PSA vs CGC graded cards

[artes1]

What do you guys think about CGC graded cards? Do you think they will be as valuable as PSA graded cards?


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[mrmopar]

Not likely. If the gap ever does close between the two companies, my guess is that it will take a very long time. Card collectors seem to be very much stuck in their ways.

Here is the bottom line, in my best guess/opinion, the majority of PSA customers are in it for the money, whether they are investors, prospectors or flippers. There are collectors who use PSA as well I am sure, but deep down in their mind, it is also mostly about recouping value at a later date for themselves or their families. There are still plenty of true collectors who hate the whole idea of grading and will never have a single card graded and don't care if their collection is not increased in value. In a way, the allure of grading paints a perfect picture of our society today.

PSA has become the market leader and therefore the resale value of PSA cards drives the market. If someone else can somehow overtake that aspect, then everyone WILL follow. It's all about getting the most out of your item when you go to sell it. Someone could come up with a nicer holder/label, a better grading reputation and even be a low price leader, but if sellers do not see that translate into $$$ when they sell, it won't matter. Just look at any of the facebook groups. As soon as a raw card shows up, everyone cries..."Get it graded by PSA, it'll be worth more".

I am one of the holdouts. The only graded cards I own were purchased that way because the price was reasonable. I don't see me ever having a single card i own graded, ever.

 

[finestkind]

"I am one of the holdouts. The only graded cards I own were purchased that way because the price was reasonable. I don't see me ever having a single card i own graded, ever."

Same here.

 

[jmc855]

Not likely. If the gap ever does close between the two companies, my guess is that it will take a very long time. Card collectors seem to be very much stuck in their ways.

Here is the bottom line, in my best guess/opinion, the majority of PSA customers are in it for the money, whether they are investors, prospectors or flippers. There are collectors who use PSA as well I am sure, but deep down in their mind, it is also mostly about recouping value at a later date for themselves or their families. There are still plenty of true collectors who hate the whole idea of grading and will never have a single card graded and don't care if their collection is not increased in value. In a way, the allure of grading paints a perfect picture of our society today.

PSA has become the market leader and therefore the resale value of PSA cards drives the market. If someone else can somehow overtake that aspect, then everyone WILL follow. It's all about getting the most out of your item when you go to sell it. Someone could come up with a nicer holder/label, a better grading reputation and even be a low price leader, but if sellers do not see that translate into $$$ when they sell, it won't matter. Just look at any of the facebook groups. As soon as a raw card shows up, everyone cries..."Get it graded by PSA, it'll be worth more".

I am one of the holdouts. The only graded cards I own were purchased that way because the price was reasonable. I don't see me ever having a single card i own graded, ever.

Me THREE!!!!! I own 3 graded cards Clemens cards. Soon to be 2, as I am cracking the Rave today (BGS 8.5). I bought the card, not the grade. The other is an auto that I'm likely to trade, so I'll leave it BGS slabbed. teh 3rd is a GMA that I will also be cracking out and returning to its proper holder.

 

[WCTYSON]

Not likely. If the gap ever does close between the two companies, my guess is that it will take a very long time. Card collectors seem to be very much stuck in their ways.

Here is the bottom line, in my best guess/opinion, the majority of PSA customers are in it for the money, whether they are investors, prospectors or flippers. There are collectors who use PSA as well I am sure, but deep down in their mind, it is also mostly about recouping value at a later date for themselves or their families. There are still plenty of true collectors who hate the whole idea of grading and will never have a single card graded and don't care if their collection is not increased in value. In a way, the allure of grading paints a perfect picture of our society today.

PSA has become the market leader and therefore the resale value of PSA cards drives the market. If someone else can somehow overtake that aspect, then everyone WILL follow. It's all about getting the most out of your item when you go to sell it. Someone could come up with a nicer holder/label, a better grading reputation and even be a low price leader, but if sellers do not see that translate into $$$ when they sell, it won't matter. Just look at any of the facebook groups. As soon as a raw card shows up, everyone cries..."Get it graded by PSA, it'll be worth more".

I am one of the holdouts. The only graded cards I own were purchased that way because the price was reasonable. I don't see me ever having a single card i own graded, ever.

A lot of truth to this comment. I would like to disclose though, I am not a grading holdout. When I lived in the Dallas area, I used BGS a hand full of times on small grading orders and have used PSA just once for one card. When I started collecting again, over two decades ago, BGS was the go to for modern and PSA was the standard for vintage. I always found vintage collecting intimidating when I first started collecting again, especially graded. The main issues starting with vintage were the price point and the knowledge needed to be an informed consumer.

Modern is what I chose to start with, for numerous reasons. I could go to retail stores and buy packs or go to a local hobby shop and do the same or buy singles. Singles were the gateway for me to B/S/T my way to shaping a low buy in PC. Modern cards are tied to current player performance and as someone that enjoys watching a lot of baseball that was easy for me to see in real time.

