A very big problem is that most of these books aren’t going in the hands of collectors. Dealers and investors are playing hot potato with all these books, and I’m glad they’re getting burned. Comic prices are still inflated. Auction houses putting a Tec #27 up every month is just a plain stupid idea. No duh one of these books was going to get slapped down, and that looks awful for the hobby.
The main problem is most collectors cant afford the books. Slabbing is ruining the industry. There is no way that uf4 is worth that much. It was a mass produced book.
I’m a hardcore Golden Age buyer myself and I’ve noticed a lot of bargains these days on e-bay, although it’s given me more chances to recently fill in some holes in my collection so I’m really not complaining all that much, but yeah I can see why some people might be nervous.
From an investment standpoint, stocks and real estate are always 1 and 2. Sometimes, collectible/comics can outperform (e.g. pre-code horror 10 years ago was dirt cheap, romance books etc), but there is a lot of luck involved in that (perhaps westerns will take off in 5 years it's impossible to predict). I love comics and they bring me much joy, but I am hard pressed to let them grow to more than 10% of my net worth because of all the risks involved in any collectible.
I don't think of comics as investments to begin with, so this is not a big deal to me. I can understand if you're flipping comics, it may be a big deal, though. Investments to me are real estate, stocks, cd's, etc. If you're depending on comics for your retirement, I hope you get lucky because you have so little control over the pricing, when to get in, when to get out, etc. With stocks/options, I can buy/sell puts, calls, buy covered calls, go short a stock, etc. in order to buy protection. With comics, I can buy and pray. lol. I also don't buy 5 or 6-figure comics, so I really don't focus much on that end of the pool. When I buy stocks, I have no problem dropping large money. I still haven't talked myself into putting money like that into what I consider a hobby (comic book collecting) as opposed to a livelihood or retirement funds. If you're doing it as a fun hobby, you shouldn't be worried about inflation, but that's just my opinion. On a side note, I see people not even taking into account things like shipping, buyer premiums, taxes, etc. into the "total cost" of what they paid for the comic so they can figure out how much they made when they sell it. So if a $100 bid wins a comic, it may have really cost you $125-$130. Then when you sell it, you should use that value and not the $100 to determine what your "profit is" (as well as any selling/shipping/other fees you incur when you sell). I honestly don't take into account inflation when I buy and sell comics since I just think of it as a hobby and it's a small portion of my net worth.
I think we are in a comic recession and teetering on depression. Biggest factor is economy, but also movies from marvel and DC have gotten no new hype. Plus few kids these days are getting into comics unfortunately. I think keys will always have their place but the new material coming out of publishers is not getting new readers to help grow the hobby.
There are other problems too. When Marvel rekt The Punisher, it signaled that the origin stories, no matter how awesome, could also be creatively destroyed by management. A lot of characters are subject to this risk. Maybe they have learned “go woke, go broke.” But this risk is now a non-zero number, and the “universe” is full of stronger characters that would be targets for softening. Also the demographics for collectors is getting older and they are more likely sellers than buyers as they retire.
Maybe people aren't taking the inflation rate into account but, it's more likely that, because of the high inflation rate, people are will to spend less. Therefore, the sellers must either lower their prices or hold on to them. Also, I think that there are more people out there that were collecting in the 80's and 90's that are now wanting to sell their collections. So, the volume of books available has increased which also drives down prices. Supply and Demand rules.
I’ve pivoted to only spending a lot on original art and not buying any comic over $200 so that way when it goes down it’s not that big of a deal and there’s actually so many amazing books to collect in that price range. I find it more rewarding collecting original art anyways.
Great video! I really think the current dip is because of how cold comics are culturally. The last decade of DCU movies died out and the MCU has put out content that almost no one (outside of collectors and forever fans) are enthusiastic about. I think it'll kick back up and we'll see the market improve as we continue to build on the cultural excitement of Deadpool and Wolvie moving into next year with the release of Superman and Fantastic Four.
Thanks for this. It doesn't hurt to have a realistic take on this. Each time I buy a book, it becomes mine to sell, so it's good to think about both ends of the spectrum.
