Why I No Longer Buy New Issues

I used to buy new issues several years ago but now I don't because there are so many new issues that I cannot really afford them if I wanted to be complete. Also, at several stamp shows, I have seen desperate collectors selling their new issues to dealers only to get a big percentage off of face value for them. Over time, I have used up my new issues that I used to have for postage.

If one looks at the cost of obtaining a complete set of new issues each year, the cost is considerable - usually in excess of $100 per year, and significantly more if one collects full sheets of 20, complete booklets, FDC's etc. Now, imagine if you took that same money and put it towards some nicer Washington-Franklins or 19th century. Over a decade you'd have put over $1000 (likely a lot more than that) into filling some tough spaces, and those stamps would hold their value much better than new issues.

I know they produce millions of each new stamp. My question is, if so many stamp collectors are NOT buying new issues and if the PO only produces enough to sell or destroy if not sold. Why would new issues not be collectible in a few years?

Most used will be thrown in the garbage by the recipient. Very few collectors makes this add up to little amounts left.

Please clear this up for me since I have thought about it for awhile. Only makes sense if millions are being held by collectors and that doesn't seem to be happening any more.

First two points ignore the first rule of stamp collecting: collect for pleasure, not investment. If you cannot do one without the other, do not even think about stamp collecting without deep pockets and a lot of disposable income.

True. Maybe I should have said that I stopped collecting new issues in order to be able to afford some old issues instead by changing my interests. There seems to be enough people hoarding new issues that it is most unlikely that we will run out of any of them in the stamp collecting market for some time.

I used to purchase every new issue that came out for awhile; but when the cost of postage went up...I cut back.

When the stamp subjects changed to a lot of "pop culture" themes that I could care less about...I cut back even further.

Since many of the stamps weren't available at local post offices (i.e. coils of 3K or 5K or 10K, etc.) I started placing a small order for a few that I wanted through SFS and added a block of this stamp or that stamp to the order, which gave me a nice selection of stamps without having to be forced to buy a pane of 20, as the local post offices try to encourage.

I still like certain new issues and will buy some of them, but the idea of being a "completeist" collector is nearly impossible these days with all of the different plate numbers and varieties that are often "unannounced" but simply uncovered after the fact.

Even when a new variety or plate number is announced, SFS makes no effort to be able to identify or provide the specific variety needed to complete one's collection, which discourages new issue collecting even more.

The bottom line is collect what you like and forget about those issues that have no appeal to you, since virtually all modern issues are printed in such vast quantities that they carry virtually no added value for a collector.

Well, the question is not so much if there will be millions of current stamps available but whether there will be enough stamps to meet demand. The answer to that question is likely to be "yes" for the foreseeable future. Don't get me wrong, it's entirely likely that there will be some sleepers out of the current crop of stamps that will appreciate a little in terms of value, but for the most part, if you want an example (or a sheet) of that stamp, you're going to be able to find one relatively easily.

Recent used stamps on and off cover may be fairly hard to find in some cases. However, there will still likely be enough available to meet demand for the most part. Most issues will be available and cheap, but depending on the market for used stamps, some may well eventually appreciate to over their full mint face value, maybe even a small multiple of it. But barring a large influx of new collectors for them, very few are probably ever going to be worth more than a couple dollars at most - and that's being optimistic. Again, there may be some here or there that will be the exception, but by and large I don't expect many new US issues to significantly appreciate, in either mint or used condition.

All that being said, I agree that "investing" in stamps is, for most of us, a silly proposition. However, most collectors do keep resale value somewhere in the back of their minds. They know how much they've sunk into their collections over the years, and it's probably only natural to think of it on occasion as a store of value. Most of us know that when it comes time to sell, we're not likely to get our full purchase price back (or often even close to it). Considering the resale value, at least in my case, is probably at best a justification for spending inordinate sums on little pieces of paper with no intrinsic value.

Linn's Stamp News published a recent article on this very subject, suggesting that on cover examples of modern stamps may be something to consider, since relatively few examples make it into collector's hands:

http://linns.com/news/us-stamps/114...-are-elusive

Does the post office produce more stamps than they need? In today's world most companies have experts that forecast production needs.

