Hey there,
I played MTG back in the early-min 90s and amassed about 5,000 cards. Now I'd like to sell the collection, but I could use some advice on how best to do this. Should I cherry pick the collection and sell off just the big money cards, or are there ways to get rid of the entire collection in one fell swoop? Should I sell online or go to a dealer? I've only put 250 cards into iMTG, and the value is supposedly between 10k and 30k.
Thanks in advance,
- Pete
If you need the cash go eBay, but if you are looking for getting back into the game than go to some online dealers. I also am interested in what you have btw.
If you are looking for the most value you would have to piece it out. Sell on eBay, Amazon, or Craig's list. If you need money fast can try a local shop but they give pennies on the dollar.
Always remember a few things.
- You'll never really get face value, the average is really trade value. Low range is really where you'll be to sell.
- If you sell online you'll take a percentage off for fees from paypal, ebay, etc...
- If you sell to a store, they'll probably offer 50% give or take.
- Pretty hard to move collections as a whole, not impossible, but be prepared to take a big chunk off to do so.
- Piecing out can make you more money but also way more time consuming.
- Dont include old stuff that isnt really worth anything. It might add up in price, but nobody will want it if its no longer a playable card, which most will fall into that category.
- Your money is in the cards that are worth a few dollars and up.
Posting what valuable cards you have would be helpful in determining what to do with them (I would also be potentially interested in some of it).
Most likely sell the extremely valuable ones on ebay, then lump the rest together in a lot (list everything so people know what they are getting) for ebay as well.
Thanks for all the quick responses.
I don't think I want to sell this collection piecemeal. I think it would take a long time and leave me with a bunch of cards that no one wants.
Also, I briefly spoke to a dealer that warned me about some of the online deals that have gone bad. Like, he shiped cards out and the buyer reports the package "never arrived". Is that a realistic/common concern?
I'd be happy to share the collection list with anyone else. I've been putting them in the 'My Precious' binder. Is there an easy way to share that?
I've put in 650 cards now, and the value is between 25k and 35k.
Thanks,
- Pete
Thanks, I'll give that a try now....
Hmmm, nope. The cog in the 'My Precious' binder doesn't seem to let me update to my private page. Maybe I have to move things to another binder?
- Pete
Quote from: Spidey111 on October 19, 2014, 10:25:02 PM
Thanks for all the quick responses.
I don't think I want to sell this collection piecemeal. I think it would take a long time and leave me with a bunch of cards that no one wants.
Also, I briefly spoke to a dealer that warned me about some of the online deals that have gone bad. Like, he shiped cards out and the buyer reports the package "never arrived". Is that a realistic/common concern?
I'd be happy to share the collection list with anyone else. I've been putting them in the 'My Precious' binder. Is there an easy way to share that?
I've put in 650 cards now, and the value is between 25k and 35k.
Thanks,
- Pete
If he was a dealer he should know to use tracking and insurance. Then there is proof
Quote from: Taysby on October 19, 2014, 10:57:21 PM
sorry, you have to do it from magic binders. that should do it.
Hmm, still no-go. I think I have to put them in the 'Trade' binder?
- Pete
Ok, I've started transferring things over.
Nice. If you are interested in selling some specific stuff I'm sure people on here would buy cards but most people don't have $20k to drop on a collection. Let me know if you'd sell some individual cards.
You have some very nice things, I'd be interested in the lotus (and recall, mox ruby/sapphire, time walk), but I'm in the process of raising funds : (
My sadness aside, I would recommend trying to sell the power, workshop, and duals on Facebook before eBay. There is a group called "High End Magic stuff for sale" that has a lot of people who would be interested in buying your power, and you would be able to avoid eBay fees.
In terms of pricing, your power is going to be extremely condition dependent. {Black Lotus} can range from $1800-3000 depending on condition, {Ancestral Recall} can be $700-1100, {Mishra's Workshop} $500-600, {Bazaar of Baghdad} $300-350, and your duals will vary (basically tcgplayer low).
I highly recommend trying to evaluate the condition of your cards, and posting in the facebook group mentioned above with pictures. If you need a link to the group I can send you one, but you should be able to just search for it by name (it'll be the one with ~14k people in it). You have to request to join, and will need to format your post according to their rules. Feel free to ask me any questions about how the group works.
Gotta say, when I said I wanted to know what you have I never expected you to have so much awesome stuff.
pretty colors...