Another thing to consider: Let's say you held a book for 5 years. During those 5 years, inflation had an impact on the value of money. When you went to sell, you got exactly enough to offset the inflationary impact. For example, you spent $1,000. Five years later, it would take $1,250 to have the same amount of "spending power." When you sold, you got $1,250. So, even though it looked like you made a profit, all you did was (in essence) break even. You didn't really make any money. Relatively simple concept, right? Maybe not. Try telling the IRS you didn't make a profit.
lol that’s is part of the problem. Also you had to pay costs associated with storing the comic. The big loss is through inflation devaluing the money but irs doesn’t care
Great video. You cannot buy and flip any longer. You buy a book and the value will drop instantly. You have to buy because you love or because you invest in the future. Will the market turn again? Probably. But I do think that most buyers are in the 50+ range. In 30 years, the comic market will consist of very few people. It's simple math. Out kids will have a hard time selling our collections when we are gone. So I think you have to collect for the enjoyment of the books, not the value. Don't overspend. This is the time to haggle. I wrote Metropolis comics 1,5 years ago about some books. Some other huge seller as well. They both got back to me a few weeks ago. They are desperate as well. The money is gone from the market.
You are correct on the inflation concern that many don’t consider. The average inflation rate in the US from 2019-2024 is 3.30%, yes we hit 9% one month but it’s not the annual average. Each book should be selling at $15 more per $100 from 2019 FMV to stay even.
Food for thought. Hope to see books like 'Negro Romance #1' and the Centaur rarity 'Little Giant Comics #4' spotlighted from the Saturday portion of the auction along with the 'usual suspects (keys)'.
Great point, I actually posted this in the CGC Collectors group on FB about this exact topic. $1 in 2019 had the same purchasing power as $1.23 now, which is why folks who say they are still up 20% in their comic investments are mistaken. While I appreciate optimism, reality is important when we look at where we are in 2024!
What about the fact that the market has been flooded with graded comics and sports cards since Covid started. Before Covid, there was a perception that there were far less high grade of any comic. Now we are seeing just how NOT rare a cgc 9.8 is, and every grade down the line. It would be like Ferrari deciding to produce ten million of a vehicle. Even if they all sold for a high price, they’re no longer rare, and thus, don’t appreciate in the same way as a limited production rare Ferrari. Thoughts?
I am still buying comics but had to cut back drastically because prices of goods and gas jumped too high while my pay stayed the same the last three years. I am not hitting the panic button but I’m more conservative with my spending and not falling for the hype of the latest hot books to buy. There’s no rush to make a purchase. Great topic Allen!
The comic book market is not regulated by any official entity, and values are not consistently designated. The deal is that buyers pay what the market, at the time, allows, and the seller holds or folds.
As a comic collector I try to get everything under cover price, and I am able to. I don't understand the whole community thing. I put my comics in chronological reading order, and I have 30,000 books I'm trying read. There aren't people that do that, because I think about how to remember everything you read, and how to construct a saga. Those are things I'm concerned with. You are doing something different than collecting. You are trying to make money. I'm not scared of prices going down, I am thrilled prices are going down.
The economy is in a bad spot. People have less discretionary income. Simple economics. Comic prices will be going down even more because people are selling their books to compensate for higher inflation prices.
You definitely have valud points, the biggest problem with Comic Collecting and investing properly is that the majority of collectors purchase on impulse and emotion and not necessarily understanding the investing portion even though thay are calling it an investment.
Yeah, as investments go comics aren't bad. The good thing is you can enjoy looking at them while they appreciate. You can't do this with stocks or bonds.
This is a hobby and the older generation who cared most for this stuff are passing away. Comics now are not as popular as they were in the late 20th century. I love my comics ('80's-'90's), but I understand most people don't care about these books and that's fine. I never thought about becoming rich owning these books.
I have been expecting this and am buying in. I’m a new collector. I chose graded comics over shares of Masterworks to diversify my portfolio with fine art
One thing that I worry about with the hobby. The core collectors that buy comics are aging out now. I don’t feel like there’s a strong youth that are coming up to actually collect comics.
Comics are a luxury collectible and usually a disposable income item for fun or maybe an "investment". Inflation rates being sky high is the reason people AREN'T able to by books because the cost of living is just to high. Comic conventions are as crowded as ever and the interest is absolutely still there and as the economy gets better the prices on these books and other collectibles will absolutely go up and a steadier rate. Without a doubt its a buyers market still if you're into it for the long haul (10+ years ish) and remember that yes these books become investments they should be bought for what they really are and that's a collectible that does generally show slow steady growth but not like a traditional "investment" such as real estate or stocks etc... Great video and just keep buying. Over the long term it will all balance out and you'll be sitting on a fantastic collection.
