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Showing content with the highest reputation on 01/22/2016 in Blog Articles
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Hello. My name is Elaine, and I am a Lego addict. I have often said this in jest, but I’ve started to realize that it is not a joke. I woke up this morning, and the first thing I did was check Brick Picker for the deals buzz. As soon as I had put the kids on the bus, I started planning my buy of the day. Since I went to see “The Force Awakens” (again) last night, I was feeling like I needed some more Star Wars sets. I took to the web, and made a plan to go to TRU (since it was Thursday) to buy a First Order Tie Fighter, using the Walmart price (20% off) plus another 10% through TRUTH and 8% back in rewards. It was only 9 am. I spent the next hour itching to buy as my local Toys R Us opens at 10 am. I even considered settling for price match plus 5% off using my Red Card at Target because they were already open. I didn't used to be like this… I am a collector. I still have 90% of the sets from my youth, and I started collecting again around 2010ish. For several years it was buying a modular for my birthday and lots of sets for the kids. It wasn't until a snafu with the Town Hall that things started to turn ugly. It was October 22nd, 2014. I had a lovely birthday dinner and decided that I would buy a Town Hall as my present. I already had a Fire Brigade, Grand Emporium, and a Pet Shop. I had briefly flirted with the idea of buying a Green Grocer long after it went EOL, but decided that $500 for NISB was too much to spend. (This was some time before the Town Hall incident, but it was what first enlightened me to the existence of the Lego reseller market.) Needless to say, when I went to my local Lego Store that day, I was dealt a crushing blow. I could not understand. I was buying each modular in order, I should have had plenty of time to buy the Town Hall, but it was gone. I was heartbroken. I was devastated. I was desperate. At first, I was ready to scrap the whole idea of my Lego city. It seemed pointless to not have all of them (or at least all of the ones released since I had started collecting modulars). I was still secretly pining for a Green Grocer, and to miss out on the Town Hall too was too much to bear. Within a couple of weeks of calling and searching stores and coming up empty, I bought one on eBay for 50% over RRP. I justified it saying that if I did find one in the wild for RRP, I could always resell that one to break even or better. For a little while, I was content, but it didn't last... Fast forward to March of 2015. It was my anniversary. There was an hour wait at the restaurant, so we went to the Lego Store. It was double VIP and I was determined not to let another modular pass me by, so I bought myself current, and had a lovely dinner. The next day, I was feeling guilty about spending so much, and I came up with the perfect plan. I would buy two of every Lego set I liked, build one, sell the other when it hit 2x RRP. Perfect! I immediately pulled $2k out of a never-touched savings account (because bank interest is a joke anyway) and had the most satisfying Lego spree I had ever experienced. I felt so powerful and successful with every package that arrived. It was incredible. I wish I could have stayed up there forever… Within a few months, (but just over 90 days), the reality of what I had done started to sink in. After that first $2k, I spent at least another $1k acquiring discontinued sets via eBay and craigslist, and probably $1k buying new releases because I was still flying high and I had 5,000+ VIP points to burn. For those of you who roll big, I will put this in perspective for you: $2000 is my entire monthly spending budget for utilities, food, etc. I spent 2 months of my household budget on toys. I panicked. I couldn't return anything. I couldn't break even through selling because everything was still readily available. I watched my stocks drop at sickening rates. I wanted to take it all back, but I had gone too far. All I could do was wait and see… It was the release of Lego Dimensions that brought me to the Brick Picker forums. My stocks were still junk (TB, ToO, EV, PS, PC, Simpson House…), but my buying had calmed down some. I started watching the Daily Deals. I started hiding purchases from my family. I started getting carried away again. I started bargaining with myself. If I didn't buy a coffee for a week or if I put off a haircut or if I returned some other nonessential item, how much could I spend on Lego instead? I started exchanging my “investment” sets for things I wanted to build. The lowest point was when I returned some sets that I had bought at discount, for full exchange value, to get my husband a Red Five for Christmas. I took a few weeks off after that... I used to have other interests. I used to have a modest savings account. I still have a roof over my head and my kids are well fed, but all I see are Lego. I want to know why I got this way. I can rationalize any purchase. “It helps me relax” “I had a coupon” “I had extra money this month” “But I need to have ALL of them!” (I tell my husband that I would have been a great Pokemon trainer). Sometimes I get mad at TLG. Sometimes I blame the QFLL. Sometimes I blame the AFOL trying to reclaim a happy childhood build. The truth is, I can only blame myself for getting so caught up in a hobby that I really can't afford… This morning, while I was planning my hunt, I came upon the “why did you start?” thread. The story is slightly different, but it's really all the same. “One time_____ and then I was hooked”. I can't decide if it's genius or predatory, either way, Lego is like a drug, and we are all pushers or addicts. I have 2 Tumblers in my trunk...12 points