Hey All,
Thanks for the input. I've started transferring the stuff that I put into the 'My Precious' binder over to the Trading binder. That way you can see the collection. So far I've only moved over the A-L entries. I'll do the remaining M-Z tonight. (Yes, the Power 9 will be there.) For the most part, all I've put into the iMTG app (so far) are special lands and "gold" cards. I also put in some of the really old/rare cards that I knew would be of interest.
Most of the collection is Revised, 4th Edition, Fallen Empires, The Dark, Homelands (and later expansions I've forgotten the names to) that I bought from boxes & packs. Anything from Alpha, Beta, Unlimited, Arabian Nights, Legends, or Antiquities were bought as single cards from a co-worker of mine getting out of the game...in 1996. :) I had the presence of mind at the time to make a full set of un-played Restricted, and that has been sitting in its own binder for all these years. I suppose I could sell that by itself?
My plan is to catalog the box of artifacts next (less than 1,000), and then I'll tackle the 5,000-card box of the five mana colors.
Oh, and I have about a dozen decks that are still ready to be played, so who knows what's in those! Oy....
Thanks,
- Pete
Quote from: ihasfrozen on October 20, 2014, 09:36:21 AM
You have some very nice things, I'd be interested in the lotus (and recall, mox ruby/sapphire, time walk), but I'm in the process of raising funds : (
My sadness aside, I would recommend trying to sell the power, workshop, and duals on Facebook before eBay. There is a group called "High End Magic stuff for sale" that has a lot of people who would be interested in buying your power, and you would be able to avoid eBay fees.
In terms of pricing, your power is going to be extremely condition dependent. {Black Lotus} can range from $1800-3000 depending on condition, {Ancestral Recall} can be $700-1100, {Mishra's Workshop} $500-600, {Bazaar of Baghdad} $300-350, and your duals will vary (basically tcgplayer low).
I highly recommend trying to evaluate the condition of your cards, and posting in the facebook group mentioned above with pictures. If you need a link to the group I can send you one, but you should be able to just search for it by name (it'll be the one with ~14k people in it). You have to request to join, and will need to format your post according to their rules. Feel free to ask me any questions about how the group works.
Thanks for all the recommendations. I am trying to figure out how best to sell this collection. I'll check out the FB site you recommended. Maybe there are others out there that have experience selling large collections like this one?
And that's the real issue for me. I mean, if I just wanted to sell off a few cards, yeah, easy, done. I'll offload about 50 cards and however many dual lands I have. ;) But I want the WHOLE collection to sell! And from what everyone's telling me, that's a lot trickier.
Thanks again,
- Pete
Quote from: Spidey111 on October 20, 2014, 05:31:43 PM
Hey All,
Thanks for the input. I've started transferring the stuff that I put into the 'My Precious' binder over to the Trading binder. That way you can see the collection. So far I've only moved over the A-L entries. I'll do the remaining M-Z tonight. (Yes, the Power 9 will be there.) For the most part, all I've put into the iMTG app (so far) are special lands and "gold" cards. I also put in some of the really old/rare cards that I knew would be of interest.
Most of the collection is Revised, 4th Edition, Fallen Empires, The Dark, Homelands (and later expansions I've forgotten the names to) that I bought from boxes & packs. Anything from Alpha, Beta, Unlimited, Arabian Nights, Legends, or Antiquities were bought as single cards from a co-worker of mine getting out of the game...in 1996. :) I had the presence of mind at the time to make a full set of un-played Restricted, and that has been sitting in its own binder for all these years. I suppose I could sell that by itself?
My plan is to catalog the box of artifacts next (less than 1,000), and then I'll tackle the 5,000-card box of the five mana colors.
Oh, and I have about a dozen decks that are still ready to be played, so who knows what's in those! Oy....
Thanks,
- Pete
Your collection is huge i...want... But my collage savings...ðŸ˜
Need a juzam djinn
I believe in transparency so here is what I PM'd Spidey
Hi,
I am a mod on this forum and I wanted to touch base with you and explain some examples that have happend in the past. Quite frankly this is the internet and people lie. With that said I don't know you and you don't know me. I could be lying as well except I have a lot of positive karma, lots of posts, and "Elder" status which indicates I am a mod and you are quite simply a new user. We encourage growth here and we are happy to have you.....I hope I do not scare you away but I want to say all of this ahead of time given the conversation and the shear value of cards you claim to have and wish to sell.