There are so many factors that go into the purchase of any particular comic book, that fluctuations are inevitable. At auction it takes at least two interested bidders with adequate resources to be present and engaged when the sale occurs. If one of them just blew his budget on another book, or was sick that evening, or at a wedding, or fighting with his wife, or doing any other conceivable thing, well, then maybe the diminished pool of engaged bidders resulted in a lower price. What if the heavy hitters are saving their money for San Diego? Maybe there are arrangements being ironed out right now for transactions that will occur in July. Who knows? Because there are so many factors (timing, personalities, resources, alternate sources for material, and more) that can affect any particular transaction, I tend to think of any sale that's up to 20% less than market (or up to 20% more than market, for that matter) as being within a fairly predictable and reasonable range of deviation. These are comic books, after all, and our understanding of the market will always be imperfect. That said, I would agree that prices on some books do seem soft. And in this regard I am only talking about Golden Age books. I lack the knowledge to have any opinion about the more recent stuff, except perhaps to echo a vibe that seems to be resonating with other collectors.
As a comic collector and occasional investor, I’d have to say the investor in me so far gone, I won’t buy a comic in the 4 figures anymore. I’ve adjusted back to collecting only, which I still love. A great $50 book gives me the same joy as buying a 5k book for investment. I started investing in 2015-2019 heavily and it……..hasn’t gone well. Since that time I bought property and learned about stocks. I definitely realized that collectibles are rarely a better investment than the big 2: Real Estate and Stonks. It’s a learning experience and it was VERY fun buying big books for a while. No regerts! But now, I’m transferring the big money into something else for a while. Comics will have their day again, but they’ll be starting at a new low and grow from there.
I judge the market my looking at ASM 300 cgc 9.8…. It was $2,000 before the pandemic, then jumped all the way to $8,500!!! Now it’s consistently been dropping for the last 2 years, it’s all the way down to only $2,650 range and It doesn’t look like the bleeding is done yet… Definitely not selling mine anytime soon!
Collectibles including comics are a higher risk investment. Investing in a stock index fund will almost always outperform a collectible portfolio in a market where inflation is running north of 5%. Getting 5% or more in a typical money market fund is hard to pass up. The true risk is what % of your investments are in collectibles vs other standard investments (stocks and bonds). My rule of thumb is that collectibles investments should not be greater than 5-10% of one’s entire investment portfolio (excluding real estate - your home). Finally, until the average person has greater financial stability and/or wealth (lower inflation/prices for food, housing, basic necessities), until interest rates significantly decrease, until wages increase, etc, comic prices will continue to be suppressed. Yes, it is absolutely a buyer’s market if you have the funds. For me, I have been divesting my covid buys (at losses) and re-investing in lower census golden and silver age books that are at decent discounts now.
Besides the inflation rate at 4%, what else is causing the comic books from the golden age to be dropping in prices? The pricing guide is based on what?
@@ComicCollectorGeek My mother always told me when I was a kid to never invest into comic books because she never trusted the prices of comic books because the prices are make believe not real and when the economy drops you will lose all your money in the comic books. Back before the internet you have to "trust" the comic book owner of the prices because you had really no way of knowing what the real prices or marking fair values were back before the internet so its very risky purchasing comic books from the 50's and 60's era is this true statement?
If you simply collect and the organic outcome of that Hobbie adds value to what you have, then at least you may recoup your base monies. If it was supposed to be an investment, you would have bought and sold that item many time, like stocks and maybe bonds. Even real-estate depends on location. If you property taxes are 16k a years, maintenence, utilities, etc... eats that gorgeous profit you expected in 5 to 10 years. Some get lucky others generally lose.
All the people who bought during the boom and now are desperate for money are dumping their books. Thats why we have dipped below the slow upward trajectory line. It will recover and normalize. I think most people are broke now because i see books priced at or below fmv just sitting and sitting and sitting. I think with all your purchasing you can single handedly keep the market afloat though, haha!
Comics are lousy investments - not only are they not liquid and have high storage and transaction costs, but they are a game of whack-a-mole... there have been thousands of new comics issues printed in the last 30 years - hundreds of which became hot comics - Comics that went from less than cover price value to $250 or whatever, based on the MCU, or a cartoon, etc., most of which are now down to $30 to $75, and many of them are un-sellable even at the much lower numbers because literally everyone who might want one, has one - and those who have one where they paid less than $75 can't sell it, and thousands who paid $150 to $250 when it was up, or on it's way up, are sitting on them, and won't sell it because they don't want to "take" and accept the loss (actually, they'd have a hard time selling it for even $75 - because, again, no one wants them). This applies to almost every comic printed since 1990. Then, to a progressively-lesser extent, the same holds true for Bronze, Silver and to the least extent, Gold - but it's all the same. Prices were inflated across the board by the MCU, the ease of Ebay access, and baby-boomer wealth attempting to buy back their childhood - exacerbated by the RUclips screamers who breathlessly screamed about new all time highs - which really brought out the suckers hoping to get rich by buying comics with credit cards - all of those things are waning - so, with no new entrants to comic collecting (the kids - who physically cannot buy comics because they're not sold in stores - half the US population of children can't get to a comic store - and most can't get there unless someone drives them) this is a hobby that is in trouble going forward.
