Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
What do you use to give a stamp a price that comes close to what it is worth?
Orley Swoveland
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I have sent you a small document attachment to your regular email. That should help you.
Michael
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Brookman is not a good source; it tends to over value stamps far more than Scott does.
If you're thinking of selling here, 20% of catalogue value is a decent starting place for most stamps. Some common stamps aren't worth that, given Scott's minimum is 25c. And I would use Scott, since you're selling to a mostly north american audience.
if you have more questions, ask.
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That's been my question since I've gotten involved with general USA in the past year. Over the last 35 years, I have been collecting unique items, covers and private perforations on my 1902 Ben Franklin stamp so I had no use for catalogs.
Now, I'm pursuing a USA collection and I'm finding that catalog values are way out of whack. It's like Scott and Linn's refuse to admit that the market is in the toilet, and prices are a small percent of what they were decades ago.
I have found that MOST USA from the late 1930s to date are pretty much worth face value, if that. I've been filling in my holes by buying lots at a percentage OFF face. And those lots include plate blocks.
I've been buying 19th Century / early 20th Century commemoratives for 10-20% of Scott. Not space fillers, but nicely centered, lightly hinged mint stamps. I won't buy poorly centered or damaged dogs. Definitives sell for less than commemoratives, so now I'm working on 19th Century definitives.
The stamps that pull more value are the popular ones like Scott USA 1, Columbians and Zeppelins.
How do I feel about this? I'm actually happy. I am not building this USA collection as an investment, more of a Bucket List item from my youth. I'm happy I can do this at a low cost. And I just want to have it all in my album so I can leaf through and enjoy it.
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Part of the confusion started when Scott stated that their pricing was based on VF, rather than FVF.
My own findings after going through vast old hoards of stamps over the past 35 years is that less than 1 percent of what is out there is really VF (centering, freshness, color, light face free cancel etc.). Many stamps achieve 2 or 3 of these criteria, few achieve all 4.
Stamps that meet all 4 criteria generally sell at or above catalog. I sold a VFXF Whire Plains sheet to a dealer a few years back at 150 per cent of Scott - it was the best one either of us had ever seen.
Stamps that meet 3 of these criteria and are often described as VF are worth maybe 50 per cent of catalog.
Stamps that meet 2 of these criteria (nice stamps usually called FVF) generally sell at 20 to 25 per cent and stamps with minor defects at 10 per cent or so. Space fillers generally net 2 to 3 per cent if you can find a buyer.
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BenFranklin1902: it was halfway back to 1902 when I first heard the complaints about Scott Catalog prices, and the answer has always been that is the onesy-twosy price from a gotta-pay-the-rent dealer for a really nice copy of that stamp.
Anybody who wants to sell modern stamps, one at a time, for a fraction of Scott is welcome to do so ... but don't quit your day job.
Cheers,
/s/ ikeyPikey
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I still find Scott prices useful when CV is more than $5 or so (less than that face value is a better guide for mint stamps). For items that catalog over $5 and less than $1000 I know what percentage I am likely to pay for most items based on my personal criteria for what I will accept (10% to 20% of SCV). There are, of course exceptions. Good luck finding a legitimate 350 or 351 coil for 15% of CV! Ditto for 315 imperf. If the margins are big enough to not be a trimmed 304, 30% of CV is a bargain. Once you get to a SCV of over $1000 the rarity issue kicks in on key items like $5 Columbus (245). Even a space filler commands a hefty price. At the very high-end ($10,000+) there aren't that many stamps out there. I'm certainly not expecting a "space filler" C3a (Inverted Jenny) to show up that I can buy for 5% of CV!
Lars
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Besides using Scott catalog (as a benchmark) you could research completed sales (auctions, Ebay, etc.) or current offering prices for the more valuable items. Current offerings you can find at online auction venues (e.g., Ebay), APS store, and even in Lynn's magazine advertisements.
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Indeed! For more valuable items I tend to follow online sales for a few months before establishing my personal value (what I'm willing to pay).
