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This must be some wild hybrid of Olivia's House and The Dynamic Duo Funhouse Escape.

I'm not about to give myself brain damage trying to read this weekly wall of text nightmare.

This is felonious tax evasion...and he uses a moniker of his real name =which is easily cross referenced with his ebay user name and paypal xactions. Who cares what he does with his personal taxes---I certainly don't. He paid taxes on the money he used to buy the sets, he probably paid sales tax when he bought, them, now he is taxed again when he sells them if there is a profit? Smart people already know how to handle this, and I know Ed does too. Keep your receipts, your packaging supply receipts, postal receipts, mileage from driving all over the state to pick up/drop off and chase deals. Then add up all the hours you pack, ship, receive, search, research, read and post here, and all the hours you spend on ebay listing and tracking auctions--and pay yourself minimum wage. You won't end up with much of a profit--in fact--you will probably realize you are taking a loss and give up on lego investing. With all the jelous/envious/hateful/spiteful people here--I wouldn't be surprised if someone tries to report him. Perhaps another great contributing member will stop posting, and just read.

I'm curious to know what "small sets" these guys were buying, what they paid for them, and what they were expecting to make off of them. I make tons of money every year selling the small and medium sets. Exclusives are nice if you have the time to sit around and wait, and can afford to keep the capital tied up, but there's plenty of money to made on the smaller stuff if you know what to buy and when to buy it.

Well since my name is poping up alot about why I buy 40 - 60 sets of one item. Now I am not a Collector, and never stated that i had more sets than most of you guys, but when I started buy lego it was always for investment, and once I got a Wholesale account well buying 20-30 and even 50 cases of the 6210 Orginal Jabba Sail barge, 3 to a case thats 150 Sets, 25 cases of the 6211 Star Destroyer, and in 2010 and 2011 the 6210 was selling for $300-400 and since wholesale was about $50 a piece i made tons a money, I had plenty cases of all the Harry Potter Castles, Trains, etc. What about the First batman, well with the Batcave and batmobile, More big money, Indiana Jones sets, Plenty cases of the Snow Speeder, Cloud City cases, and the 7676 GunshipThere are plenty more, as for the Exclusives, I had about 8-10 Big falcons 10179, still have Statue of Liberty's, 10 Carousels, 12 Eiffer Towers, 10134 Y-wings, 10143 Death Stars and many other, take the Imperial Flagship & Remote At At, Why everybody did load up on these, plus many of the other Exclusives, If I would of not sold any of these sure I would have many more sets, but with about the 1100 or 1200 sets I have, plus the older big buck Exclusives I have are at my sons house, and thats about 200 pure gold sets, and how many of you wish you had 50 Imperial shuttles, 50 each of the Black Pearl and Queen Revenge, and 40 Potter 4842 Castles, 50 Potter Diagon Alley's I wish I would have gotten100 of all these sets. Plus I still have 20 AT AT 8129 sets, 15 Dropships 10195, 15 -10198 sets. Now you guys look at all your sets now how many of you say to yourself why did I buy all those cheap sets that will never be worth much, Now I have had about 20 guys Email me and say they wish they didn't buy half the cheap sets that they did, and I am sure there are plenty more that wish they didn't buy half the stuff. Now if its for your Collection thats great. And on the haunted Houses, well I had 40 last week, since then I got 11 more. Now take 98% of Exclusives from the last 7 Years they are pulling in the big money. So anybody thinks the HH,TB,R2-D2,Ewok Village, And the Death Star and SSD, and other ones that you can buy now are going to regret not having as many as you can afford, Most say I will wait til they are retiring, well thats OK if you are only buying 1-5 sets say, but if you want alot waiting is a bad idea, say the Death Star or SSD were retiring Dec, how many of you could afford to buy 10 or more, and Like I said before these 2 are going to rise fast in price once they do retiring. So I have made plenty of money and always will on the sets I have and will keep buying. So I don't care about that some of you guys like to make comments about what I buy, and when I get the sets I box them up, but I still have a few hundred still not boxed up yet. So my advice you want to make big money and can afford to buy and wait, Watch on what you buy. "And Pay Cash, or if you charge it be sure you can pay the whole bill off when it comes, or you will loose money big time with finace charges.'' Ed

I know emazers has quite a following on the site, so I will tread lightly. I enjoy his non-TRU posts, but people need to realize there are some serious questions about his methods IMO. Tax issues aside, there is also the issue of acquiring 50 or 60 exclusive sets. How is that done without multiple accounts or against the specific limits set by LEGO? I'm not trying to be a goody too shoes here, I'm just making the point that buying techniques like his will hurt all investors and resellers in the future...if it already hasn't.

Turning bunches of Captain America sets into SSDs wasn't much work.

I went to the Lego store the other day and got a new guy at checkout. He was going through his rehearsed spiel about you have <blank> dollars in Lego VIP reward points. Except it came out "And it looks like you have...Holy <deleted>, how do you have $190 dollars in VIP points?!?"