im sure its already been said on here, but buy books you like and want to collect....If i ever got a Tec 27 or Action 1--it would never leave my possession
Inflation means nothing if you have 2 people bidding on a book. If the winner has paid a very large amount then perversely it seems that sale value becomes the new standard price for that book. That is unsustainable. It's why comic buyers ignore dealers' prices at comic cons. Also, in Cov** times too many people had too much disposable income and that was what surged prices up. It's not rocket science.
When compared to other index’s like the stock market and precious metals, comics are in a big time slump. I would have guessed that collectibles would track right behind other investments. It looks like there was a major correction in silver and beyond.
Hello. Big fan of your channel and content. I need your expertise. I just won at Heritage Auction; Great Comics #1 “knockout variant” by L.B Cole Not sure if this is some kind of facsimile or something. Not sure if that why I got it at a steal of a price. Won it for $444 . Any info will be appreciated.
you likely got a bit of a deal, some things to consider tho: there are a relatively high amount of high grades for this book, and its relatively common. Again, both are relative to GA. That being said, 444 for a 1945 lbcole cover in 8.5 seems like a great deal. Congrats!
I think it’s a twofold issue. There was a natural increase during Covid that we are all aware of. Also, the MCU, as a whole, was putting out fairly respectable movies on a regular basis. That drives the consumer interest in particular books. How many times have we seen books spike in the last two or three years because of a movie coming out, only to watch it plummet after the movie was a bomb. If Disney and the MCU ever start producing respectable movies again, I expect the market will adjust. Although, if you were buying comics during the height of the pandemic and the height of the MCU. You might be in trouble! Lol.
There is always a focus on big books but the majority of Golden, Silver, and Bronze age books can be bought for $20 or less. Not much more than new books today.
Collectibles may be assets but they are not investments. Buying comic books for a monetary gain is closer to gambling than investing. Buy what you enjoy with money you can afford to lose.
What about demographics? The people who care about comic books are getting older and will retire and croak in the near future. The younger generations don’t care much for comic books. Demographics is a bigger problem.
I've been collecting for almost 40 years and I can tell you, comics are a bad investment if that's why you're buying them. If you like to collect to collect or collect to read, fine but to make a good profit on a comic? My advice invest in the stock market, crypto, real estate or metals long before you go comics.
I don't want to get political, but probably 70% of the problem is the economy. When people are paying half-again as much for staples as they were a few years ago, they're not going to be as willing to drop as much for a comic, unless they're rich. Most collectors are not rich. All I know is, the market was healthy four years ago.
It's like everyone who got into Comic Book investing and slabbing comics had amnesia or conveniently forgot the '90s comic book crash. History has repeated itself.
A very big problem is that most of these books aren’t going in the hands of collectors. Dealers and investors are playing hot potato with all these books, and I’m glad they’re getting burned. Comic prices are still inflated. Auction houses putting a Tec #27 up every month is just a plain stupid idea. No duh one of these books was going to get slapped down, and that looks awful for the hobby.
The main problem is most collectors cant afford the books. Slabbing is ruining the industry. There is no way that uf4 is worth that much. It was a mass produced book.
I’m a hardcore Golden Age buyer myself and I’ve noticed a lot of bargains these days on
e-bay, although it’s given me more chances to recently fill in some holes in my collection so I’m really not complaining all that much, but yeah I can see why some people might be nervous.
From an investment standpoint, stocks and real estate are always 1 and 2. Sometimes, collectible/comics can outperform (e.g. pre-code horror 10 years ago was dirt cheap, romance books etc), but there is a lot of luck involved in that (perhaps westerns will take off in 5 years it's impossible to predict). I love comics and they bring me much joy, but I am hard pressed to let them grow to more than 10% of my net worth because of all the risks involved in any collectible.
I invest in black & white televisions
Nailed it
@@raleighcomicbookcollector wood grain with a 13 channel dial! It's the only way to play atari games and watch I Love Lucy!
I like comic books as a collectible. But no asset can go up indefinitely, comic books have been on a tear for 10+ years.
Slabbing has so overinflated prices that most people cant afford the books.
