 

 

46 minutes ago, peewee22 said:

I highlighted & underlined the most important line in your reply. 

Maybe true, but keep in mind that "collect because you love it" is not the same as "collect because you love it and also need it not to go down in price (and preferably appreciate a lot in value)".  If you love something, have the discretionary funds and can afford to potentially absorb a big financial hit, then, by all means, knock yourself out, whether we're talking about AF #15, comic art, a new sports car or whatever else stirs your passion.  If you love AF #15, but are counting on values to only maintain or increase over time, that's not "collecting because you love it", that's "speculating in something that you happen to love".  

 

18 minutes ago, jabats said:

I agree with much of the above except the reported "demographic problem" of the hobby.

of course we have the "old guard", collectors in their 50s, 60s and 70s who own what are now extremely valuable books (less so when they originally acquired them)

And, the market for golden and silver age westerns, cartoon animals, etc does not seem to be picking up new and younger collectors at the same rate it's losing the older collectors. As far as I'm aware, these sub niches within the hobby have already stagnated or are in decline price wise.

contrast that with golden age and silver age key superhero books. If anything I am surprised by all the collectors in their 30s and early 40s. I'm not just talking about Hulk 181s, I see younger (30something) collectors chasing Cap 1s, Superman 1s, AF15s, Hulk 1s, etc.

the popularity of superheroes has never been higher.

look at the lines outside a comic con or at an Avengers movie. All the young faces, teens, 20s and 30somethings. Of course not all will start collecting comics. But many do. And many of those who do, gravitate towards bronze, silver and golden age books. I know I did.

No one said there is a demographic problem now.  But, there will be in 15-20 years, if not sooner.  Between the '90s comic bust and the Internet fracturing interests in a near-infinite number of directions since the mid-'90s, comic circulations have plummeted since the '80s and early '90s (even if they have rebounded somewhat from their worst levels of the mid-to-late '90s).  The recent stories about Marvel's sales woes highlights just how dire it's become - the circulation levels for even the established, mainstream titles is shocking compared to generations past.  You can say that there are lines at comic cons and comic movies, but they're not there for the comic books, by and large.  

At the end of the day, it will be simple math.  The overwhelming majority of slabbed books out there will trade hands at least once over the next, say, 30 years.  Will the younger generations have the aggregate interest and financial resources to absorb all that supply and clear the market at ever-escalating prices?  I'd say that there is zero chance for the hobby/market as a whole; best case scenario is that some very small subset manages to thrive even as the vast majority of currently collectible books (not talking about drek, which will always be drek) fall in value.  

Edited June 19, 2017 by delekkerste

[jabats]

No argument about modern comic circulation. Although TPBs and web/app readers have contributed to that too.

but I think golden and silver age collecting has very much decoupled from modern comic collecting. Some overlap of course but not as much as many might think. Sure Dwindling sales numbers for new issues, meanwhile many back issue runs are selling better than ever (and to younger collectors)

[MyNameIsLegion]

3 hours ago, delekkerste said:

Of course it's not going to be immune to this bubble bursting.  I haven't put a dime of fresh money into my collection since 2015 (all purchases from January 2016-present have been fully offset by matching sales), and am actually looking to take some money off the table completely this year.  I've also taken my stock portfolio down from about 99% invested in the first quarter of the year to about 77% invested now (and that number is only going to continue to decline the more stretched valuations become). 

Not only that, but, many in the art hobby know that I have a unique system for accounting for my art holdings.  While of course I insure my collection for its full value and obviously base my buy/sell decisions and tax reporting on actual purchase and sale numbers, I mentally carry the value of my collection well below its current fair market value.  I've been collecting (mostly higher-end) art for almost 15 years (what you see on my ComicArtFans page represents only about 30% of my collection), so, of course my collection has meaningfully appreciated in value.  But, on the spreadsheet where I track my art collection, I carry the value of my collection at a mere 65% of my cost basis.  

In fact, whenever I buy a new piece, I automatically mark it down by a minimum of 20%, and usually more like a third to a half (heck, sometimes even more if I think that a piece is not going to hold its value).  It's like a bank taking a reserve for future losses - I do that with every piece that I buy, building in a cushion for the inevitable future bubble bursting.  That way, I am mentally prepared for my collection to withstand an enormous hit before its market value comes anywhere near where I am carrying my collection on the books.  Many collectors I know have this notion that they will always be able to at least get what they paid out of their collections, not realizing how much they've spent at fairly high levels in recent years.  When the bubble bursts, and, more importantly, when the underlying demographics of the comic/comic art hobby turns (which may not happen for another 15-20 years, though, it could conceivably happen a lot sooner), I can tell you with metaphysical certainty that there is not enough money or interest in the younger generations to clear the market at ever-escalating prices.  

