General Collecting and Investing Forum

Hi guys, I have an ad on CL offering to buy LEGO sets, a guy sent me a list of new, sealed sets he wanted to sell and I responded with what I thought were some pretty low prices and he accepted (see below) 6031 - $18.50 6236 - $14.00 7115 - $15.00 each (2) 2539 - $6.00 6013 - $15.00 each (2) 1266 - $5.00 6020 - $15.50 6105 - $20.00 6033 - $7.00 4930 - $8.00 6045 - $15.00 3052 - $70.00 3051 - $30.00 7161 - $57.50 4805 - $15.00 -He also sent me a pic of all the boxed sets on what looks like a basement table. Are those prices I quotes fair for the items? Does this seem to good to be true? …

I was just at Walmart yesterday and found yet three more polybags that were exclusives elsewhere! Plus one I don't think has even been released before! I found these on top of the area where they have "The Hobbit" sets in the middle of a main aisle away from the other LEGO sets. (If I wasn't so dang tall I would have never found these! Whose the dumbass that thought this was a good idea?!) CREATOR - "Helicopter" (30181) I've checked Bricker, Brickset AND Brickipedia! No one has anything on this one! CITY - "Mining Dozer" (30151) First available in Poland as a freebie with the June issue of the "Rajdek" children's magazine. Then in the Netherlands as a promotional item f…

Hi guys, I'm new to the joys of Lego collecting and have a couple questions. Question 1: On Ebay and CL I'm seeing a lot of sets for sale that have opened boxes but sealed bags, I don't quite understand this. If you aren;t going to build the set, why decrease the value by opening the box in the first place? Is it possible people are building the sets, then somehow re-sealing the pieces back into their original bags? Question 2: I realize that MiSB is the way to go as far as re-sale value is concerned, but if I also really enjoy building the sets I buy, does the "used" market still offer the ability to make some decent $$ too? If so, this might be the way…

Well, I had a few paragraphs and then realized something . . . My own thread title is WHEN to sell, not what happens when you sell. I had scenarios and Ebay fee calculations and numbers etc. But I realized I just need to keep this simple and directly to the question. When is the best time to sell your Lego sets? And why? First off, they would obviously have to be retired so that the value has risen. Secondly, it matters how much you paid per set. A larger discount from the MSRP will always be better in the long run, although I'd rather pay full price for a set like Diagon Alley than wait for a discount and miss out. If that set rises to $350, I really don't care if…

As part of trying to assess risks in 'investing' in LEGO, one of my questions is about LEGO quality. Sorry for generalizing, but often the trend for retail products, including toys, is for quality to decrease over time. This is done for various reasons including monetary to maintain or improve sales. My understanding is that LEGO has changed over the years, and I wonder if these changes have made it less good from an investment standpoint. I've read in member forums on sites like brickset.com about quality concerns. Apparently LEGO bricks may be thinner now or made of a less solid material then they used to be. Apparently this may lend to improved 'clutch power…

Here are a few sets that are getting to that age where they should start(are already have to some extent) taking off. I tend to stick to larger sets, so these piqued my interest. 10177-787 Dreamliner 10174-UCS AT/ST 10175-UCS Vader's TIE 10187-VW Bug 10186-UCS General Grievous 10198-Tantive IV Some of these are starting to trend up, but not sure if it's just the holidays, or they are really starting to see their burst, and I would like to get in now. Some, like 10175,10177, 10187 have already gotten pricey, and not sure how much above that $300-400 pricepoint they will actually rise. Which, if you had to choose, would be the sets(s) that you would go afte…

Hi guys, TRU in Switzerland have a 20% off all Lego sets. I'd be able to buy the 2 above sets for 20% off retail yet I was wondering, are they good investments? I've done some research on 7879 and it seems like it's a bit of crappy set yet it has some cool minifigs in it which is always a good thing for value. I think we've already seen some unsuccessful sets become quite nice investments in the past. Also I know the Monster Fighter theme is pretty popular so I was thinking of getting the Castle at least. What do you think about these sets?

We will start to compile a list of all Black Friday Deals for the USA. As they come in, we will update them here. All listings may not be just for Black Friday, but just good discounts that I am trying to compile in one area. Amazon.com LEGO Lord of the Rings Video Game for All Systems $29.99 LEGO Duplo Legoville Deluxe Train Set (5609) 38% Off, only $74.99 (retail 119.99) LEGO Star Wars 9515 The Malevolence 25% off, $89.97 R2-D2 (10225) Only $139.97 22% off LEGO Creator Lighthouse Island 5770 $30.97 LEGO Creator Apple Tree House (5891) $32.99 (27% off) Walmart Monster Fighters Vampire Castle (9468) $90.97 LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean Whitecap Bay $54.97 2 for $20…

So, today I bought the following: - 5 pairs of the LEGO Star Wars Endor Rebel Trooper and Imperial Trooper & LEGO Star Wars Elite Clone Troopers and Commando Droid B battle packs from Walmart with the 2 for $20 special - 4 pairs of LEGO Ninjago Fangpyre Mech Play Set & LEGO Star Wars Desert Skiff Play Set from Walmart with the 2 for $29 special - 1 LEGO Star Wars 10225 R2D2 and 1 LEGO Creator Fire Brigade 10197 from Amazon with their sales - 1 Tower Bridge from LEGO LEGO Shop at Home with their Black Friday sale I was curious what others picked up today. I was pretty happy with my purchases, but I felt that have have done better in years past. Of …