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"Follow the White Rabbit" I compare my experience emerging from the LEGO dark ages two years ago to Neo's experience after taking the Red Pill in 1999's The Matrix. I vividly remember the night in early 2014, when I accidentally stumbled across an Amazon listing for a 10185 Green Grocer selling for something like $800. At the same time, I was amazed, shocked, amused, confused and most importantly, hooked. It was literally life-changing. Simply put, I had a whole new perspective on my favorite childhood pastime. Previous to that night, I knew nothing about LEGO brand stores, Lego Shop@Home, Exclusives, Star Wars UCS, sets with RRPs over $150, AFOLs, Brick Pickers, or the LEGO secondary market. The next day I started a new adventure in my life as a LEGO collector. Hoarders, Buried Alive - The Brick Picker Episode I like to sell spare LEGO sets here and there for extra cash - who doesn't - but for now, I consider myself more of a collector-investor than a re-seller. This is largely limited by my available free time. I am also what you would consider a hoarder completionist. I've gone from zero to 450+ sets in the past 24 months. Yes, I have to have all the Ninjago sets with the Dragons. The entire Architecture line? Afraid so. All the Creator modular buildings, absolutely. Can't forget about the LEGO Ideas sets. How about the Creator 3-in-1 buildings, those are kinda cool. Mixels, CMF series, and Winter Village sets are awesome. And then there's the Star Wars UCS collection, the Gold Standard of cool-kid LEGO sets. Besides the sizable storage and display space requirements, the financial commitment required to acquire and maintain a first-class LEGO collection is not insignificant. I'm still waiting for the BOGO sale on 10179 UCS Millenium Falcons at Amazon Unless you had the foresight to start stashing away LEGO sets in 1999, like a doomsday prepper waiting for the Zombie Apocalypse, you've probably missed out on a set or two or twenty. In fact there is a whole thread dedicated to this very topic on Brickpicker. If you've picked up a copy of the Ultimate Guide to Collectible LEGO Sets over on Amazon, you've probably read that some highly desirable LEGO sets are going for big money these days. If you're a serious AFOL, owning a mint copy of the 10179 UCS Millenium Falcon is like showing up to work one day driving a 1961 Ferrari 250 GT California - it brings instant street cred. The whale collectors are going to spend whatever it takes to obtain the sets on their wish list. But what about the rest of us, the ones with budget limitations, a sense of fiscal conservatism, or a desire to get the best deal possible on our purchases, can we make our LEGO dreams come true? Absolutely. If you do your research, set a realistic price goal, and constantly monitor the market for deals, many sets are within reach. In the near future, I plan to present a series of articles highlighting topics of particular interest to the budding collector looking for the best ways to expand their collection. I'm also planning a recurring feature showcasing those Brickpickers offering great deals in their Brick Classifieds stores. What is this Brick Classifieds you speak of? "Tired of paying high commissions on your LEGO set sales? Tired of inexperienced sellers shipping your valued LEGO sets in brown paper and no outer protective box? Tired of clueless Mom and Pop LEGO auction sellers describing expensive LEGO sets incorrectly to make a quick sale? Fearful of unscrupulous “drop shippers” and their illegal activities? If you answered “yes” to any of the above questions, then you might want to take a look at sellers that are BrickPicker members. BrickPicker will now give members the chance to post their personal LEGO set and part listings for sale on the new Brick Classifieds website." — Ed Mack, founder Brick Classifieds Basically, Brick Classifieds is a newish market place, developed by AFOLs, looking to provide great prices on great LEGO sets, outstanding customer service, and a safe, simple shopping experience. Can't I just get that set cheaper on Ebay or Amazon? Possibly, but in many cases, probably not. Particularly when it comes to retired, highly collectible sets, Brick Classifieds is emerging as the leading online marketplace in providing outstanding value to it's customers. This is something I've increasingly noticed over the past year, but I wanted to provide up-to-date information to support my observations. This weekend, I conducted a small market research survey to determine which online marketplace is providing the best deals. As you can see below, vendors on Brick Classifieds offered the best pricing on 19 of 30, or 67% of the sets sampled. 1 All set values were obtained using market data available at brickpicker.com. Click here to research the value of your favorite LEGO set. 2 All CAGR data obtained on 1/16/2016 from brickpicker.com. Click here for a more in-depth discussion of CAGR. 3 Ebay comparison data obtained on 1/16/2016 and calculated using U.S. based sellers only and include shipping to zip code 36870. Pricing data comes from the least expensive Buy-it-now option listing for complete, sealed, new in box listings. Prices listed in U.S. dollars. 