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I am 50 years old....
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57 posts in this topic

1 hour ago, gumbydarnit said:

You know, if you do downsize by choice or necessity, you can make an effort to find collectors in your area and get together. I get satisfaction in my friends collections. I’m happy when they land a coveted piece. Kinda like if I can’t own it, it’s almost as cool that my buddy has it.

If I sold off big chunks of my collection, I get the feeling I would be dropping in by my bud’s house a lot more frequently. 

Couldn't agree with this more. I have made friends with several people that could be viewed as competitors as we have a lot of overlapping tastes and targets ... but since I have made close friendships with many of them, it doesn't seem like competition at all. I just wish they did live closer so we could hang out more often. 

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5 minutes ago, RabidFerret said:

Am I the only one who hid his art collection, gave pieces of the map to various collectors, and then spent years setting up booby traps? 

You own the holy grail?!!!

50b4813bb62a43c2bc67065657e5febd.jpg

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I’m 52 and have begun to thin the herd, especially comic book wise. In the last few years I have sold over 8000 books on the boards and am almost down to the bare bones and I doubt I will move the remaining 1500 books I have left. 
Keeping my ASMs 1-100, all my Conans, Godzillas and some mags. I thought I would feel immense sadness selling books that I owned for over 35 years but it was very liberating and I used to funds to fill in some CGC ASM needs.


I have also sold all of my OA except my pages from Peter Parker the Spectacular Spider-Man 21 as I’m still determined to try and put the complete book together.

In the event I croak before I sell everything, the wife will have a good friend and fellow boardie sell whatever remains and the boardie is to keep 10% for his time and effort selling everything. He has the same arrangement with me. No point to leave this to our wives as they will be out of their element and would undoubtedly leave money on the table selling it themselves.

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3 hours ago, grapeape said:

This is a useful yet sobering post by the OP. Ole grape remembers like yesterday watching MTV and waiting for Fire and Ice to come out on the big screen.

Like yesterday.

Enjoy yourself while you can cuz life goes by so fast they told me. For most of my young life I didn’t believe them. 
These remaining years seem precious to me. My granddaughter and my nieces and nephews are what keep me in the present.

I truly appreciate all of you here. I feel connected to every one who posts. Of course some of you I made a closer connection with you know who you are guys.

Enjoy the art. If you are really stressed out about letting value get away by holding to long, do what you have to do.

Im going to hold. I have some great pieces in particular that I am hounded for. I guess that’s part of the fun right? Having art that others want and desire.

Lets cheer up I guess is what I’m saying. Yes many of us are growing old. As Tony Sopranos mother used to say for those who dared to feel sorry for themselves, “Aw, poor you.”lol

Post of 2021...

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I turn 50 in September so I'm going to be joining the club soon :)  I also share the same thoughts as many of you it seems.  I will always appreciate this hobby and I treasure the few pieces that I've kept over the years.  But as our kids grow older, my views of comic art change as the needs of my family changes.

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On 3/1/2021 at 7:20 AM, batman_fan said:

I am a “little” older (56) and I am in the process of thinning the herd but only for stuff that I don’t really need to continue owning and feel okay with letting go. This is about six pieces of OA and maybe 7000 to 8000 comics. All of this stuff would be a challenge for my son to sell and whatever I keep I will make sure he knows who to contact to sell it at a decent price.

I think I will be left with just CGC graded books and higher dollar OA. No interest in selling any of that stuff just yet as the money from it isn’t needed and I still derive a lot of enjoyment from owning it. 

How are you selling the vast majority of your comics?  I am weighing this issue as well.

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3 hours ago, Peter L said:

How are you selling the vast majority of your comics?  I am weighing this issue as well.

Very good question!  I am still trying to figure it out but here is my approach so far.

1.  Dupe CGC book, try to do it on the message boards with limited success and then off to CLINK auction.  So far pretty happy with the results.  Nothing super expensive, just stuff in the $300 to 4k range.

2.  Stuff worth more than $300 - send to CGC to be graded then do step 1.

3.  Book bundles - basically bundle a group of raw books together with a single price.  I try to go on the cheap side for these books.  These I have moved on the boards but so far just one group listed and sold.  I am in the process of putting together some more groups.

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44 minutes ago, batman_fan said:

Very good question!  I am still trying to figure it out but here is my approach so far.

1.  Dupe CGC book, try to do it on the message boards with limited success and then off to CLINK auction.  So far pretty happy with the results.  Nothing super expensive, just stuff in the $300 to 4k range.