It doesn't matter if PayPal issues you a 1099 or not - you still have earnings you are required to report on your tax return or face penalties, interest, and in the case of not reporting the income at all, possible incarceration for tax evasion. Don't take my word on it - go see an accountant. And please don't mislead anyone here into thinking that it's legal or otherwise okay to not report your income so long as you stay under that $20,000/200 transaction mark.

This feels like deja vu......wake me up when something new is said.

I'm used to hearing the rest of your ever repeating record of an investment strategy but this rhetoric right here has gotten old and stale with flies buzzing around it, and why are people emailing you with some sob story about their purchases? That bored I guess. Also, I'm wondering what exactly is your idea of a cheap set anyway? Considering you only purchase the biggest ticket exclusives yet at the same time bought a bunch of the 'cheap' Funhouse Escape.

i just sold a very beat up crawler on ebay for 335.00 free shipping. here's the link, http://www.ebay.com/itm/181248235690?ssPageName=STRK:MESOX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1561.l2649 . when selling make sure to clearly highlight any damage in order to avoid negative feedback.

DNIIM - you can't make exceptions like that. While what you said might be true, if you look at the bigger picture, no one really don't care how much you bought the set for when you first purchased it. I may have bought the set for $15 off the black market, but the numbers don't tell you how much I bought it for. It just says how much it sells for, and the numbers show a mediocre investment at best.

Nothing like a bit of friendly advice to bring out the quips and the know-it-alls. I can't imagine why so many heavy-hitters are quiet or gone... Seriously guys... If you don't have anything nice to type, do it somewhere else.

Emazers is awesome, and pretty reputable when it comes to buying larger sets. I just can't agree with him here. Yes, money is to be made on the larger sets, but the wait time is often way longer. I buy plenty of sets in the large range and plenty in the small range. I usually triple my money much faster on small sets and am therefore allowed to increase my purchasing even faster. I buy quite a few big sets as well, but small sets are just so easy to flip quickly for a nice chunk of profit/change! Edit: and it's also so different with a wholesale account..

That's the way I feel too. Emazers is always very helpful and I dig the pics of his loot piles. I just can't pass up 50% clearance items most of the time, because they lead to shorter term profit that can be rolled into longer term profit.

Cool down , German retailprice is much higher than yours. 39,90

I just cleared the forum cache and it appears to be working now.

4* 9465 The Zombies @ Retailprice . 10222 Winter Village Post Office 15% OFF Retailprice

Its not new. Go watch the Seinfeld episode "The Jimmy". Classic.

My guess is this one.. http://www.brickset.com/detail/?Set=4436-1

Done - and happy 1000th post!

Those last two look like some modification of the car in this set: http://www.bricklink.com/catalogItem.asp?S=6561-1 And this first one appears to be from this set: http://www.bricklink.com/catalogItem.asp?S=5958-1 The two inlet exhaust and windscreen with wiper patterns give them away.

They JUST gave us a hot dog cart, I don't think they're ready to run for Mayor of New York quite yet.

This is true, and I don't like the limit run-around. Lego is handling it some finally. But unfortunately this is something that even more people do, as referenced in tons of other threads. I agree the practice hurts smaller investors who follow the rules. Edit: "I enjoy his non-TRU posts" <---- This is gold by the way.

He didn't in this thread. Someone else brought up the topic and he just said he was going to stay under the limit and be careful about it. its not your job because this isn't your site, nor is it your job to educate anyone on how terrible another member is. Look, free speech is all great. but just in general its alarming how rude and hateful and judgemental people are. Seriously - go ahead and start posting about your life. I guess you are saying you have never knowingly lied, cheated, stole, J-walked, not wore a seatbelt in a seatbelt state, etc. I forgot we were listening to a bunch of saints around here.

This is not targeted at any one poster, but let's steer this thread back to the original topic instead of trying to interpret tone on a message board or discussing morality of tax dodging. The original thread, started by our resident Exclusive Investor emazers, was intended to explain his strategy and why he feels it works. Let's keep it here. A discussion of the implications of tax evasion is a worthy conversation. I would urge the folks who are versed in this to begin a new thread.

If someone is doing something that they deserve to be called out on, why is it disrespectful to call them out on it? If the original poster were, in fact, cheating on his taxes, he would be breaking the law. If someone were so brazen about breaking the law that they felt no compunction about openly discussing it on an internet forum, I don't see any need whatsoever to pussyfoot around the issue in order to meet whatever standard of propriety you feel is appropriate.

If he bought an item for one price and then sold it for a higher price, he has to pay tax on that sale. Although he can use expenses to reduce his taxes, if he's conducting business as a sole proprietor (which it sounds like he is), he cannot create a fictional salary based on the amount of time he devoted to the business and then deduct that as an expense. The reason that I focused on the tax issue is because of the number of common misconceptions that float around on discussions like this. Like...if you stay under $20k in sales & 200 transactions per year, you don't have to report the income you made on your sales and don't have to pay taxes on those sales. If you stay under those thresholds, you may not have your transactions reported by a third party (i.e., paypal) to the IRS, but you still have a legal obligation to report the transactions and pay the taxes.

