Robert Edwards Auction question.

Allen

I was looking at the book for the new auction and I was wondering how they come up with their estimates and if they are usually accurate? Some seem way too low. Just wondering because I have never bought from them, but if some items are even at the high end of the estimate I will bid aggressively on them. Thanks for any info.

TNTonPMS

I would think they come up with their estimates by passed sales or auctions , i have noticed the same thing with Huggins and Scott, but only in the wat that the starting prices are low, I do not see any estimate guide in their catalogs as I see in Heritage's catalog , which is a beauty by the way also .

fandango

i noticed the same thing....there estimates are SO LOW

i guess that makes them look better when they say "it blew away estimates"

that book is like a reference book, great job by them....

i like the first few pages that basically RIPS every other auction house saying they are all cheats except REA....

very powerful stuff.....maybe that is wht they have a HUGE BOOK TO AUCTION and other dealers have just a few pages....

smtjoy

Well the 3 lots I bid on are well over the estimate, I wish I could get them for those number but the real number will be 2-3x it.

Rogermnj

The estimates aren't even close to what most of the items will sell for...

cwazzy

I got their catalog in the mail yesterday. Amazing! It actually reminded me of some of my college textbooks, only much, much more interesting.

Chris

11235813

Having consigned item to auction house in the past, I can tell you that they generally try to set the opening bid/esimate at about 25% of the expected final value.

clydecoolidge

Not sure, but I do know that they owe me for the doctor bills after I sprained my arm trying to lift that thing, lol. Not really, but Tuesday night I heard a loud "thump" outside my door, that was the catalog. But yeah, there are some unbelievable items in that auction.

Allen

<< <i>I got their catalog in the mail yesterday. Amazing! It actually reminded me of some of my college textbooks, only much, much more interesting. >>



haha that is exactly what it is like. Why didn't I ever sign up for memorabilia 101 ?

I was just wondering if there was a reason for why they did that. Thanks for the responses.

11235813

I would think that the reason is a marketing one....the more items to sell in one group, the more likely it is that someone who is looking for one item will find a bunch of others by accident that they are interested in. Same reason behind Ebay having the "View seller's other items" feature at the bottom of many listings. Both are likely to increase overall bid counts.

Allen

I was talking about my original question about low estimates, but thanks.

jayhawke

<< <i> like the first few pages that basically RIPS every other auction house saying they are all cheats except REA.... >>



From what I recall, there have been a few large auction houses that have admitted to having "house accounts" that can bid on their auctions. You can come up with your own conclusion on what that means.

DerekD

Are these guys this good? I saw a big jump in my collection value in VCP and tried to find out what it was. It turned out a T201 Cobb/Crawford PSA 5 sold for $3525. Wow!!!!! It has been around a $1200-1300 card for a while, with the highest one previous was $1691.

PSA 6s of this card are around $2000 and PSA 7s are $3000. It is a big jump quality between 5 and 7's in these cards.

Or, was this just 2 crazy bidders?

KbKards

The estimates and opening bids with many auction houses are set low to get as many people involved in the bidding as possible. The more people bidding, the better the chance is that one of them will be bidding with beer goggles in the wee hours of the auction. The estimates are also used in figuring cash advances. To get consignments they might offer 100% of the estimate. When the estimate is $500 and the card sells for $5000, then that was some cash advance. It also looks good to some consignors when a card with an estimate of $500 sells for $5000. Maybe it should be the other way around. Maybe it should look bad if the expert thought it was only worth $500.

fkw

Estimates are conservative on purpose.

If the selling price tops the estimate it makes the Auction House look like they attract higher bidding, thus they might get more consignments.

As an Auction House, It wouldnt look good if the high bid is lower than the estimate.

ajw

While this may not apply to most auctions of baseball cards, many states have laws that require any reserve to be at or below the pre-auction estimate.