4 RRP listed in US dollars. Best of Brick Classifieds - Highlighting this week's outstanding deals A special shout out to vendors FlipBricks and BrickTop for having multiple listings in this weeks' deals. Minifigure Mania - $300 Complete set of 16 Collectible Minifigure Series 1 (sealed) BrickTop - $165 LEGO Castle Medieval Market Village #10193 (retired exclusive) FlipBricks - $340 LEGO Creator Fire Brigade #10197 (retired exclusive) Flip Bricks - $139.99 LEGO Creator Pet Shop #10218 (exclusive) FlipBricks - $499 LEGO Creator Town Hall #10224 (retired exclusive) FlipBricks - $224.99 LEGO DC Super Heroes Batman: Arkham Asylum Breakout #10937 (retired exclusive) FlipBricks - $339.95 LEGO Marvel Super Heroes The SHIELD Helicarrier (exclusive) Collector Bricks - $105 Mixels Complete Series 1 (new, sealed) pnwcollectibles - $373.45 LEGO Monster Fighters Haunted Housed #10228 (retired exclusive) Brickocephalus House - $69 LEGO Ninjago Ice Dragon Attack #2260 Couple Few Lego - $625 LEGO Star Wars UCS TIE Interceptor #7181 (retired exclusive) Toy Box Building Bricks - $655 LEGO Star Wars UCS Naboo Starfighter #10026 (retired exclusive) FlipBricks - $1830 LEGO Star Wars UCS Death Star II #10143 (retired exclusive) BrickTop - $535 LEGO Star Wars Death Star #10188 (retired exclusive) FlipBricks - $350 LEGO Star Wars UCS R2-D2 #10225 (retired exclusive) Lego Dominion - $163 LEGO Star Wars Republic Gunship #75021 (retired) FlipBricks - $279.99 LEGO Star Wars UCS Red 5 X-Wing Starfighter #10240 (retiring soon exclusive) Bricks and Blocks Galaxy - $249 LEGO Technic Unimog #8110 (retired)1 point
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So, you've stumbled across brickpicker.com and are overwhelmed by the number of different threads, blogs and sets. First, welcome to this community. Lots of users will happily welcome you, others, maybe no so much. Especially if you populate different threads with a variation on 'what should I buy' or 'is this a good set to invest in'? I'd argue both of these questions (other than gifs and sarcastic rejoinders) form the basis of every single thread, so instead of asking about a particular set, check out the thread dedicated to that set and start at the beginning. I can almost guarantee that some posters like it (some will even give logical reasons why) as an investment and some posters don't (also, sometimes logical). It is your job to weigh these pros and cons and decide where your opinion rests. You, of course, are free to post questions like the two mentioned above, but the answer will probably just be rehash of things already mentioned in the thread earlier. That, and forum members may be slightly less inclined to be helpful if they feel you posted it because you are too lazy to go back and read the whole thread. They might even be sarcastic/mean about it. A tidbit of Advice If you've read the thread and still want advice, at least try to be specific. Perhaps state the price and quantity you are considering and your ideal hold time. I bet a post that asks a question in this manner will be much better received. I know I'd probably answer this question with a little more insight and help than I would otherwise offer. Now, that is for a single set which has a dedicated thread. What if you are a new investor/collector/browser or Lego aficionado and you want to ask about several sets at once? I offer you this, a shopping list of what you should be buying today (according to me). I am looking for these same sets for one reason: they are either sold out or retired from either the Europe or North America shop at home and I believe they aren't coming back. I also believe that they have some potential, and carry a very low risk because they are becoming harder to find at MSRP or on sale anywhere. That isn't to say they can't be found – some might be found quite online still, depending on your market. Others might be in store only, so this shopping list is a handy thing to check when out with the family browsing retailers and trying to kill time. Veegs' Awesome Quick Guide of the Best Hopefully Soon to be Officially Retired or Already Retired in Some Markets Lego Shopping List. (Items may come back into stock. Not an official guarantee. Veegs is not responsible for your investment choices. Success rate may vary wildly.) Architecture: A nice range for all budgets! This line is one of my favorites, and I think the new Cityscapes, while neat, aren't as desirable as the standalone sets, which will hopefully push demand for older sets. Availability in Canada isn't great, but I think Barnes and Noble in the US still have some of these (your area may vary). No clue about Europe or other markets, but I'd keep my eyes peeled for any of these. Imperial Hotel 21017 Villa Savoye 21014 United Nations Headquarters 21018 Bradenburg Gate 21011 Leaning Tower of Pisa 21015 Seattle Space Needle 21003 At this point, I'm a buyer of any/all of these at MSRP CITY: Quite a few City sets qualify for my list, but these are two I particularly like. The Ice Breaker was a Toys R Us exclusive (at least in Canada) and boats are, in short, awesome. The Snowplow is pretty cool, and there is no