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How do you search auctions that have ended on ebay? How far back does it go?
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09:59:28pm
When you do a search, and the results come up , look at the menu at the left. Look for the check box "completed listings", or alternatively only "Sold Listings" (eliminating closed, but unsold lots).
About 3 months.
Roy
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"or alternatively only "Sold Listings" (eliminating closed, but unsold lots)."
I think the unsold lots tell a good story about where the ceiling is for an item and just how desirable it is.
A while back a guy came to me with a collection of those collectible large scale diecast cars. He had a few thousand of these from his deceased father and he had big dollar signs in his eyes because "some of them are selling for $50-100 each on eBay". So I did a search of my own and sure there were ones that some idiot seller was asking those numbers. But the bulk of the expired auctions went unsold. Even ones starting at $10 each had no bids.
So I told the story to the guy and declined to make an offer. He was gruff at first but a month later he was back offering me the lot for $5 each. I still declined.
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Thanks everyone. All of you helped. Thank You
Orley
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Many of the collectables markets are depressed right now. People are not spending money.
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"Many of the collectables markets are depressed right now. People are not spending money."
The whole US economy has been in the toilet for years. Retailers are closing stores left and right because consumers aren't spending money. I know people who haven't had a raise in years, others who are making less now than they did ten years ago.
The president loves to say the economy is booming because companies are in the black... only because they aren't expanding and hiring people, they're all sitting on piles of cash waiting for the economy to come back. I work in the pharma industry, and the democratic candidates have both said they're going to get pharma costs under control, so those companies are sitting tight and waiting for the election outcome. If so, they will cut back spending, research projects and start laying off people.
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09:27:23pm
what is the best method of pricing US stamps? I use Brookman as a starting point.
What do you use to give a stamp a price that comes close to what it is worth?
Orley Swoveland
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12:23:23am
re: pricing of stamps
I have sent you a small document attachment to your regular email. That should help you.
Michael
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this post
re: pricing of stamps
Brookman is not a good source; it tends to over value stamps far more than Scott does.
If you're thinking of selling here, 20% of catalogue value is a decent starting place for most stamps. Some common stamps aren't worth that, given Scott's minimum is 25c. And I would use Scott, since you're selling to a mostly north american audience.
if you have more questions, ask.
2 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.
re: pricing of stamps
That's been my question since I've gotten involved with general USA in the past year. Over the last 35 years, I have been collecting unique items, covers and private perforations on my 1902 Ben Franklin stamp so I had no use for catalogs.
Now, I'm pursuing a USA collection and I'm finding that catalog values are way out of whack. It's like Scott and Linn's refuse to admit that the market is in the toilet, and prices are a small percent of what they were decades ago.
I have found that MOST USA from the late 1930s to date are pretty much worth face value, if that. I've been filling in my holes by buying lots at a percentage OFF face. And those lots include plate blocks.
I've been buying 19th Century / early 20th Century commemoratives for 10-20% of Scott. Not space fillers, but nicely centered, lightly hinged mint stamps. I won't buy poorly centered or damaged dogs. Definitives sell for less than commemoratives, so now I'm working on 19th Century definitives.
The stamps that pull more value are the popular ones like Scott USA 1, Columbians and Zeppelins.
How do I feel about this? I'm actually happy. I am not building this USA collection as an investment, more of a Bucket List item from my youth. I'm happy I can do this at a low cost. And I just want to have it all in my album so I can leaf through and enjoy it.
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01:03:08pm
Auctions - Approvals
re: pricing of stamps
Part of the confusion started when Scott stated that their pricing was based on VF, rather than FVF.
My own findings after going through vast old hoards of stamps over the past 35 years is that less than 1 percent of what is out there is really VF (centering, freshness, color, light face free cancel etc.). Many stamps achieve 2 or 3 of these criteria, few achieve all 4.
Stamps that meet all 4 criteria generally sell at or above catalog. I sold a VFXF Whire Plains sheet to a dealer a few years back at 150 per cent of Scott - it was the best one either of us had ever seen.