I picked up one just for kicks, no idea what its worth is, if anything but I thinks its cool! Only 100 made apparentaly. Thoughts anyone????? http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0094NM16K?tag=vglnk-c2098-20

We will start to compile a list of all Black Friday Deals for Canada. As they come in, we will update them here. LEGO SHOP @ HOME CANADA -- 10% off all orders of $149 or more -- Free Limited Edition Holiday set with orders of $99 or more. -- FREE Shipping on all orders of $49 or more. -- All offers Valid: Nov 23rd

LEGO SHOP @ HOME UK -- 10% off all orders of

I was at an Office Depot the other day and happened to peruse through the whole store and came across storage containers by Really Useful Boxes. Hadn't seem theem before. They are high quality bin type storage with lids and handles in all shapes and sizes and several colors. I mean all shapes and sizes....Office files, shoes, cd/dvds, LPs, down to button collection. I mean they had a nice assortment. I immediately thought wow, I miss the days of big plastic containers with all my loose LEGO. Shifting LEGO around to find the piece you need. Also I have a new baby in the house, and I have been wanting to put LEGO out of site for a couple years. So I am in the market f…

Hi guys, Like many i've come out of my so called dark ages quite a while ago. I started "small" and bought a ucs at-st like 2 years ago followed by a ucs imperial ship. I then had sort of a cold spot until this year where i managed to bricklink a 10179 falcon (cost me about 600 euros). Now i love building lego even though my gf almost gets crazy when i order some (lol) but i also think it really is a good investment. However, given the price tag of many sets, one has to think twice about pilling them up in a closet for hypothetical gain later... So this may come as a dumb question on this site but has anyone actually made some good benefits with inveting in lego? Is…

I'm starting to see more AFA graded sets on Ebay now, I'm not sure if I like this possible trend. I use to collect baseball/football cards, and the grading craze seemed to drive down the prices of non graded cards quite a bit. It made collecting less fun for me, as graded cards got too expensive.

Hi All, It's that time of year again. I hope santa brings me a 10221 set - Super Star Destroyer I have been good honestly! :-)

Just curious, but do the finishing prices provided by the Ebay on the price guide include shipping costs? On sets that are selling a reasonable quantity every now and then you can see 1 or 2 auctions lower than the rest. If the prices shown do NOT include shipping costs I was wondering if the lower priced items had higher shipping costs causing people to bid less. Or were the buyers just lucky.

I was just looking at the best discount list and there are sets with large discount percentages but they are not the actual retail prices. The top two on the list right now are the batcave and a friends set, both of which, if you add up the amazon price and the "saved" price, are well over the retail price. Not sure where the mistake is but they are not correct. Happy Building! Brian

NEW LEGO

Just a quick reminder that some of the following specials that they are having at the LEGO shop are about to come to an end. I know with all the craziness on the east coast it will be easy to forget to place an order (if you actually have power and internet that is). Here is a summary of the deals that are about to expire after Oct 31st!! Double VIP Points Month. Valid: Oct 1-31st FREE TC-14 Minifigure with purchase of 10227 B-Wing Starfighter. Valid: Oct 1-31st or while supplies last. FREE Reusable LEGO Tote Bag with any LEGO DUPLO Purchase. Valid: Oct 1-31st or while supplies last. FREE Shipping on orders of $99 or more. Valid: Oct 15-31st Click here to take …

Hi All, I am still new to this lark. And I have given myself a budget of

It is a little funny to me that some people are suprised that the market gets oversaturated with sets that everyone thinks will be investment winners. It has been said numerous times that gone are the days of seeing HUGE returns. Of course when a set is being talked about on this and other sites as having great investment potential or EOLing soon,all of us are gonna run out and buy 1.......or 50. I got into this as some of you did knowing that there are really no more secrets in this "bussiness". The Death Star (and in my opinion the soon to be Grand Emporuim) situation is what it is! I still have both sets because I think they are cool but not expecting much in the shor…

Hi, I am interested in understanding what percentage of your overall investment portfolio is in Lego. From all my investments stocks & shares, bonds, lego, ISA, savings, etc. I have around 40% of my overall investment funds tied up in Lego. On reflection I think this is too much, but won't say that if the returns are good! BTW - I am not including my pension in this. Thanks all for sharing.

Short story that leads to my question for Ed or Jeff. When I first started this LEGO investing thing some of my purchases were not very investment based, therefore I have some sets that might be past their investment prime or never really had an investment prime really, just a few examples are The gungan sub from 1999 and the Jedi starfighter with hyper boost ring from 2007 (that might have a gold C3PO inside). My question is is it kosher to advertise items I want to sell on this forum? I really just don't like selling stuff on eBay, it eats up profit. Ed what is your rule on this?

Interesting read on collector bubbles: The Art of Bubbles: How Sotheby's Predicts the World Economy Are record-setting auction prices a leading indicator of economic collapse? Some experts think so. And they're looking at China, whose blaze of auction records is looking eerily reminiscent of 1987 Japan and 2007 America. See full article here: http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2011/04/the-art-of-bubbles-how-sothebys-predicts-the-world-economy/236852/#