Need Advice For Online Stamp Auctions

sweetstamp I feel the need to state that you are in hole $$ wise. You paid top dollar. What was the buyer's premium? What was the postage and insurance? What will the seller's premium and postage and insurance be. If anyone is left in forty years interested in buying stamps why would they want a copy in this condition.

Buying MNH paying a premium and holding sounds good "to you" but there are many reasons why this approach can lose even more $$. MNH may be a craze at any point in time. You are paying extreme top dollar for a stamp no one may care about to that extreme. Maybe a nice lightly hinged stamp for half the price will be in more demand. Maybe the gum will deteriorate in that time.

Remenber, "you are new to stamp collecting" and I would say investing.

My recommendation...buy vintage Dennison hinges if you want an investment that will return good money in the future. Buy stamps if you want a great hobby that will supply you and your family with a gateway to learning history, culture, and insight into the lives and times of others.
Don

after the buyers fee, shipping and insurance it was $101.
maybe in 40 years it will have gained a few dollars and not lost.
i appreciate the honesty and not sugar coating anything..
i do collect purely for the enjoyment and getting to spend time
with my son but I am trying to avoid simply throwing my money away,
which your all's expertise has shown me quickly how to avoid much of
that with pricing and quality considerations.
we catalog our stamps with microsoft word which includes picture,
scott info and a history of each stamp (which is the most thrilling
part for me). although my son enjoys this his head is also full of dreams
of making enormous profits later on. lol.
i do the stock market fairly well and when cross comparing I would consider stamp
collecting a high risk investment.
although I missed estimated worth big-time on this stamp as a beginner
i am only expecting to make our money back or up to a 10% on our collection over time.
im sure I will be reading this forum much more as I go as I am sure there is much more
to learn and dangers to be aware of when buying stamps.
Thanks guys!

"i do collect purely for the enjoyment and getting to spend time with my son"

Riches beyond words.

After watching greatest Super Bowl ever, I am still pondering one promised unanswered question tonight and perhaps the answer will inspire the OP to search for good deals......

Sinclair, How much you pay for the extremely fine to superb 5L8 on ebay??????

My guess is that Mr. Sinclair paid less than $20 for the stamp...

rg, that was indeed an incredible game! It doesn't even seem real.

I paid $91.99 for the stamp about four years ago. A lot of money but still a bargain IMO. I didn't post the stamp for the oohs and aahs. I just thought it was a good example of a stamp which can not be valued without using a nuanced approach. I believe the stamp would grade at 95 and sell for around $500 in a good auction but that is all speculation. The grading gods could also call it a 90 and I would struggle to get my money back. It is highly unlikely I will ever get it graded... I despise grading.

While you may be able to buy very fine stamps at half Scott or less on ebay of from a dealer who is reducing stock, the criteria quoted above is not accurate. Because the marketplace is in flux, some Scott catalog values may be too high for more common stamps, they are too low for harder to find stamps. The Scott Valuing guide seems reasonably accurate for most stamps, dropping the price by 40% for fine to very fine, 60% for fine and 75% for very good sound stamps.

Condition is the problem. More and more stamps are returning from collections as damaged. The percentage of altered stamps continues to increase as more fakes are added to the market and recycled from collections. An off center stamp in poor condition might not receive more than 5 percent of catalog while a well centered stamp with minor damage might not receive more than 10 to 15 percent of catalog. I believe that graded stamps downgraded because of condition tend to be overvalued compared to sound, less well centered stamps receiving the same grade.

I believe the trend will continue and the value of damaged or altered stamps will continue to decline relative to sound stamps and the price differential between very fine and lesser stamps will continue to increase. Another hazard to less sophisticated buyers are dealers who over grade stamp centering or fail to not defects. Good, sound and clean stamps strong fine to very fine or better will remain the best experience if purchased
at competitive prices. However, if the stamp marketplace continues to contract, only the very best of the scarcest stamps may continue to hold their value.

Think of it this way - as a beginner it is easy to be overly enthusiastic and as a beginner you should not expect to be able to find a bargain that will make you money as you will be competing with more experienced people who wouldn't let you beat them to such a bargain.

Sweetstamp - There is no substitute for knowledge in stamp collecting. And knowledge of the market is critical in making sure you do not overpay for a purchase. If you do, it just means less $ for the next one.

I am certain many members of this forum keep track of sales. Not having other auction forms to shop in I use ebay most frequently, and to make sure I do so wisely (cost wise) I have been tracking sale prices for issues I am pursuing at differing levels of quality for years and have accumulated enough samples, that I can easily reference, to know what a good/realistic price should be. Scott valuations are a helpful guide but that's it. Lastly, don't be in a hurry to fill a void in your collection. Watch the market, keep notes, and bid with confidence!

Oh, and check out the sellers references and terms!

I have always rejected the premise that there is some magical predetermined value of a stamp and with care you can figure out what that is. There are two fundamental flaws with that line of thought. The analysis and prediction ignores the element of chance and the fact that every transaction is unique in many ways.

From a statistical standpoint, high levels of certainty necessarily require a broad range of predictions when you have a broad range of data points.