Stamps that meet 3 of these criteria and are often described as VF are worth maybe 50 per cent of catalog.
Stamps that meet 2 of these criteria (nice stamps usually called FVF) generally sell at 20 to 25 per cent and stamps with minor defects at 10 per cent or so. Space fillers generally net 2 to 3 per cent if you can find a buyer.
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re: pricing of stamps
BenFranklin1902: it was halfway back to 1902 when I first heard the complaints about Scott Catalog prices, and the answer has always been that is the onesy-twosy price from a gotta-pay-the-rent dealer for a really nice copy of that stamp.
Anybody who wants to sell modern stamps, one at a time, for a fraction of Scott is welcome to do so ... but don't quit your day job.
Cheers,
/s/ ikeyPikey
1 Member
likes this post.
Login to Like.
re: pricing of stamps
I still find Scott prices useful when CV is more than $5 or so (less than that face value is a better guide for mint stamps). For items that catalog over $5 and less than $1000 I know what percentage I am likely to pay for most items based on my personal criteria for what I will accept (10% to 20% of SCV). There are, of course exceptions. Good luck finding a legitimate 350 or 351 coil for 15% of CV! Ditto for 315 imperf. If the margins are big enough to not be a trimmed 304, 30% of CV is a bargain. Once you get to a SCV of over $1000 the rarity issue kicks in on key items like $5 Columbus (245). Even a space filler commands a hefty price. At the very high-end ($10,000+) there aren't that many stamps out there. I'm certainly not expecting a "space filler" C3a (Inverted Jenny) to show up that I can buy for 5% of CV!
Lars
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re: pricing of stamps
Besides using Scott catalog (as a benchmark) you could research completed sales (auctions, Ebay, etc.) or current offering prices for the more valuable items. Current offerings you can find at online auction venues (e.g., Ebay), APS store, and even in Lynn's magazine advertisements.
Login to Like
this post
re: pricing of stamps
Indeed! For more valuable items I tend to follow online sales for a few months before establishing my personal value (what I'm willing to pay).
Login to Like
this post
09:04:11pm
re: pricing of stamps
How do you search auctions that have ended on ebay? How far back does it go?
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BuckaCover.com - 80,000 covers priced 60c to $1.50 - Easy browsing 500 categories
15 Jun 2016
09:59:28pm
re: pricing of stamps
When you do a search, and the results come up , look at the menu at the left. Look for the check box "completed listings", or alternatively only "Sold Listings" (eliminating closed, but unsold lots).
About 3 months.
Roy
3 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.
re: pricing of stamps
"or alternatively only "Sold Listings" (eliminating closed, but unsold lots)."
I think the unsold lots tell a good story about where the ceiling is for an item and just how desirable it is.
A while back a guy came to me with a collection of those collectible large scale diecast cars. He had a few thousand of these from his deceased father and he had big dollar signs in his eyes because "some of them are selling for $50-100 each on eBay". So I did a search of my own and sure there were ones that some idiot seller was asking those numbers. But the bulk of the expired auctions went unsold. Even ones starting at $10 each had no bids.
So I told the story to the guy and declined to make an offer. He was gruff at first but a month later he was back offering me the lot for $5 each. I still declined.
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04:01:31pm
re: pricing of stamps
Thanks everyone. All of you helped. Thank You
Orley
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10:52:09pm
re: pricing of stamps
Many of the collectables markets are depressed right now. People are not spending money.
Login to Like
this post
re: pricing of stamps
"Many of the collectables markets are depressed right now. People are not spending money."
The whole US economy has been in the toilet for years. Retailers are closing stores left and right because consumers aren't spending money. I know people who haven't had a raise in years, others who are making less now than they did ten years ago.
The president loves to say the economy is booming because companies are in the black... only because they aren't expanding and hiring people, they're all sitting on piles of cash waiting for the economy to come back. I work in the pharma industry, and the democratic candidates have both said they're going to get pharma costs under control, so those companies are sitting tight and waiting for the election outcome. If so, they will cut back spending, research projects and start laying off people.
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