Have you MADE money with baseball cards overall?

[shayscards79]

This year so far.... yes. Haven't broke much wax and bought early enough on Machado, Bundy and Profar where I'm operating at about 30 percent profit after fees.... all sales considered.

I took a beating in years past from just trying to dump stuff that I had amassed for so long.

 

[ThoseBackPages]

~of course, EVERYONE has, right?~

 

[ffgameman]

I'm a long way from making money on cards. I collect to collect, not to flip or sell, so that's expected.

Over around 18 years of collecting (I'm 26 now), I have made around $650-700 (selling a grand total of three cards). On the other hand, I've probably spent around a few thousand. Around 20 total hobby boxes, hundreds of retail packs, and likely around 50-75 blasters. My lowest expenditure has been on singles, which I buy very few of.

 

[Frow]

I collect Kansas City Royals.....so....take a guess

 

[BunchOBull]

Ah, but your hitting the BINs stops a collector of that item from hitting the BIN him/herself. By reselling at a higher price, you're making the hobby more expensive for someone else.

The same would be true for people who hit low/steal BINs for Thomas cards and resell to you at a higher price. If you were able to hit all those low Thomas BINs and were able to get those Thomas steals yourself you probably wouldn't have to waste time and energy selling cards to other people in the first place.

Sure it is, but the steal allows me to expand my collection when I resell for the actual market value. The only practice I find asinine is a buyer running up an auction, outbidding a collector, then listing it for an insane price that I, as the underbidder, or any other collector would scoff at. Why would I pay a seller more for a card that they themselves outbid me on? I've already bid my max bid. The truth of the matter is, no stranger is going to give me a deal just because I'm a collector of X. There are collectors whom I have good relationships with, and in those cases, we help each other out. It's silly however to expect a random stranger to give me a deal because I'm entitled to something. I'm not. I either choose to buy or I don't.

 

[markakis8]

For me, I would certainly hope so, I pay bills with what I buy and sell.

 

[bozemanbreaker]

lots of delusional card folk in here

EDIT: I'm about $250 in the hole for 2012. But if I sold what I've bought, I'd probably break even.

 

[jbmm161]

I have definetly spent alot more than I will ever make back. Mostly thanks to a heavy addiction to busting wax when i got back into the hobby in 2008 and heavy buying in 2010 trying to pull Strasburg autos. Cut it back to maybe 1 every couple of months. Picking up singles and flipping as helped me add to the PC.

Anybody who invested in Mike Trout on the cheap has made a small fortune.

 

[MansGame]

lots of delusional card folk in here

EDIT: I'm about $250 in the hole for 2012. But if I sold what I've bought, I'd probably break even.

Yea agree with the delusional comment. I love the "I've never spent a nickel of a paycheck on the hobby" lol

 

[BunchOBull]

Yea agree with the delusional comment. I love the "I've never spent a nickel of a paycheck on the hobby" lol

I hope you're enjoying your view from your high horse. Good luck with your collection.

 

[MansGame]

I hope you're enjoying your view from your high horse. Good luck with your collection.

Ha I'm not on a high horse... Just find it interesting how you can have any hobby but spend nothing from a paycheck? So you spend your paycheck on other things, sell those things and then use that money towards it? Wouldn't that be indirectly using paycheck money? If not, how do you buy cards if it isn't with money? Sorry, just thought this was an interesting comment

 

[tramers]

BTW I collect Pirates = negative $$$$

 

[BunchOBull]

When I got out of college I sold some of my childhood collection in order to have money to reinvest into more cards, so the original investment came from somewhere, certainly, but not from my salary. I didn't sell anything from my personal collection; just '90s inserts and sets that I had extra from the days in which I collected anything and everything. With that money, half went directly toward purchasing cards I wanted and the other half went toward purchasing cards that I figured I could increase my money on. I've continued that basic model for nearly a decade; for every dollar I spend on the hobby, I try to match it through reinvestment. It works for me. Do I always have money for the cards I want? Not at all, I have to let a lot go by. However, I don't have debt to what is in many ways an addiction; our salaries go toward improving our home, traveling, and savings. I don't like debt. I certainly don't buy "other" things to sell for money on cards...I don't touch our salaries, my wife is the accountant in the house because she likes to spend money and I wanted her to see where money goes. I'm a saver. Look at my eBay feedback, I rarely sell on eBay at all. Most of what I sell I purchase knowing there is a market for and where to move it. I don't gamble. I try to know the market. I've had a lot of luck too. I don't rip often, but when I do, I seems to have a knack for pulling cards that make my investment back and then some.

