What's A Reasonable Price For Stamps

Hello everybody,

I'm from the Netherlands and the few times I've been on ebay, searching for stamps, the prices have scared me of.

ebay prices range from 60%-80% of the CV. (so far as I've seen)
In the Netherlands 10%-20% is seen as reasonable.

What do you think is a reasonable price for a stamp in regard to it's CV.

Thanks for reading,
Jules

Decent individual stamps at GB auctions - setting aside the very desirable - tend to be around 10% of Gibbons's CV for foreign, 20% for GB and Commonwealth. Then add something for the buyer's premium. Buy-it-now individual items on ebay usually seem very expensive to me, and I don't indulge.

It's kind of a "how long is a piece of string?. It all depends on the stamp/s. Many factors go into contributing what a stamp is worth.

Mint without ever being mounted(hinged)
Mint previously mounted
Unused (no cancel or postmark and no gum)
Centering
Perf condition
Postmark or cancellation, certain destinations and post offices are scarcer than others.
For modern postage still valid I believe around 60% of face value is common.

There are of course exceptions to every rule.

Julius: Can you show some examples?

Yes, as a example I'll take the tobias airmail from vatican city

ebay's cheapest price for vatican tobias airmail;
https://www.ebay.com/itm/VATICAN-CI...AOSw1utawTDj 119,-

Dutch auction site cheapest;
https://www.marktplaats.nl/a/postze...ge=mympBuyer $25,-

For modern stamps, I would generally pay no more than 25% of Scott catalog value. For Gibbons or Michel, the number might be a little lower.

I don't know about these stamps;but if you go into e-bay.fr (under: Vatican 1948 )
there are many and very expensive ! The 25 euros seems cheap.
There could be forgeries or reprints!! The higher value 500L is the most expensive!!
An example:
https://www.ebay.fr/itm/125-Vatican...AOSw-SBaykb8
https://www.ebay.fr/itm/Vaticano-19...AOSwg3FUfeeQ
https://www.ebay.fr/itm/VATICANO-19...AOSwFqJWqegJ

It's hard to beat the prices in the approvals section of StampOrama: https://stamporama.com/

Generally shipping cost even to overseas is reasonable.

They also have an auction section which I find the asking (starting bid) prices a bit higher

Whatever you are willing to pay.

Julius,

Part of the difference is that Dutch catalogue prices are "optimistic" (read high) compared to the market, while Scott are closer to the market.

For example, NVPH 86 (the 10 guilder high value) is 850 euros used in my 2011 catalogue [I realize that it has dropped since] but only 625 dollars in my 2013 Scott. After accounting for exchange, Scott value is only about 60% of NVPH. Thus 50% Scott = 30% NVPH, which accounts for a lot of the difference you see.

Also ebay asking prices are not always in agreement with reality. As examples, see the damaged stamps where the sellers are asking almost full catalogue.

Jan

I try to sell in the 20% percent of cat range. Leaves some meat on the bone, and buyers like that. I have just spoke with a very well known dealer in Phoenix, he asks 70-80% of cat-maybe thats why he has boxes and boxes and boxes of stamps sell; you ask to much, they don't sell. You ask the right amount and your looking for new material to list--as I am.

It would be great to pay only 10%-20% for any set of stamps, especially modern issues. However, if I am looking at an attractive topical set listed as $4.00 Scott catalog going for $2.00 on ebay and no others are readily available for less - then I will pay the 50% for it as opposed to searching for hours, days, or even weeks looking for one at a $1.00 so I will pay only 25%. It's just not worth the time - and after all it's only a dollar. To put this in perspective, a dollar is what I tip a cocktail waitress in a casino for a bottle of water.

Interesting discussion. I see prices all over the place on ebay.

Depends on the quality of the stamp. The great majority of stamps aren't worth the catalog value listed, for various reasons:

1. The catalog value (depending on the catalog) is typically for an example in better-than-average condition (most Scott catalog values are quoted for VF, for example.) Most stamps aren't VF.
2. The catalog value is a retail price, intended to cover the cost of labor and overhead a brick-and-mortar stamp dealer would incur. Brick-and-mortar stamp dealers are near extinct.
3. Catalog editors are reluctant to lower prices in the catalog in almost any case, so issues that have decreased in popularity, or that were subject to unusual speculation in the past, will often have inflated CVs for years afterward.
4. New issues in Scott (for example) are typically priced around 2 times face value, mint or used, by default. This is just a rule of thumb, it isn't based on market trading. Market values might be quite different.
5. And of course, most collectors expect to buy, and most dealers price, at some discount to catalog value. How big a discount depends on the area and the quality of the material, but it isn't unusual to see good stamps selling at 20%-40% of catalog value.

With really scarce stamps, the catalog might be inaccurate the other way and price too low. CV is just a guide to how scarce and/or in demand a stamp is, really exceptional material will usually sell for higher and most material will sell for lower. To really get a feel for what any particular stamp is really worth, you have to watch the market and see how examples sell.

Catalog values only benefit dealers as a bargaining tool.....I am content with purchasing stamps at less than 30% catalog value....it's not a practice that I strictly adhered to...if there is a stamp that I want...i don't mind paying more..time is money so why would I waste it trying to get a better deal on a stamp....i have a limit on what I will pay for a stamp..usually $5.00.
Even if I find a stamp that catalogs for $40...and is offered at $10...a quarter of CV....for me it's still a lot of money for a small piece of printed paper.

Percentage of catalog varies all over the place when buying stamps . There are thousands of stamps that I would pay full catalog for , but you and nobody else has them for sale . That is why I would pay up for them .

There are thousands of stamps also that everybody has for sale that can't get 20% of catalog for .Because there are a lot of them all the time being listed for sale . It would be safe to say if you purchase 3 or 4 worldwide collections in Scott International by the time you got to the fourth collection you purchased you will be buying 90% duplicates . It is the nature of the hobby .....everybody got the same stamps because they are the most common .This is the same for selling stamps ,a seller has the most common and it is a race to lower your price to be a active seller .The unusual stuff can ask and get a better price and a higher percentage of catalog.