Fallingwater and the Solomon museum pop up. Lol

Did he say that? There are other reasons to not want a 1099. I don't want one! And I am gonna pay taxes. You know why? Because its easier to get audited that way. Also, just because someone shares something doesn't mean you get to just rip his life apart otherwise. Its ridiculous. Really its no wonder why people leave this site. So you don't get anything out of what he posts? Leave his threads alone then because a lot of us do. Exactly. Everyone is so high and freaking mighty. I love it because all these people do the same crap. Hey have any of you all ever reported getting paid to mow someone's lawn? How about all the gifts you receive during the year? How about bets you have placed amongst friends? Just get over yourselves.

So are you not reporting the income that you're generating from your Lego sales or paying taxes on that income? The $20k/200 transaction reporting limit is only a relevant consideration if you're trying to avoid paying taxes.

It's just you. This set (6865) is already profitable for anyone who bought it at retail or less.

hopefully you didn't say by not working for minimum wage

Yes. You get a free air guitar. Ill send it by mail.

Well I have bought some sets that I regret, but nothing that I will loose my sleep about, probably $700-$800 dollars in not soo good sets , and I bought them because they were really cheap !! But ...... I am in Mexico, so if I buy cheap in the US, lets say the Kmart 50% sale or the Walmart clearence that just passed, I easily double my money in a matter of days, regular MSRP in Mexico is 40% higher that in the states, so I have a good 90% to take advantage ! And regarding the small sets, there is money to be made as well, for example , I am selling 21103's in $85..........Why, because Lego does not carry Cuusoo or Any exclusives in Mexico.....

This thread is pointless and dumb!!

Ermmm... 600.000 points. I try to spend them as I get them, since I am freaked out by the story of a "black-listed" reseller who had his VIP account wiped . Now I can barely keep $15 in points before spending.

<rant> My thoughts exactly. This is probably the second thread like this, this month, and the fifth or sixth or more thread about buying a lot of a single set, and saying how people are sorry for buying tiny sets. I think one big reason why some people don't "buying 40-50 or more of one set!!!!!!!!" is because we are not in the same economical boat as you, and we don't seem to have the same purpose as you. Something new in your main post was that you are in this for the money, only. Now I don't have a problem with that, but I think you need to understand that we are not all here just for the money. Multiple active members have said that they are here just to fund a hobby, whether that means buying 10 sets different sets, or 500 of the same sets. </rant>

I don't think Jericho could have had a better first night than having an encounter with The Great One.

I spend them pretty much as I get them. When LEGO, working in close cooperation with the NSA, stop harassing Angela Merkel and get around to tracking my secret location here deep in an underground bunker, I don't want to lose them in the ensuing firefight and apocalypse.

Why does Emazers refer to himself in the third person? I thought it was obvious why you buy so many of each set, because you believe you might make money on them in the future.

LOL our gas prices in Canada are still much more than the US so i dont think that's the case!

I tend to agree with your POVs guys. While the Emazer`s way is not the only way, there is certainly nothing wrong with it. It`s obvious that everyone has a different method in this game, and if someone is going about investing different from yourself, so what? That goes both ways. Let them do their thing Wondering the same thing. Well put! I`m grateful for many of the tips Emazers has shared as well. And will continue to be, should he choose to continue to be generous with his knowledge. A round of applause is in order

Maybe MOS can do a write up on modestly......some of you have none.

it's barely been out a year.

I purchased this for my daughter 4 or 5 years ago at Target in a clearance aisle. I don't know what I paid for it. Maybe $30. My son was born before we built it, so it was packed up with all the Lego until he was almost 3, and it was a bit safer to have the bricks around the house. This last summer, before even checking that I could sell the sealed in box set for almost 200.00, I opened it up and started building it. My son kept dropping it and pieces were flying around the house, and I was getting frustrated putting it back together all the time. So I did the one unforgivable and idiotic sin: I glued it together. I used Gorilla Glue, and it ruined all the clear pieces, it discolored all the green bricks, and turned the edges of the grey bricks white. The ruined set is still in a closet, and I plan on using it for a project later. The only things I have that are not ruined are the minifigs and the front wheel assembly. 1 or 2 months later I stumbled here, and now I bathe in my former stupidity. Someday, maybe when I make some great deals, I will come away feeling clean; but now I just feel dirty. Edit: I didn't glue the truck, but I doubt that is going to be a sought after piece during my lifetime.

From the Left (1st Row): ?-?-Hoth Rebel- ? - Plo Koon - Ki Adi Mundi - ? 2nd Row: Clone Pilot (x2) - ? - Anakin Clone Wars - Captain Wolffe - ? - ? - Russian Soldier I recognize some other bodies and pieces, but those are the complete ones I can identify (missing helmets and such)

I think that the ability to search the market value of a set is a really neat tool you've developed and it's very interesting. I imagine it's a huge task to tackle, but do you ever envision the search engine to include individual minifigures also?