I don't think of comics as investments to begin with, so this is not a big deal to me. I can understand if you're flipping comics, it may be a big deal, though. Investments to me are real estate, stocks, cd's, etc. If you're depending on comics for your retirement, I hope you get lucky because you have so little control over the pricing, when to get in, when to get out, etc. With stocks/options, I can buy/sell puts, calls, buy covered calls, go short a stock, etc. in order to buy protection. With comics, I can buy and pray. lol. I also don't buy 5 or 6-figure comics, so I really don't focus much on that end of the pool. When I buy stocks, I have no problem dropping large money. I still haven't talked myself into putting money like that into what I consider a hobby (comic book collecting) as opposed to a livelihood or retirement funds. If you're doing it as a fun hobby, you shouldn't be worried about inflation, but that's just my opinion. On a side note, I see people not even taking into account things like shipping, buyer premiums, taxes, etc. into the "total cost" of what they paid for the comic so they can figure out how much they made when they sell it. So if a $100 bid wins a comic, it may have really cost you $125-$130. Then when you sell it, you should use that value and not the $100 to determine what your "profit is" (as well as any selling/shipping/other fees you incur when you sell). I honestly don't take into account inflation when I buy and sell comics since I just think of it as a hobby and it's a small portion of my net worth.
💯
The point of comic is to read & enjoy them everything else is a side benefit, slabbing is the antithesis of this
I think we are in a comic recession and teetering on depression. Biggest factor is economy, but also movies from marvel and DC have gotten no new hype. Plus few kids these days are getting into comics unfortunately. I think keys will always have their place but the new material coming out of publishers is not getting new readers to help grow the hobby.
There are other problems too. When Marvel rekt The Punisher, it signaled that the origin stories, no matter how awesome, could also be creatively destroyed by management. A lot of characters are subject to this risk. Maybe they have learned “go woke, go broke.” But this risk is now a non-zero number, and the “universe” is full of stronger characters that would be targets for softening.
Also the demographics for collectors is getting older and they are more likely sellers than buyers as they retire.
You are spot on!!! Factor in recent inflation and comics are actually less than before the COVID mailbox money spree! Thanks for sharing the video!
Maybe people aren't taking the inflation rate into account but, it's more likely that, because of the high inflation rate, people are will to spend less. Therefore, the sellers must either lower their prices or hold on to them. Also, I think that there are more people out there that were collecting in the 80's and 90's that are now wanting to sell their collections. So, the volume of books available has increased which also drives down prices. Supply and Demand rules.
Yeah supply and demand is majorly at play. Even ComicTom mentioned people are dumping their key books.
The auction houses haven't slowed down they are still selling a ton of books.
I’m loving this as I am filling in holes in my collection. I bought to read and collect but never to sell and make money so it can go to zero.
If a collector can't stand to lose money on a book, then they shouldn't buy it. Hobbies are hobbies, not businesses.
Well said
I’ve pivoted to only spending a lot on original art and not buying any comic over $200 so that way when it goes down it’s not that big of a deal and there’s actually so many amazing books to collect in that price range. I find it more rewarding collecting original art anyways.
Great video! I really think the current dip is because of how cold comics are culturally. The last decade of DCU movies died out and the MCU has put out content that almost no one (outside of collectors and forever fans) are enthusiastic about. I think it'll kick back up and we'll see the market improve as we continue to build on the cultural excitement of Deadpool and Wolvie moving into next year with the release of Superman and Fantastic Four.
Thanks for this. It doesn't hurt to have a realistic take on this. Each time I buy a book, it becomes mine to sell, so it's good to think about both ends of the spectrum.
Another thing to consider:
Let's say you held a book for 5 years. During those 5 years, inflation had an impact on the value of money. When you went to sell, you got exactly enough to offset the inflationary impact.
For example, you spent $1,000. Five years later, it would take $1,250 to have the same amount of "spending power." When you sold, you got $1,250. So, even though it looked like you made a profit, all you did was (in essence) break even.
You didn't really make any money. Relatively simple concept, right? Maybe not. Try telling the IRS you didn't make a profit.
lol that’s is part of the problem. Also you had to pay costs associated with storing the comic. The big loss is through inflation devaluing the money but irs doesn’t care
Great video. You cannot buy and flip any longer. You buy a book and the value will drop instantly. You have to buy because you love or because you invest in the future. Will the market turn again? Probably. But I do think that most buyers are in the 50+ range. In 30 years, the comic market will consist of very few people. It's simple math. Out kids will have a hard time selling our collections when we are gone. So I think you have to collect for the enjoyment of the books, not the value. Don't overspend. This is the time to haggle. I wrote Metropolis comics 1,5 years ago about some books. Some other huge seller as well. They both got back to me a few weeks ago. They are desperate as well. The money is gone from the market.
