Looking for insight - PSA, eBay auction prices, etc

nickvelo

Will keep this brief. I collected in the past but stopped for almost 15 years and last year started collecting again, slowly / casually.

When I stopped collecting in the early 00's, PSA wasn't really super popular, at least, not to me. I have a bunch of cards I want to get graded. Their website can be a tad confusing on the rates, with the "declared value" and what not. Is $20 per card, the standard going rate? And, is the best to use their own PSA Price Guide for "declared value"?

In addition to that / mainly why I'm posting here..

What I have noticed is in the past 2-3 months, the prices cards are going for are double, if not tripling.

I purchased a psa 8 Griffey Upper Deck RC last year for I think $30. Also purchased a Barry Bonds psa 8.

Psa 8 Griffey going for $70 or so now.

What I have also noticed - a large amount of auctions are being run by a few consignment houses.

Are the consignment houses "running up" the prices of the auctions with their network of bidders? As in, why is a Emmitt Smith RC PSA 10 that I bought in January, now going for 2x-3x the amount only 6 months later? Is it really because people have shifted what they want to invest in, or, other not so fair reasons?

I am looking to purchase certain cards at certain grades, but do not want to over pay because of some bidders who are "in" on the action. I have read some forums regarding some of the consignment sellers, not being extremely credible in the cards being offered, etc.

Just curious of people's thoughts here.

JoeBanzai

Brief answers;

Well you can bid on your own items when you send them to a consignor, as long as you have people to bid along with you, the price can be inflated. A shill bidder can't run the price up by himself.

I think a lot of people stuck at home and working from home are buying cards now. Focus seems to have shifted to the late 80's/early 90's guys in PSA 10. VERY FEW cards of these are worth grading if they don't get a 10.

My advice is buy what you like at a price you are comfortable with. Don't allow yourself to be a victim of shilling.

nickvelo

Thanks

I am new to this forum and maybe shilling has been discussed already but - is their a consensus that this is what is going on - to some degree?

DMasci

I too am new to PSA, and am curious as to the card value in the SMR vs. what they are being offered for on ebay. You can find a card and it's average price and that same card is often being offered online for double that amount. I understand that what a card is offered for and what it sells for are often different but how often is the SMR value updated to match what is happening out there. Seems to me a big disconnect.

1951WheatiesPremium

Try using this:

https://www.psacard.com/auctionprices/

galaxy27

Nick, right now it is a confluence of increased demand and increased manipulation, thus creating a perfect storm for highly-inflated hammer prices. proceed with caution when it comes to any type of auction, as those who "police" the situation are often times straight-up filthy and have no scruples. consequently, the inmates run the asylum. try calling ebay sometime to out a shiller -- you'll encounter a level of apathy you've never experienced before in your life. an AH like Heritage takes it a step further by explicitly stating that a consignor may take the liberty of bidding on his/her own lots.

this is not your father's hobby anymore. in addition to deciding what card to add to your collection, unfortunately you must also weigh your appetite for risk.

JoeBanzai

@nickvelo said:
Thanks

I am new to this forum and maybe shilling has been discussed already but - is their a consensus that this is what is going on - to some degree?

By the way, welcome to the boards!

I think you can assume that part of the reason people consign their cards is so they can bid on their stuff in an attempt to drive up the price.

It also seems to me that when I used to bid on a card early in an auction, I would tend to bid higher in an attempt to get the item at the end. I now use a sniping service and decide what I am willing to pay before I get caught up in the bidding "war", and if I don't get the item, another (often cheaper) comes along.

There's a lot of people, or their friends, bidding on their own items in an attempt to make more money. I NEVER bid more than I am happy to pay for an item, so I do not care at all about the "shillers".

@DMasci said:
I too am new to PSA, and am curious as to the card value in the SMR vs. what they are being offered for on ebay. You can find a card and it's average price and that same card is often being offered online for double that amount. I understand that what a card is offered for and what it sells for are often different but how often is the SMR value updated to match what is happening out there. Seems to me a big disconnect.

Welcome to the boards.

All price guides are wrong to a certain degree. I look at ebay sold items under "advanced" and look at what the card actually has been selling for. The other day, I was going through some cards to decide what to send in for grading and saw a card I have recently went for $200.00. Luckily several others have sold recently for $50.00. I figured the actual price I might get would be $50.00.

I don't bother with SMR. It might be great. Not a tool I use.

It sure looks like some rookie cards from 1987-91 have doubled or tripled in the last couple of months. Price guides are usually at least a month behind.

Some people are idiots and some people are greedy when they list a card for sale. There is no good reason to list a valuable card at a low price. You can always lower it if it doesn't sell.

Identify your collecting wants/goals and try to stick to a budget, buy what you like, and you should be fine.

To both of you guys;

Have fun collecting!