Most art collectors I know couldn't buy their collections over again if they had to; those in the younger generations, with poorer economic prospects, who won't have had the benefit of building nest eggs from the kinds of investment returns we saw in the '80s-present (for now...), and whose interests have been splintered into an infinite number of different directions post-1995 (the Internet era), will simply not have the aggregate interest or resources to do so either.  Prices will have to fall to put the market back in equilibrium.  The best case scenario is that the top 1% of material will hold up while everything else goes in the crapper (kind of like sports cards today), though, I wouldn't be surprised to see an across-the-board stagnation/decline eventually.  

In my own personal case, I never collected comic art for financial gain - I collect it because I love it.  That said, I've accumulated enough over the years that there's a decent amount of non-core holdings that I can trim given my view that prices are unsustainably high for the long-run.  However, I fully intend to keep the core of my collection far beyond the optimal time to sell, and will undoubtedly suffer along with the other true collectors when the demographics of this hobby inevitably turn for the worse.  And, I'm OK with that, given that I love my collection, and because my art & collectibles holdings are a meaningful, but minority, amount of my holdings.  I'm not so sure that those who have a higher % of their wealth in collectibles and/or who are actually relying on their collections to appreciate to meet their financial objectives will have the luxury of doing likewise, however.  

Post of the year.  Sober, required reading for all.  

[showcase22gr1959]

51 minutes ago, jabats said:

No argument about modern comic circulation. Although TPBs and web/app readers have contributed to that too.

but I think golden and silver age collecting has very much decoupled from modern comic collecting. Some overlap of course but not as much as many might think. Sure Dwindling sales numbers for new issues, meanwhile many back issue runs are selling better than ever (and to younger collectors)

He's been bearish on the Vintage Comics for a while and even more bearish with Hulk 181 over five years ago. The top market maker in this industry happens to be very bullish in the Vintage Comic market and they are seeing influx of new money and widespread interests in this industry.

[showcase22gr1959]

1 hour ago, jabats said:

I agree with much of the above except the reported "demographic problem" of the hobby.

of course we have the "old guard", collectors in their 50s, 60s and 70s who own what are now extremely valuable books (less so when they originally acquired them)

And, the market for golden and silver age westerns, cartoon animals, etc does not seem to be picking up new and younger collectors at the same rate it's losing the older collectors. As far as I'm aware, these sub niches within the hobby have already stagnated or are in decline price wise.

contrast that with golden age and silver age key superhero books. If anything I am surprised by all the collectors in their 30s and early 40s. I'm not just talking about Hulk 181s, I see younger (30something) collectors chasing Cap 1s, Superman 1s, AF15s, Hulk 1s, etc.

the popularity of superheroes has never been higher.

look at the lines outside a comic con or at an Avengers movie. All the young faces, teens, 20s and 30somethings. Of course not all will start collecting comics. But many do. And many of those who do, gravitate towards bronze, silver and golden age books. I know I did.

Many new young collectors has entered the market. In recent years the market has gravitated towards keys and has caused the increase demand for these books. This is the new shift which have caught many folks off guard.

[SECollector]

7 hours ago, delekkerste said:

Of course it's not going to be immune to this bubble bursting.  I haven't put a dime of fresh money into my collection since 2015 (all purchases from January 2016-present have been fully offset by matching sales), and am actually looking to take some money off the table completely this year.  I've also taken my stock portfolio down from about 99% invested in the first quarter of the year to about 77% invested now (and that number is only going to continue to decline the more stretched valuations become). 

Not only that, but, many in the art hobby know that I have a unique system for accounting for my art holdings.  While of course I insure my collection for its full value and obviously base my buy/sell decisions and tax reporting on actual purchase and sale numbers, I mentally carry the value of my collection well below its current fair market value.  I've been collecting (mostly higher-end) art for almost 15 years (what you see on my ComicArtFans page represents only about 30% of my collection), so, of course my collection has meaningfully appreciated in value.  But, on the spreadsheet where I track my art collection, I carry the value of my collection at a mere 65% of my cost basis.  