2.  Stuff worth more than $300 - send to CGC to be graded then do step 1.

3.  Book bundles - basically bundle a group of raw books together with a single price.  I try to go on the cheap side for these books.  These I have moved on the boards but so far just one group listed and sold.  I am in the process of putting together some more groups.

Thanks. I have a friend who has a large comic store.  I was thinking of pulling out the ones I want to keep and selling the rest to him.  I'm sure I would take a loss the the potential value, but it might save me time.  

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11 hours ago, Peter L said:

 

Thanks. I have a friend who has a large comic store.  I was thinking of pulling out the ones I want to keep and selling the rest to him.  I'm sure I would take a loss the the potential value, but it might save me time.  

I sent some stuff to my local shop. Not so happy with the paid amount— but I did clear out a lot of space.

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6 hours ago, Rick2you2 said:

I sent some stuff to my local shop. Not so happy with the paid amount— but I did clear out a lot of space.

I have a friend who sells parts of his large collection on ebay in singles and small groups at a time.  He finds it relaxing.  

I would find selling things off stressful because of the time expenditure.  For me, my time is still more valuable than my money, and time is money is really true for me.  I battle with this idea of losing what I could have made, but I also struggle with the fallacy of sunk costs.  

I have been looking for a new house because we have outgrown my current one.  But if I just sell half of my boxes of common books I would solve a lot of problems.

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3 hours ago, Peter L said:

I have a friend who sells parts of his large collection on ebay in singles and small groups at a time.  He finds it relaxing.  

I would find selling things off stressful because of the time expenditure.  For me, my time is still more valuable than my money, and time is money is really true for me.  I battle with this idea of losing what I could have made, but I also struggle with the fallacy of sunk costs.  

I have been looking for a new house because we have outgrown my current one.  But if I just sell half of my boxes of common books I would solve a lot of problems.

I gave up and gave about 20 boxes or so to charity (checking them first, of course)

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I have three pieces of art that I will try to donate next year to the Bill Ireland Museum or another museum that collects comic art. Good sentimental pieces that I have had for over 40 years and don't want to ever be flipped. More public exhibits will keep the art market healthy. The rest I will leave plenty of documentation for each one and make it simple for me or my family to sell or keep.

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On 3/1/2021 at 1:16 PM, ESeffinga said:

I keep a spreadsheet as well. Not for 10-20 years down the line, but for right now. No guarantee any of us makes it through the current year.

I try to update my lists every year with more current data. Removing sold pieces, and adding newer ones. I include thumbnail photos, so it’s not just down to a text list. 
 

I don’t bother with what I paid, or who the art came from. In a lot of cases the current values are so far away from their start point it’s silly. And a lot of the sellers are gone from the hobby, or do t really matter anyway. And much originated with the artist anyhow. What I do include is current market value estimations real-world ranges so they know what’s “high” and what’s “fire sale” pricing.  Along with recommended sources of who to contact when selling. Names, numbers, email and/or social media info. I also keep a list of people that have shown serious interest in any given piece that are also known CAF players, so they can be contacted for potential direct sales. I don’t bother listing all the strangers, but when a serious collector sniffs around, I take note.

I do this so the Mrs (or whoever else in my family) is not left stranded with wondering what to do, or worried about being taken advantage of on comic or any other art sales.
 

AND maybe more importantly, I also have a list of OA friends and acquaintances that I trust, who I also list for purposes of getting up to date advice, should it be needed. Certain ones for certain things.  This is where all those friendships in the OA world with artists and other collectors really come into their own. I’ve been asked to do the same for a couple friends. We all just look out for each other, and all gain a little extra peace of mind. 
 

In essence my main approach is to look at everything objectively, and ask myself what I know that they don’t, and then try to create easy informative ways of answering questions that haven’t been asked yet.
 

That to me is the biggest goal. Some art will sell itself. Others you have to have a more focused pipeline for. Know which is which. 
 

I’ve been thinning down as of late. No other reason than it all just feels like too much sitting around. I for one think it feels great to pare down to personal “necessities” from time to time.

  This is a really great post. As someone a little younger (31) and who doesn't make a lot of $$$... This post really lays out a groundwork of why the hobby is worth it, and how to manage my own interest in the hobby going forward. 

 

Actually, every single post in this thread has been very valuable for me to read and consider. Thanks everyone.

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