I have yet to see a new user come on here, state they have the higher level of cards you claim and not be a liar and thief......I only say that because in the past, that is typically how thiefs start out claiming when they come on here. I am not saying this is what you are.....I am just stating in the past people have came on here with those intentions and I want to give you the opportunity to prove otherwise. You can post pics by downloading a Dropbox app and simply pasting the link the app creates for pics.
I apologize for coming across so forward but it is just my goal and intention to mitigate the risk of bad people ruining other people's fun.
I hope you understand,
Your friendly neighborhood mod
Quote from: cltrn81 on October 21, 2014, 10:46:47 AM
I believe in transparency so here is what I PM'd Spidey
Hi,
I am a mod on this forum and I wanted to touch base with you and explain some examples that have happend in the past. Quite frankly this is the internet and people lie. With that said I don't know you and you don't know me. I could be lying as well except I have a lot of positive karma, lots of posts, and "Elder" status which indicates I am a mod and you are quite simply a new user. We encourage growth here and we are happy to have you.....I hope I do not scare you away but I want to say all of this ahead of time given the conversation and the shear value of cards you claim to have and wish to sell.
I have yet to see a new user come on here, state they have the higher level of cards you claim and not be a liar and thief......I only say that because in the past, that is typically how thiefs start out claiming when they come on here. I am not saying this is what you are.....I am just stating in the past people have came on here with those intentions and I want to give you the opportunity to prove otherwise. You can post pics by downloading a Dropbox app and simply pasting the link the app creates for pics.
I apologize for coming across so forward but it is just my goal and intention to mitigate the risk of bad people ruining other people's fun.
I hope you understand,
Your friendly neighborhood mod
Hey there,
Totally understand. I'm comforted to know that there are mods looking out for exactly these sorts of things. Perhaps I should restate what my intentions are for posting in the first place.
I started using the iMTG app to catalog my collection in hopes of selling it (all of it), and I took the added step of engaging the forum to ask for some advice on how to go about doing this. I have shared the cards that I've cataloged so far to give the forum a sense of what I'm dealing with. I've been given great advice (thank you all), and, yes, a few people have asked if I'd be willing to sell individual cards. That was NOT my intention, but the forum's enthusiasm has spurred me on to continue cataloging the collection. (I put A-F of the artifacts in last night.)
I'm happy to share pics of the cards, me holding the cards, me holding a newspaper and the cards, etc. I am proud of the collection. Having worked in a comic book store during the mid-90s, I had the means and the opportunity to buy/sell/trade a lot of collectible material (I'll include a picture of me holding my copy of Amazing Fantasy #15), but that was 20 years ago. So 'plugging into the scene' again is like a trip back in time, and I truly do appreciate everyone's input.
Thanks,
- Pete
Sounds legit Pete. GL and hope you enjoy the forum.
Look forward to pics :)
Quote from: Taysby on October 21, 2014, 12:16:41 PM
but you're sure you only want cash? You wouldn't accept a legacy deck?
Not sure what a legacy deck is, but I'm guessing it's not of equal or greater value. ;)
- Pete
Quote from: Spidey111 on October 21, 2014, 01:09:33 PM
Quote from: Taysby on October 21, 2014, 12:16:41 PM
but you're sure you only want cash? You wouldn't accept a legacy deck?
Not sure what a legacy deck is, but I'm guessing it's not of equal or greater value. ;)
- Pete
Unless you want to play, I'd just sell for cash : )
I just want your unhinged forests 😱
Could I see pictures or scans of the following when you have the chance?
{Ancestral Recall}
{Mox Sapphire}
{Mox Ruby}
{Time Walk}
PM me for my email address if that's easier to send pictures, may have an offer or two to make.
Hey there,
I posted a video at: https://vimeo.com/109660415
You'll need the following password to view it: cltrn81isagoodmod :)
Pics of the collection are coming next.
Thanks,
- Pete
😱
Thank you for posting the video, I look forward to seeing more pics : )
Dude. You're living the dream!!! Jealous.
I wish I could afford any of your stuff. Unfortunately I have expensive taste and only want dual lands, and stuff I can never afford on my current budget.