 

[MojoDan]

I collect Kansas City Royals.....so....take a guess

Couldn't have been a funnier delivery...:lol:

 

[Eamon]

When I re-engaged myself to the hobby in 2007, I lost tons of money buying crappy wax until 2009 when I realized prospecting and high end dealing was the way to go...

 

[markakis8]

When I got out of college I sold some of my childhood collection in order to have money to reinvest into more cards, so the original investment came from somewhere, certainly, but not from my salary. I didn't sell anything from my personal collection; just '90s inserts and sets that I had extra from the days in which I collected anything and everything. With that money, half went directly toward purchasing cards I wanted and the other half went toward purchasing cards that I figured I could increase my money on. I've continued that basic model for nearly a decade; for every dollar I spend on the hobby, I try to match it through reinvestment. It works for me. Do I always have money for the cards I want? Not at all, I have to let a lot go by. However, I don't have debt to what is in many ways an addiction; our salaries go toward improving our home, traveling, and savings. I don't like debt. I certainly don't buy "other" things to sell for money on cards...I don't touch our salaries, my wife is the accountant in the house because she likes to spend money and I wanted her to see where money goes. I'm a saver. Look at my eBay feedback, I rarely sell on eBay at all. Most of what I sell I purchase knowing there is a market for and where to move it. I don't gamble. I try to know the market. I've had a lot of luck too. I don't rip often, but when I do, I seems to have a knack for pulling cards that make my investment back and then some.

Good for you. I wish I had as much financial responsibility and will power as you. I'm not horrible by any means and I only have one small credit card that I'm making payments on but I've made horrible decisions in the past when it comes to spending money on cards. I've actually had a real good run the past year or so and I feel as if I'm getting wiser.

 

[Jared]

Here are my total numbers on SINGLES bought since 2010 (when I decided to begin trying to prospect/flip cards for profit) AND I have already sold.

Bought: $435.07
Sold AFTER PAYPAL / EBAY / SHIPPING fees: $760.42
TOTAL PROFIT: $325.35

I have made roughly 57% profit on my initial investment.

I know some people make $325 on one deal but as a high school kid (going to college) I treat this as my own little business and it's helped me tremendously learning about businesses. I also have gotten lucky on some purchases and bought cards that the player has gotten hurt but that's the risk of prospecting and trying to flip for a profit.

With that said, I currently have $773.38 in inventory right now which includes some nice stuff. (Before people ask where are you getting all this money from for a high school kid let me say that ALL my profits are put back into my inventory, I had a part time job, and I was lucky enough to sell the Jedd Gyorko 1/1 Black Elite Auto for $450 a couple of months back)

Let me know how you guys think I've done.

Jared

 

[Musial Collector]

I buy what I know I can do one of two things on. Make money off it or help someone with a card they want or need, with the latter I only sell at what it cost me. I am not looking to make money off someone that I am friends with or have dealt with in the past. Pretty sure there are a few people here that will back me up on that.

And to answer the question, I have done really well the past year or so on making money with cards!

I have to look, but Im pretty sure I just peed myself with the first bolded line.
I would not be one of those backing you on the second bolded line.

 

[magicpapa]

If I ever sold any, I prolly would

 

[magicpapa]

I buy what I know I can do one of two things on. Make money off it or help someone with a card they want or need, with the latter I only sell at what it cost me. I am not looking to make money off someone that I am friends with or have dealt with in the past. Pretty sure there are a few people here that will back me up on that.

And to answer the question, I have done really well the past year or so on making money with cards!

I'll back ya up on the latter part................. Hell I'd even just send it to em