If there is less than expected sales of one particular issue do they destroy the unsold?

My main point is, the post office is only producing what the market needs. 99% or more should be consumed and destroyed through proper mail usage.

If there is no market or interest from collectors nowadays should there not be a void somewhere?

It just seems logical if most if not all new stamps are used for postage and thrown away they will become scarce.

Postally used stamps - at least on some issues - may indeed be scarcer than the same stamps in mint condition. The thing is, demand for them is also likely to be much lower as most collectors of modern US material collect mint stamps, not used. I really have no hard numbers to back me up, but there has to be several times as many collectors for modern mint US than used. That's unlikely to change anytime soon. Thus they may indeed turn out to be scarce in used condition or on cover, but that doesn't necessarily mean they're going to become valuable. Again, I wouldn't be the least bit surprised to see some used stamps in the future selling for the same or even more than mint stamps, but I'd be very surprised if any of them end up being worth more than a few dollars, and even that's probably pushing it. One exception might turn out to be modern imperfs, since postal use of those is very small, but there's really a pretty small market for things like that.

My experience in selling current used US commems on ebay bears this out. I've sold a couple lots of used recent US commems (on paper) in the past year and both realized around 40-50% of the total face value of the lot. This contrasts with another lot I sold consisting of stamps from the 1930's-80's weighing over a pound - probably 5000 stamps - that brougt about $10. Thing is, I figure the price of them will kind of self-regulate at a certain point. If it gets to the point where the used stamps cost more than mint, many collectors are just going to buy mint instead. Dedicated collectors who want a complete used collection of course will stick with used examples, but the question is whether there will be enough of them to drive prices higher.

Artful Hinger. Thanks. I am not really just talking about mint or used. Or US for that matter.

Production. 1
Usage or destroyed by post office if not sold 2
Lack of interest from collectors, new or used 3
stamp becomes scarce 4. They should all be gone because nobody collects them or very few collect.
either mint or used.

My point is...

We know that there is less collectors worldwide today.

Most that are left do not collect modern stamps new or used.

Where do all the new stamps go?

They get consumed and destroyed.

So they should be scarce????

Am I wrong thinking this way?

Xyyz, your logic is mostly correct, at least in relative terms. While few modern stamps are truly scarce (as in actually difficult to find), they are and will continue to be scarcer than stamps issued 20, 30, 40 years ago. More differnt stamps issued + fewer people using mail or saving them in bulk = any given stamp has fewer available examples than older stamps. This is exactly why the recent stamps of many countries have catalog values as high as they do - Scott's default CV for many countries is now 2x face for both mint and used examples. But in almost all those cases there are still enough stamps being saved in large enough quantities to meet demand and keep retail prices cheap and affordable for the foreseeable future.

Again, there will likely be some sleepers in there that turn out to be really scarce and potentially vaulable, but those will be the exception, not the rule. There are a lot of reasons one might collect modern stamps - I collect to the present day for several countries myself (not US, however). I just don't have any illusions that any of it (mint or used) is going to become particularly rare or valuable at any point. Even though there's a lot less of it than there used to be, there's still enough around to meet collector demand. At least they may not turn out to be as completely monetarily worthless as 1930's-80's issues, for which the amount of available material far *exceeds* demand.

Thanks Art. Exactly what I am saying.

We are told to only collect pre WW2. I think collecting was huge from the first stamp in history until 1980. I really believe that some of the earliest stamps are in large numbers and still out there. With less buyers.

!930-1980 forget it. Most hoarded stamps in history.

Cost for those early collectors was just as high for them as the new issues today in relevance to earnings. Just less issues.

Time will tell.

I agree with the Linn's article. I am now exchanging covers with a fellow SCF member in the UK. We both send two copies of new issues on cover (not all of them - just the ones we like and they all obviously have our international rated stamps on them), hand-stamped at our local post office. The recipient keeps one and sends the other back. These are still "philatelic" covers, but not obviously so except for the fact that they remain unopened and have a cardboard stuffer. They are done up neatly with labels and they look great in our collections.