You are correct on the inflation concern that many don’t consider. The average inflation rate in the US from 2019-2024 is 3.30%, yes we hit 9% one month but it’s not the annual average. Each book should be selling at $15 more per $100 from 2019 FMV to stay even.
Food for thought. Hope to see books like 'Negro Romance #1' and the Centaur rarity 'Little Giant Comics #4' spotlighted from the Saturday portion of the auction along with the 'usual suspects (keys)'.
Great books..sadly they didn't make the cut. I'll be showing some great stuff still though.
Cool ! 😎@@ComicCollectorGeek
Great point, I actually posted this in the CGC Collectors group on FB about this exact topic. $1 in 2019 had the same purchasing power as $1.23 now, which is why folks who say they are still up 20% in their comic investments are mistaken. While I appreciate optimism, reality is important when we look at where we are in 2024!
What about the fact that the market has been flooded with graded comics and sports cards since Covid started. Before Covid, there was a perception that there were far less high grade of any comic. Now we are seeing just how NOT rare a cgc 9.8 is, and every grade down the line. It would be like Ferrari deciding to produce ten million of a vehicle. Even if they all sold for a high price, they’re no longer rare, and thus, don’t appreciate in the same way as a limited production rare Ferrari. Thoughts?
I am still buying comics but had to cut back drastically because prices of goods and gas jumped too high while my pay stayed the same the last three years. I am not hitting the panic button but I’m more conservative with my spending and not falling for the hype of the latest hot books to buy. There’s no rush to make a purchase. Great topic Allen!
The comic book market is not regulated by any official entity, and values are not consistently designated. The deal is that buyers pay what the market, at the time, allows, and the seller holds or folds.
Thanks for your input . Happy to hear this . I really love the cover .
Over correction after such a bubble would be normal.
As a comic collector I try to get everything under cover price, and I am able to. I don't understand the whole community thing. I put my comics in chronological reading order, and I have 30,000 books I'm trying read. There aren't people that do that, because I think about how to remember everything you read, and how to construct a saga. Those are things I'm concerned with. You are doing something different than collecting. You are trying to make money. I'm not scared of prices going down, I am thrilled prices are going down.
The economy is in a bad spot. People have less discretionary income. Simple economics. Comic prices will be going down even more because people are selling their books to compensate for higher inflation prices.
Really this is my point. Ultimately the best time to be buyer. We went from the best time to be seller to now the best time as a buyer. Odd times.
It’s been an absolute joy for me, best of times 📚
More boomers passing away, means more books hitting the market ,less buyers. most kids inheriting those books, will let them go for fast bucks.
Correct
You definitely have valud points, the biggest problem with Comic Collecting and investing properly is that the majority of collectors purchase on impulse and emotion and not necessarily understanding the investing portion even though thay are calling it an investment.
Yeah, as investments go comics aren't bad. The good thing is you can enjoy looking at them while they appreciate. You can't do this with stocks or bonds.
This is a hobby and the older generation who cared most for this stuff are passing away. Comics now are not as popular as they were in the late 20th century. I love my comics ('80's-'90's), but I understand most people don't care about these books and that's fine. I never thought about becoming rich owning these books.
The inflationary pressures are real . Great analysis
I have been expecting this and am buying in. I’m a new collector. I chose graded comics over shares of Masterworks to diversify my portfolio with fine art
One thing that I worry about with the hobby. The core collectors that buy comics are aging out now. I don’t feel like there’s a strong youth that are coming up to actually collect comics.
Comics are a luxury collectible and usually a disposable income item for fun or maybe an "investment". Inflation rates being sky high is the reason people AREN'T able to by books because the cost of living is just to high. Comic conventions are as crowded as ever and the interest is absolutely still there and as the economy gets better the prices on these books and other collectibles will absolutely go up and a steadier rate. Without a doubt its a buyers market still if you're into it for the long haul (10+ years ish) and remember that yes these books become investments they should be bought for what they really are and that's a collectible that does generally show slow steady growth but not like a traditional "investment" such as real estate or stocks etc...
Great video and just keep buying. Over the long term it will all balance out and you'll be sitting on a fantastic collection.
There are so many factors that go into the purchase of any particular comic book, that fluctuations are inevitable. At auction it takes at least two interested bidders with adequate resources to be present and engaged when the sale occurs. If one of them just blew his budget on another book, or was sick that evening, or at a wedding, or fighting with his wife, or doing any other conceivable thing, well, then maybe the diminished pool of engaged bidders resulted in a lower price. What if the heavy hitters are saving their money for San Diego? Maybe there are arrangements being ironed out right now for transactions that will occur in July. Who knows? Because there are so many factors (timing, personalities, resources, alternate sources for material, and more) that can affect any particular transaction, I tend to think of any sale that's up to 20% less than market (or up to 20% more than market, for that matter) as being within a fairly predictable and reasonable range of deviation. These are comic books, after all, and our understanding of the market will always be imperfect. That said, I would agree that prices on some books do seem soft. And in this regard I am only talking about Golden Age books. I lack the knowledge to have any opinion about the more recent stuff, except perhaps to echo a vibe that seems to be resonating with other collectors.
