Ebay and Auction Houses vs the Real World

[hcv123]

Cards that are regularly sold with record of at least a few current public sales might sell at a slight discount due to reasons mentioned above (I generally offer mine in line (or slightly lower) with a premium or deduction based on eye appeal/grade quality).

Cards for which there are very few sales, I often sell for more than "comparable" auction sales, usually due to a lack of available supply.

Re: Steve's conundrum - I LOVE buying some of these types of cards in auctions as I can sometimes get them for way less than what I believe I am able to sell them for. I actually recently got hurt consigning to an auction company (who shall remain nameless) - I declined a $20K private offer for a card I thought should sell for more - gave it to an auction company and it sold for $13K! AFTER the auction I was told "that is the risk" of an auction.
Important to consider not every card sells for a strong or record price in an auction (despite advertising implying the contrary). When I sell privately - I do a lot of due diligence and establish what I believe to be a fair current market value as an asking price (more art than science). The fear is always about leaving money on the table - it can happen no matter how you sell. My advice - pick a method, determine a price (depending on the method) and don't look back.


All of the above simply illustrates the gross "inefficiency" of the market.