In fact, whenever I buy a new piece, I automatically mark it down by a minimum of 20%, and usually more like a third to a half (heck, sometimes even more if I think that a piece is not going to hold its value).  It's like a bank taking a reserve for future losses - I do that with every piece that I buy, building in a cushion for the inevitable future bubble bursting.  That way, I am mentally prepared for my collection to withstand an enormous hit before its market value comes anywhere near where I am carrying my collection on the books.  Many collectors I know have this notion that they will always be able to at least get what they paid out of their collections, not realizing how much they've spent at fairly high levels in recent years.  When the bubble bursts, and, more importantly, when the underlying demographics of the comic/comic art hobby turns (which may not happen for another 15-20 years, though, it could conceivably happen a lot sooner), I can tell you with metaphysical certainty that there is not enough money or interest in the younger generations to clear the market at ever-escalating prices.  

Most art collectors I know couldn't buy their collections over again if they had to; those in the younger generations, with poorer economic prospects, who won't have had the benefit of building nest eggs from the kinds of investment returns we saw in the '80s-present (for now...), and whose interests have been splintered into an infinite number of different directions post-1995 (the Internet era), will simply not have the aggregate interest or resources to do so either.  Prices will have to fall to put the market back in equilibrium.  The best case scenario is that the top 1% of material will hold up while everything else goes in the crapper (kind of like sports cards today), though, I wouldn't be surprised to see an across-the-board stagnation/decline eventually.  

In my own personal case, I never collected comic art for financial gain - I collect it because I love it.  That said, I've accumulated enough over the years that there's a decent amount of non-core holdings that I can trim given my view that prices are unsustainably high for the long-run.  However, I fully intend to keep the core of my collection far beyond the optimal time to sell, and will undoubtedly suffer along with the other true collectors when the demographics of this hobby inevitably turn for the worse.  And, I'm OK with that, given that I love my collection, and because my art & collectibles holdings are a meaningful, but minority, amount of my holdings.  I'm not so sure that those who have a higher % of their wealth in collectibles and/or who are actually relying on their collections to appreciate to meet their financial objectives will have the luxury of doing likewise, however.  

 This was a very thoughtful and sober analysis, thank you for that.

I am of those guys at 30+ (well... more of a 40 minus) that only recently started collecting books (and from all the way over the Atlantic as well). But if I am entitled to an opinion, here is what I always keep in mind when collecting (and I pretty much concur with the substance of your thoughts above): 1. I collect what I really like, love, admire, appreciate for many reasons and want to keep as a treasure for me and probably for my kids too when I disappear, and 2. I never keep all my eggs in one basket and don't let my financial future depend on the comic book market. I actually let my wife to be in charge of our serious financial matters, and I play with my comic funds, lol. Would I be better off financially in the future if I invested my comic funds in a more "wise" or safe way? Maybe or even probably. Would I have as much fun? No way.

P.S. I checked out your art collection and my jaw dropped. Thank you for sharing!

 

[piper]

4 hours ago, SECollector said:

 This was a very thoughtful and sober analysis, thank you for that.

I am of those guys at 30+ (well... more of a 40 minus) that only recently started collecting books (and from all the way over the Atlantic as well). But if I am entitled to an opinion, here is what I always keep in mind when collecting (and I pretty much concur with the substance of your thoughts above): 1. I collect what I really like, love, admire, appreciate for many reasons and want to keep as a treasure for me and probably for my kids too when I disappear, and 2. I never keep all my eggs in one basket and don't let my financial future depend on the comic book market. I actually let my wife to be in charge of our serious financial matters, and I play with my comic funds, lol. Would I be better off financially in the future if I invested my comic funds in a more "wise" or safe way? Maybe or even probably. Would I have as much fun? No way.

P.S. I checked out your art collection and my jaw dropped. Thank you for sharing!

 

Love your sig line!

[SECollector]

1 hour ago, piper said:

Love your sig line!

 Thank you so much, sir!

[Chickenwings]

AF15 5.0 on comic link is at 30.5K with 19 hours left.  Any guesses on hammer price?

[zhamlau]

Great Color, centering (best way to describe it), PQ, and overall condition...but wow that chipping is not appealing. Its at 31,500 now. Im gonna say 40k. I think that chipping has to cost it.

[Jordysnordy]

The next big test - July ComicLink auction

 

[NoMan]

1 hour ago, Jordysnordy said:

The next big test - July ComicLink auction

 

 

Was that the one that was at a BIN at 280k? or 245k?   I'm so confused. Gotta agree w/Gotham Kid: Lots and lots of 7.5 and 8.0s for sale.

 

Wasn't there two 8.0s on the Exchange? Ugh….

Edited June 20, 2017 by NoMan

[peewee22]

A killer copy. Very nice yellows and grays. The streaks are white.