As a comic collector and occasional investor, I’d have to say the investor in me so far gone, I won’t buy a comic in the 4 figures anymore. I’ve adjusted back to collecting only, which I still love. A great $50 book gives me the same joy as buying a 5k book for investment. I started investing in 2015-2019 heavily and it……..hasn’t gone well. Since that time I bought property and learned about stocks. I definitely realized that collectibles are rarely a better investment than the big 2: Real Estate and Stonks. It’s a learning experience and it was VERY fun buying big books for a while. No regerts! But now, I’m transferring the big money into something else for a while. Comics will have their day again, but they’ll be starting at a new low and grow from there.
Soft market was a result of a bubble bursting
I judge the market my looking at ASM 300 cgc 9.8…. It was $2,000 before the pandemic, then jumped all the way to $8,500!!! Now it’s consistently been dropping for the last 2 years, it’s all the way down to only $2,650 range and It doesn’t look like the bleeding is done yet… Definitely not selling mine anytime soon!
Collectibles including comics are a higher risk investment. Investing in a stock index fund will almost always outperform a collectible portfolio in a market where inflation is running north of 5%. Getting 5% or more in a typical money market fund is hard to pass up. The true risk is what % of your investments are in collectibles vs other standard investments (stocks and bonds). My rule of thumb is that collectibles investments should not be greater than 5-10% of one’s entire investment portfolio (excluding real estate - your home). Finally, until the average person has greater financial stability and/or wealth (lower inflation/prices for food, housing, basic necessities), until interest rates significantly decrease, until wages increase, etc, comic prices will continue to be suppressed. Yes, it is absolutely a buyer’s market if you have the funds. For me, I have been divesting my covid buys (at losses) and re-investing in lower census golden and silver age books that are at decent discounts now.
you can always "Hedge" your bets with other commodities, with maybe real estate, gold, etc., etc..
With me I like selling my items to fund new items in a cycle so if the economy collapses at least I’m not overwhelmed with what I’ve accumulated.
Besides the inflation rate at 4%, what else is causing the comic books from the golden age to be dropping in prices? The pricing guide is based on what?
The overall economy is weak and comics being a luxury are one of the victims of a weak economy.
@@ComicCollectorGeek My mother always told me when I was a kid to never invest into comic books because she never trusted the prices of comic books because the prices are make believe not real and when the economy drops you will lose all your money in the comic books. Back before the internet you have to "trust" the comic book owner of the prices because you had really no way of knowing what the real prices or marking fair values were back before the internet so its very risky purchasing comic books from the 50's and 60's era is this true statement?
@@ComicCollectorGeekThe prices for all comic books Is based and referenced on or against the Overstreet Comic book Price guide 2024?
If you simply collect and the organic outcome of that Hobbie adds value to what you have, then at least you may recoup your base monies. If it was supposed to be an investment, you would have bought and sold that item many time, like stocks and maybe bonds. Even real-estate depends on location. If you property taxes are 16k a years, maintenence, utilities, etc... eats that gorgeous profit you expected in 5 to 10 years. Some get lucky others generally lose.
How many key books have you sold Allen? I suspect most of us are in the hobby to collect versus investment opportunities.
Actually, I sold quite a lot many years ago. I mainly a collector now though. I enjoy seeing my books.
All the people who bought during the boom and now are desperate for money are dumping their books. Thats why we have dipped below the slow upward trajectory line. It will recover and normalize. I think most people are broke now because i see books priced at or below fmv just sitting and sitting and sitting. I think with all your purchasing you can single handedly keep the market afloat though, haha!
I'm trying lol. I seem to buy enough stuff.
