Window Shopping On Ebay

I have to confess to doing window shopping on ebay and there are some good buys out there on single country collections if someone wanted to expand on them..but I have to "buy" a lot of stamps from myself first..going through stockpiles and its one for me(my albums) one to set aside as worthy of trading material..and one..i dont know what to do ..bulk it out as a quarter pound bag or something...well now I am paying the price..i would buy accumulations and cherry pick the better stamps and leave the others behind..now its their turn !

I know how you feel Phil. I've been having to watch myself with the NYStamps guys (advertised at the top of the SCF pages). I bought one German collection from them a while ago and I'm trying to resist one they have up now. I don't need a single thing in it, but . . . . .

Even though I still find it unusual to call a collection "antique" they have some great material and it's hard to resist making a bid. I'm actually looking at two of their Israel lots now.

I'm with swabbie. I have been tempted to at least bid in a few of these but, thus far I have been able to curb my urge to go too far. I sincerely hope I'm not ruining your day by going as far as I dare or care to at the time.

either the prices have come down or the collections are not being bid up as much..possibly the latter..or folks need the cash and are dumping their albums..thanks for the replies guys !!

I've been buying Israel from a guy in Canada at 25-28% on ebay over the last several days and for 90% of the lots I've been the only bidder.

The NYStamps lots have had 15 or more bids (3-5 bidders) so there is some action there, but the selling price is still pretty low.

Maybe it is the economy, or maybe everyone is thinking about Christmas and not stamps. I don't know.

well stamps from india are going throught he roof unfortunately wish they would crash and I would become the only bidder

It sounds like you're using my investment strategy Spock.

Buy high and sell low, or better yet, buy high and give away!

ok I am all in it for the second one. lmk when you start giving away express mail mnh stamps :D

I really expected auction prices to be lower with the poor economy and the holidays but it sure didn't seem to harm the action in our hobby market. If anything, I think there has been some betterprices then during the summer off-season.

you can say that again. my poor collection has come to a grinding halt. but I dont know why customers dont vist my shop to buy anything they are too busy spending crazy amounts at other places. Sigh.

New York Stamps is run by Jim, a very personable Chinese American who has a lot of integrity. Most of his material comes to him as consignment, mainly because he as one of the lowest percentage cuts out there. The unfortunate thing about NY stamps is he has such a large following, his lots are the most watched in the ebay stamp universe. If you are after a bargain, it is the worst place to go. If you think you spotted something that no else will see, think again. There are better places to find bargains.

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i might buy from him if he would forgo the New York State sales tax for residents...every little bit adds to the price !!

I might buy from him if he would forgo the New York State sales tax for residents...every little bit adds to the price ! br /

I can imagine a 9% vig would make a large difference.

I did win one large lot of Israel from him. I ended up paying more than I wanted, but still think I got it for about 30% of Scott's and it had some unusual material in it that I think will make it worthwhile.

I myself liked the New York Stamps lot I got for about $200 US. One set from New Zealand alone catalogues at over $200, so I think I got a good deal.

does he sell stamps from India?

IMHO, I have seen this every year. Summer is when the majority of my buying online is done. (Many people are out and about enjoying the warm weather with lots to do so less bidders.) Then Fall and Winter comes and there is a jump in bidders and prices start to climb.
I have seen average lots come December go for twice what they should have.
Just my opinion but better deals are to be had in the middle of the year. Of course that is not to say that you can not still find a bargain but don't get caught up in the high bids.