Hey there,
Pics are in Dropbox. Please let me know if you have any difficulty viewing them.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/htg6eysqvbuyxn4/IMG_20141021_234826.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/728mdb3t4gvbgwq/IMG_20141021_235742.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/60axrq7wn50b98y/IMG_20141021_235911.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/84ytcdqurf3ur8y/IMG_20141021_235922.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/g6q8yhmsy9lfo3a/IMG_20141021_235944.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/re7t1y2z8rba2cw/IMG_20141021_235955.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/t323s0vcde2uogw/IMG_20141022_000006.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/05yf1ieu2qcra7u/IMG_20141022_000017.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/fhkq9fov7i4vyyr/IMG_20141022_000039.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/9znd05m29sp56ua/IMG_20141022_000054.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/8h71c7bon3bp6tl/IMG_20141022_000105.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/hgvyg6jnojqsiq0/IMG_20141022_000122.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/i6h6hggfoefra6b/IMG_20141022_000134.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/sys9ydx0a6divdf/IMG_20141022_000148.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/rzdbukbcu0ofsfu/IMG_20141022_000208.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/cw1gaojq0pyn1nw/IMG_20141022_000225.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/ztjumiixsiu7bhn/IMG_20141022_000248.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/zkn3au12m8eo0rm/IMG_20141022_000311.jpg?dl=0
Thanks,
- Pete
Fuuuuuu juzam djinn
PM'ing about power
Those are so clean!! I wish I had bought power in the 90s. Damn.
I know I enjoyed the video. Thanks Pete!
Great collection....you have some gems there my friend!
Best thing to do with your higher value cards like the lotus and stuff that goes between 800+ is to send them to Beckett to get graded they are valued higher this way and you will have no problem getting between 85-100 percent of the value on eBaycold hard cash:)
Quote from: Nganter31690 on October 22, 2014, 12:58:55 PM
Best thing to do with your higher value cards like the lotus and stuff that goes between 800+ is to send them to Beckett to get graded they are valued higher this way and you will have no problem getting between 85-100 percent of the value on eBaycold hard cash:)
Thanks for this suggestion. I had been wondering about grading services and whether it would be worth it. I am familiar with CGC from comic books, and so I assume there is a similar "premium" effect when a high-grade card is also graded.
Where I'm a little more fuzzy is how to package and sell off the common cards. I could sell off the Revised set tomorrow (btw, the set is completely 100% unplayed. I simply opened packs back then and stuck them in that binder 20+ years ago. None of them have even left their sleeves since!), and the "power" cards could all be sold piecemeal too. But that still leaves me with 5,000+ cards, right? So what do I do with those??? Most of them are going to average out to $1 a pop, but no one is going to give me $5,000 for a box of common cards, right?
So that's where I could really use some help. It has already been suggested that I sell "lots" on eBay? Are there other (efficient) ways to break up a collection, but still get rid of it all at the end of the day? I don't want to be on here two years from now STILL trying to sell my Commons!!! :)
Thanks,
- Pete
Lol you won't sell em
I'd say garage sale boxes for like $30-$50
I may have some interest in some of your alpha lands if you want to sell to me. I'm a bit fuzzy on value, but I can google with the best of them.
Don't have any great ideas about selling small commons, though everything that is alpha/beta should be treated separately, as even commons of those should be desirable/worth something.
Here is a link to the High End facebook group I had mentioned: https://www.facebook.com/groups/477939485577313/
You have to request to join, but there's no requirement or anything. I would look through some of the posts there to get an idea for how people sell the higher end stuff (you can even see me selling things :) ). You can also try listing your whole collection in the group and see what people offer (normally you can't sell individual items that are less than $50 there, but a collection with one price is acceptable).
Quote from: Taysby on October 22, 2014, 03:20:48 PM
And they just happened to have 50 spare lotuses hanging around to make their header with... :P
HAHA! (Yeah, who ARE those people!!??!?)
Quote from: ihasfrozen on October 22, 2014, 02:41:57 PM
Don't have any great ideas about selling small commons, though everything that is alpha/beta should be treated separately, as even commons of those should be desirable/worth something.
Here is a link to the High End facebook group I had mentioned: https://www.facebook.com/groups/477939485577313/
You have to request to join, but there's no requirement or anything. I would look through some of the posts there to get an idea for how people sell the higher end stuff (you can even see me selling things :) ). You can also try listing your whole collection in the group and see what people offer (normally you can't sell individual items that are less than $50 there, but a collection with one price is acceptable).
Thanks, yes, I got accepted to the group the other day and did exactly what you said. Seems like a lot of people there are concentrated on buying/selling power. If that were all I was trying to do, cool. But I do like the idea of posting the entire collection there and see what happens.
Thanks,
- Pete
Quote from: Taysby on October 22, 2014, 02:24:24 PM
Do some of those ebay repacks where they can possibly get power. figure out how much the whole thing is worth, divide that by the number of cards you have to get the price per card.Then make a repack of 5 or so cards.. Then times the price per card by the number of cards in the pack and add about $5 or so onto that. Then offer discounts for mass purchases ($1 off per pack for 5+ $2.25 for 10+ 3.75 off for 15+ etc) while still keeping a profit.