Comics are lousy investments - not only are they not liquid and have high storage and transaction costs, but they are a game of whack-a-mole... there have been thousands of new comics issues printed in the last 30 years - hundreds of which became hot comics - Comics that went from less than cover price value to $250 or whatever, based on the MCU, or a cartoon, etc., most of which are now down to $30 to $75, and many of them are un-sellable even at the much lower numbers because literally everyone who might want one, has one - and those who have one where they paid less than $75 can't sell it, and thousands who paid $150 to $250 when it was up, or on it's way up, are sitting on them, and won't sell it because they don't want to "take" and accept the loss (actually, they'd have a hard time selling it for even $75 - because, again, no one wants them). This applies to almost every comic printed since 1990. Then, to a progressively-lesser extent, the same holds true for Bronze, Silver and to the least extent, Gold - but it's all the same. Prices were inflated across the board by the MCU, the ease of Ebay access, and baby-boomer wealth attempting to buy back their childhood - exacerbated by the RUclips screamers who breathlessly screamed about new all time highs - which really brought out the suckers hoping to get rich by buying comics with credit cards - all of those things are waning - so, with no new entrants to comic collecting (the kids - who physically cannot buy comics because they're not sold in stores - half the US population of children can't get to a comic store - and most can't get there unless someone drives them) this is a hobby that is in trouble going forward.
im sure its already been said on here, but buy books you like and want to collect....If i ever got a Tec 27 or Action 1--it would never leave my possession
Inflation means nothing if you have 2 people bidding on a book. If the winner has paid a very large amount then perversely it seems that sale value becomes the new standard price for that book.
That is unsustainable. It's why comic buyers ignore dealers' prices at comic cons. Also, in Cov** times too many people had too much disposable income and that was what surged prices up.
It's not rocket science.
Eyeroll: part of the point of investment is to retain value vs inflation.
Great buying opportunity
When compared to other index’s like the stock market and precious metals, comics are in a big time slump. I would have guessed that collectibles would track right behind other investments. It looks like there was a major correction in silver and beyond.
Great discussion good
Now is the time to buy those keys folks!
Hello. Big fan of your channel and content. I need your expertise.
I just won at Heritage Auction; Great Comics #1 “knockout variant” by L.B Cole
Not sure if this is some kind of facsimile or something. Not sure if that why I got it at a steal of a price. Won it for $444 .
Any info will be appreciated.
Congrats!
you likely got a bit of a deal, some things to consider tho: there are a relatively high amount of high grades for this book, and its relatively common. Again, both are relative to GA. That being said, 444 for a 1945 lbcole cover in 8.5 seems like a great deal. Congrats!
I think it’s a twofold issue. There was a natural increase during Covid that we are all aware of. Also, the MCU, as a whole, was putting out fairly respectable movies on a regular basis. That drives the consumer interest in particular books. How many times have we seen books spike in the last two or three years because of a movie coming out, only to watch it plummet after the movie was a bomb. If Disney and the MCU ever start producing respectable movies again, I expect the market will adjust. Although, if you were buying comics during the height of the pandemic and the height of the MCU. You might be in trouble! Lol.
Its not rocket science, people need money,on both sides
There is always a focus on big books but the majority of Golden, Silver, and Bronze age books can be bought for $20 or less. Not much more than new books today.
Very true...many comics would be a terrible investment.
It is hobby. I blame the grading companies who made it into a business and only they really earn on it
Collectibles may be assets but they are not investments. Buying comic books for a monetary gain is closer to gambling than investing. Buy what you enjoy with money you can afford to lose.
If you sold your collection during Covid you would have made a lot of money and then be able to buy a better collection.
Very true. Sell high and buy low. We just need to find the next high point to sell. Personally I plan to be buried with my comics...lol
I agree Allen
Excellent
Team bull boy,nows the time to buy buy buy!
You don't make any money unless you sell.
What about demographics? The people who care about comic books are getting older and will retire and croak in the near future. The younger generations don’t care much for comic books. Demographics is a bigger problem.
I've been collecting for almost 40 years and I can tell you, comics are a bad investment if that's why you're buying them. If you like to collect to collect or collect to read, fine but to make a good profit on a comic? My advice invest in the stock market, crypto, real estate or metals long before you go comics.
They definitely aren't the best investment but at least you can enjoy them and they generally appreciate in value.
Dammit Biden
lol...so true
It was actually Trump adding 8 trillion to the national debt the reason for the current situation.
Sorry, it’s going to get worse for everyone. You can’t keep spending and giving away money via the printing press. The value of the dollar goes down.
I don't want to get political, but probably 70% of the problem is the economy. When people are paying half-again as much for staples as they were a few years ago, they're not going to be as willing to drop as much for a comic, unless they're rich. Most collectors are not rich. All I know is, the market was healthy four years ago.
Are you calculating with Bidenomics math ?
It's like everyone who got into Comic Book investing and slabbing comics had amnesia or conveniently forgot the '90s comic book crash.
History has repeated itself.
I mention it often. Comics go through boom bust cycles. Smart collectors sell during the booms and buy during the busts.