What If Stamps Had No Value

I just posted this thought on another thread that is similar so this one too! I would say that the hobby is obviously supply and demand. Looks to be more sellers than buyers. Supply finite-demand down. The catalog values in many/most cases are much higher than actual values that I see paid for (EBAY, etc). In some ways it may be better for the newbie to collect the used stamps for a few cents apiece in bulk or on ebay and get the same enjoyment as having the history, beauty and fun of collecting. For those spending larger amounts of money on the same stamps that may be unused, rare, mint, etc., it looks to be a losing investment in most cases these days. It costs much more for that same enjoyment of fun, history, and beauty of the stamps. It actually makes sense to avoid spending a lot of money if you want to collect for the enjoyment only. Perhaps those who are thinking of collecting for profit may want to look elsewhere for a hobby that the inventory appreciates in value. Of course I'm just looking at it from an amateur's viewpoint and not taking into account any "lucky find". When my father (89) gave his collection to my children he thought it could help their education fund if they did not have interest in the hobby. He had put money and time into it and thought it was worth something (me too!). He recently inquired what was happening with his gift. I said that I did buy the 2015 Scott catalog but it looked like something we would hold longer. If the catalog values were even close there could be some appreciable value. I now put a bit of time reading about and enjoying the Philatelic community information available. Perhaps in a decade or two the market may tighten up a bit and my children would get interested in the hobby or can sell if the values are increased.

I'm with essayk on this. After I got past the initial "start-up" type of collecting (filling spaces), I decided that Specialization was the most exciting way to go. So I would pick some specialty I liked (and hopefully could afford) and try to develope that specialty into either an award-winning exhibit, or a book (or other serious writing on the subject).

So the last 45 years have been spent building various specialized collections, many of which I WAS able to accomplish something positive. But there were others that didn't pan out, where despite me loving the material, I found the subject just could not be either successfully exhibited or writing a new book. Those I ended up selling and "starting over" with the next one.

So now I find I am at an age where "downsizing" is important, so I've started to give away all the medals I've won over the last 45 years! I gave every student in our class on Basics of Expertizing at the APS Summer Seminar one of my medals, and gave special awards to my co-instructors. And that was really fun to do! I also have donated quite a few back to the society they came from so they can be re-used. No point in taking this stuff to my grave! My kids wouldn't have a clue what to do with 50+ medals/awards. This is a better solution!

If they had no value it would be even better because then I could acquire more and complete my collection!

To be honest stamps have no actual monetary value for me: I'm not a dealer, I only trade so no money crosses hands and I don't plan on anyone wanting my collection in my family. My collection is for my enjoyment just like any other kind of collectible.

As mentioned before, when you figure in the hours I spend either hands on with my stamps, talking about philately,learning and reading and such, then compare it with the money output.....

As a gamer I'd easily spend $50 or more a month on videogames or a couple new boardgames. How many hours of entertainment will I get out of that? Depends. It can be a hit or miss. But collecting stamps I know will give me hours and hours of entertainment and education even in something simple.

Most of my stamps aren't worth much anyway, and I probably won't ever sell the ones that I have. Its just the thrill of owning the stamps that keeps me going.

If stamps had no monetary value they would still have great educational value. Ask any sixth grade classroom which African countries have French as the official language and which Portuguese. The one who can name three French and one Portuguese is the stamp collector, because the stamps are inscribed in the official languages of their respective countries. Where were you when you learned that MAGYAR means Hungary?

In my single days, I would send flowers without my name and later tell her it was I who sent them. One lady was worried and stumped because the sender didn't include a name, but another lady told her not to worry, "just enjoy them."

This same can be true if you find a significant market for stamped envelopes, perhaps bodegas that sell money orders but the customer also needs a stamped envelope with a sheet of paper inside to write a note.

To go through discount postage stamps would be to "just enjoy them" whilst affixing them to the envelopes. You would "just enjoy them" about as much time as you just enjoy the stamps on the 27th page of your album each day.

SomebodySmart, you touched a great point........you learn History of the World with stamps, which started for me at age 12 even if I was not active all the time during my early years in the workforce (medical).....now that I have time, I enjoy my multiple collections but have learned 90% of my History very early

I've enjoyed this thread, lots of wise arguments. I sure agree I am not into this for investment or the monetary aspect. However I suppose most of us will be trilled if we are able to obtain one of those highly sought after and iconic stamps. I did myself once spend an insane sum (for me anyway) on one of those seemingly impossible stamps. No surprise it was really delightful to mount that stamp in my collection, at the vacant spot I thought I would never fill. So, why did I enjoy it? I guess the stamp is iconic for several reasons, including that supply is so limited only a restricted number of collectors can have one. I admit that thrills me, owning something most don't have. Part of human nature I suppose. Still it gives me no pleasure knowing the stamp increased the overall market value of my collection, as that value will never be realized in this life. The pleasure is all in having something rare, something one have been wishing for. Then - the key question in retrorespect - was the experience worth the money I payed for it? Don't know.

What??? You're mailing a letter and you're using two Jenny inverts as postage? You idiot! Don't you know how wasteful that is! You're using 48¢ postage on a letter that only requires 47¢ postage!

For me. history is the most important aspect of collecting, and my stamps are just little pieces of that history. I would never buy stamps for investment purposes, as I would stink at it, and there are much better investment instruments available. While I don't deal in stamps, I do plan to begin selling items in my collection, such as duplicates and areas outside my interests. And I will do that primarily to fund my collection.

With that said, I do record catalog value for all of my stamps (at least the ones I have organized), basically because it's fun, and it's always exciting to find something that has more "value" than expected. In fact, if I were to add up the full catalog value of my collection, I would be elated. However, as we all know, unless you have exquisite items and are willing to put a lot of work and patience into selling of your collection, it is actually worth a small fraction of catalog value.

If I could sell my collection for full catalog value, I'd do so without a moment's hesitation. I'd take the proceeds and pay off my house* and then go on a nice vacation. And I'd still have enough left over to buy the same stamps back again, probably with room to spare.

*I live in an area where housing is pretty cheap, at least compared to major metro areas.

I don't collect for investment purposes but for the enjoyment and therapy. As a former drug user I lost my first collection to the drug dealer. Now I collect as therapy and the enjoyment of doing something fun that does not involve drugs.

Hello. Thumbs up for You. Keep it out and stay away from bad things.

Same here; there are thousands of better money investments, but I don't know of any investments that are better for peace of mind. And welcome to the forum!