remake (yet) on the horizon. Could this be the next Logging Truck? (I bought a lot of them...still not enough) Unique City sets often do well, and despite the constant police/fire sets, the themes overall CAGR% is rock solid, so there is money to be made on this theme with the right sets. I'd include Coast Guard Patrol 60014, too, if you can still find it. Arctic Ice Breaker 60062 Snowplow Truck 60083 Disney Princess: I am a huge Princess fan. I think this theme is on the cusp of doing some great things for investors, and have a separate blog in progress. For now, though, I think this is the best pick of the four that meet the sold out/retired criteria. Only Rapunzel set so far (minus a 2014 polybag) and a massive fan base (including my daughter). Disney toy collectors are out there (my daughter watches so many Disney un-boxing videos and such...I experience it first hand) and I doubt we're getting another Rapunzel set anytime soon or a remake – rumors have Belle coming this summer. I love this set. Rapunzel's Creativity Tower 41054 Friends: Quite a few others on the sold out/retired list but I gravitate towards these two. The Mall is a good anchor set for any town, and the last large Friends set to retire (Riding Camp) did well. I think this will do just fine in 12-18 months. I opted for the Beach House over a couple other mid-sized sets because Heartlake seems to have a boatload of stores but not that many houses. The new Emma's House and Livi's Mansion (although the mansion seems smaller than Emma's house?) bring some balance, but I think this set is one folks will pay double MSRP for to add to their collection. Heartlake Shopping Mall 41058 Stephanie's Beach House 41037 Ideas: Gorgeous set, and the growth in the European market has me believing in this set more every day. From the dedicated thread for this set I know folks are still able to find this in North America and use coupons or other magic to get it on sale. Your skill level and experience may dictate that, but I still think it is a great set at MSRP. Birds 21301 Pirates: Short run for a theme, and this is the flagship of the line. Still floating around at MSRP in Canada, but plenty got in on sale recently. I suspect if it is available around you, you can probably wait and get it on sale. Unlike others on this list, I'd prefer this at least 20% off before going nuts. The Brick Bounty 70413 Marvel: I was going to include Guardians of the Galaxy but I've already discussed those sets here: Ant-Man is growing like Wolverine's Chopper Showdown did and should be sought out in your region and purchased. Easy to store and probably easy to ship, great set for a brand new investor to track down and buy. Check recent sold listings on eBay to see what I'm talking about! Ant-Man Final Battle 76039 Star Wars: These will be the hardest to find, even at full retail price. In case you didn't know, a new Star Wars movie came out in December 2015!!! There are a few others I'd throw on this list, too, but I think these four are the best of the recently sold out/retired lot. At least in the North American market. Imperial Star Destroyer 75055 AT-AT 75054 MTT 75058 Mos Eisley Cantina 75052 The Hobbit: Stragglers are still out there from the third wave. It had the shortest run that I can remember from any/all of the Lord of the Rings or Hobbit waves and scarcity drives demand. Impressive sold listings for Lonely Mountain and Mirkwood Elves so I'd snap up remaining stock of this final wave. Unlikely to ever be made again and a huge fan base, coupled with the fact that there are no decent Medieval sets on the horizon (I'm not counting Nexo Knights, people!) There are many other sets that fit my criteria (sold out or retired in at least one market) but I think these are your best bets, even at MSRP. That being said, I happily nabbed plenty of sets not on this list but at a discount. Obviously, if the set is sold out/retired and you can get it for clearance prices, you probably don't need me to tell you to consider it (unless it is Ninjago, The Lego Movie or Chima, then consider longer...still might not be a great buy in) and probably nab it. Remember items marked clearance probably won't be in that store when you come back, so don't hesitate too long. Do a quick check of Brickpicker values or a scan of recent sold items on eBay, and if you see it trading significantly above the clearance price I'd probably advise pulling out the plastic and buying. Also, as per my exclusives 2016 article, no need for a new investor to start throwing money at exclusives! I doubt we're getting a surprise winter/spring retirement of a bunch of huge sets (sarcasm – I expect zero, maybe one Star Wars set around May the 4th) so put your money into sets that are already primed for post-EOL growth. Probably the safest place to put cash, and you can get your feet wet selling some of the sets on this list tomorrow (Ant Man, for example) or in a few months. I daresay all of the sets on my list will be able to be sold for a decent profit in 9-10 months. Low risk, short hold time (if needed, most will benefit from longer holds before plateauing but nothing wrong with cashing out sometimes) and good to great upside. Winner, winner, buy BigBlueDogBricks a chicken dinner. All photos courtesy of brickpicker.com, opted for one per theme discussed otherwise I felt it would be a little too picture-happy. Happy Hunting, Veegs1 point