My approach, was of course to buy low and hopefully sell higher on cards that I would decide to move from the PC. The profits have always been a means to sustain my involvement in the hobby and build my PC. I too have graded cards in my PC, that I have purchased usually at or below what that card sells for raw. I do not buy at a graded premium but if potential buyers prefer to do so and it is worth my time/risk to grade, I will grade before selling when it makes sense.

Over the last say five years or so, PSA has been the go to for all grading of cards and no longer just for vintage. They have dominated that space and the premiums they garner in sells reflect that. PSA 10 premiums defy previous multipliers against other grading companies. Most of the time, it just doesn't make sense to use anyone else if you are ever to consider selling. Things are certainly shifting again with wait times and price structures, so I'll wait to see how this plays out and adjust accordingly to continue building my PC. I view it as a mutually beneficial relationship.

 

[mrmopar]

I feel fortunate in that I did most of my vintage buying far enough back and in the earliest ebay days. No guarantees that I didn't buy any altered cards, but I feel pretty good about what I bought. I think I would have a hard time buying a lot of stuff in the vintage world today though with fraud so seemingly prevalent (or are we just hearing more about it now than we used to), so I can appreciate how grading, especially vintage, is a huge deal. Heck, we even witnessed the fraud in the modern world, so nobody is truly safe from the dirtbags who trim, color and otherwise alter cards to get a few more dollars from them. I just figure with the cost of grading, the fraud is much more likely to be perpetrated in the high end arena.

 

[DragonWagon]

CGC will continue to remain irrelevant until they fix their label. All that room and they can’t include the serial # on the front?? PSA is the only company to include serial # on front and back to help protect collectors.


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[artes1]

PSA looks the best in my opinion too. After adding the hologram on the logo it really looks good.


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[WizardofOz1982]

Not likely. If the gap ever does close between the two companies, my guess is that it will take a very long time. Card collectors seem to be very much stuck in their ways.

Here is the bottom line, in my best guess/opinion, the majority of PSA customers are in it for the money, whether they are investors, prospectors or flippers. There are collectors who use PSA as well I am sure, but deep down in their mind, it is also mostly about recouping value at a later date for themselves or their families. There are still plenty of true collectors who hate the whole idea of grading and will never have a single card graded and don't care if their collection is not increased in value. In a way, the allure of grading paints a perfect picture of our society today.

PSA has become the market leader and therefore the resale value of PSA cards drives the market. If someone else can somehow overtake that aspect, then everyone WILL follow. It's all about getting the most out of your item when you go to sell it. Someone could come up with a nicer holder/label, a better grading reputation and even be a low price leader, but if sellers do not see that translate into $$$ when they sell, it won't matter. Just look at any of the facebook groups. As soon as a raw card shows up, everyone cries..."Get it graded by PSA, it'll be worth more".

I am one of the holdouts. The only graded cards I own were purchased that way because the price was reasonable. I don't see me ever having a single card i own graded, ever.

The PSA registry is a huge thing too. Flippers have really only become a thing with PSA the last 4-5 years. Long before that you had guys trying to build the entire 1981 Fleer set in PSA 10 for the registry. I don't understand that either but it's been there and it's a driving reason why PSA moved to the front while the other companies (SGC and BGS particularly) have stayed in second place.

SGC is still my preferred grader for anything PC and even for vintage I'm looking to sell but I don't grade much these days, other to flip, with it being so expensive. I used to grade small sets for display and protection purposes but it's just not financially feasible now. A 50 card Ginter set from the 1880s that used to run me $350-400 to grade would be over $1,500 to grade now. I could justify the price when it was cheaper because it does increase the value a bit to be graded but not $1,500 worth. I'd love to have my 1998 Donruss Significant Signatures set in SGC slabs because I think they look sharp in the black slabs but for $1,000 I'll pass, buy the black one touches, and save myself $800+.

 

[artes1]

Thank you group for your insightful responses to the post. Loving it.


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[jmc855]

I feel fortunate in that I did most of my vintage buying far enough back and in the earliest ebay days. No guarantees that I didn't buy any altered cards, but I feel pretty good about what I bought. I think I would have a hard time buying a lot of stuff in the vintage world today though with fraud so seemingly prevalent (or are we just hearing more about it now than we used to), so I can appreciate how grading, especially vintage, is a huge deal. Heck, we even witnessed the fraud in the modern world, so nobody is truly safe from the dirtbags who trim, color and otherwise alter cards to get a few more dollars from them. I just figure with the cost of grading, the fraud is much more likely to be perpetrated in the high end arena.

I agree with this, and am in the same boat with my few vintage cards (Mantles, Williams & Mays). I bought them a long time ago, and am highly confident in their status/condition. I'm not a buyer for these anymore because raw ones are tough except in person to judge, and the prices are FAR too high for graded ones, because people got them graded.