That would get rid of most of your collection.
Not following...? I don't know what you mean by "ebay repacks"? Do you have a link that I could check out?
Thanks,
Quote from: Spidey111 on October 22, 2014, 05:25:26 PM
Quote from: Taysby on October 22, 2014, 02:24:24 PM
Do some of those ebay repacks where they can possibly get power. figure out how much the whole thing is worth, divide that by the number of cards you have to get the price per card.Then make a repack of 5 or so cards.. Then times the price per card by the number of cards in the pack and add about $5 or so onto that. Then offer discounts for mass purchases ($1 off per pack for 5+ $2.25 for 10+ 3.75 off for 15+ etc) while still keeping a profit.
That would get rid of most of your collection.
Not following...? I don't know what you mean by "ebay repacks"? Do you have a link that I could check out?
Thanks,
The idea is put all the bulk in small batches, say 500 packs of 5-15 cards, mix of rarities, etc and sprinkle some power or beta duels in there. People love to gamble on packs or repacks if there is a chance to win the lottery by getting a $500+ card. Basically you add up the total value you'd hope to get and divide it by the number of repacks you make. Say you have $2k worth of "money" cards (value $100+) and 3000 "bulk cards" ($1-2), and you make 1000 repacks, you've got $5k worth of cards, at $5-$6 per repack, you're getting above sale value for the total of the cards, at the expense of a lot of work to make the repacks.
Worked well for me, mention a badlands or plateau and 100 repacks sell fast
Throwing this offer out there: $10k. :-)
Quote from: Taysby on October 22, 2014, 06:39:39 PM
Quote from: Spidey111 on October 22, 2014, 05:25:26 PM
Quote from: Taysby on October 22, 2014, 02:24:24 PM
Do some of those ebay repacks where they can possibly get power. figure out how much the whole thing is worth, divide that by the number of cards you have to get the price per card.Then make a repack of 5 or so cards.. Then times the price per card by the number of cards in the pack and add about $5 or so onto that. Then offer discounts for mass purchases ($1 off per pack for 5+ $2.25 for 10+ 3.75 off for 15+ etc) while still keeping a profit.
That would get rid of most of your collection.
Not following...? I don't know what you mean by "ebay repacks"? Do you have a link that I could check out?
Thanks,
Something like this
http://www.ebay.com/itm/MTG-Black-Lotus-Unlimited-MP-REAL-Repack-Power-9-/181515906709?pt=Trading_Card_Games_US&hash=item2a4330ee95
Ok, yeah, that's pretty cool. Adding that to the list of possibilities!
Thanks,
- Pete
Quote from: Falcon182 on October 22, 2014, 06:38:26 PM
Throwing this offer out there: $10k. :-)
The gauntlet has been thrown down :)
Quote from: ihasfrozen on October 22, 2014, 07:15:53 PM
Quote from: Falcon182 on October 22, 2014, 06:38:26 PM
Throwing this offer out there: $10k. :-)
The gauntlet has been thrown down :)
Yes indeed, nicely put!
I won't presume that this is open to become a bidding war. I don't wish to interfere with your negotiation with Falcon at 10,000 and you don't have to consider me until/unless Falcon bows out.
But I'd like to be in the wings, at 11,000. I envision it the way you do, someone makes it easy for you by coming to Boston for the whole thing after a look.
Good luck to all three of us! Let's make some iMtG history! Biggest deal ever to originate on this forum (?)
Regards
Chris
Quote from: AwaySinceMirage on October 22, 2014, 10:10:31 PM
Quote from: ihasfrozen on October 22, 2014, 07:15:53 PM
Quote from: Falcon182 on October 22, 2014, 06:38:26 PM
Throwing this offer out there: $10k. :-)
The gauntlet has been thrown down :)
Yes indeed, nicely put!
I won't presume that this is open to become a bidding war. I don't wish to interfere with your negotiation with Falcon at 10,000 and you don't have to consider me until/unless Falcon bows out.
But I'd like to be in the wings, at 11,000. I envision it the way you do, someone makes it easy for you by coming to Boston for the whole thing after a look.
Good luck to all three of us! Let's make some iMtG history! Biggest deal ever to originate on this forum (?)
Regards
Chris
Unfortunately I can not make a bid for the whole collection, just pieces. But best of luck to you and Falcon.