Each boy has a box of comics that we collected together. Sam has a box filled with Uncle Scrooge and Donald Ducks (And that Hulk #3). Nicholas has a box of Silver age Flash, Green Lantern, and nearly complete run of Silver Surfer. Each boy also has a high grade Golden Age book. Sam has Detective Comics #103 (a gift from a dealer friend) and Nicholas has Superman #41. Sam was a Batman fan and Nicholas liked Supes.
Otherwise, the entire collection is gone. The final box left the house in late June. I need to go through the handful of Archives and Masterworks. I'll be posting them soon.
(The good news is a bunch my cherished ASM books are in good hands ;) )
Wow, been learning a lot. I've posted elsewhere on how I a planning to sell off at minimum 11 boxes of comics from my 33 box collection. I would actually like to get to 20 boxes.
I just saw a sale on ebay where the seller was moving books as lots of 90 books in a mystery type lot for 16.99, no promises of what you get. I may go this way, first check the lots to be sure I'm not putting a 100 book in it, then sell them that way. Maybe do a 100 mystery lot for 20 bucks, I think shipping is anywhere between 11-20 bucks.
My other thought is to bring all the books to my local and say, hey, you can have 12 boxes of comics for that ASM number 14, or something like that.
This is a tough process. The funny thing is its not getting ride of say a run or Green Arrow, its the fact that I then look at a run of something new I'm reading now and saying well might as well sell these also. Someone on a post said something great. They said the stuff we get now is for entertainment, not collecting.
So moving forward I am getting trades on many titles or maybe digital, and only buying books I "collect", like ASM, Flash, GL and Hellblazer to name a few. Keep that number low and then move forward filling gaps in those books.
Over the last ten years or so, I have ever so slowly realized that my collection is worthless. I have approximately 20,000 books that would be very difficult and time consuming to move, and it just isn't worth the time or effort. It makes me want to cry when I think about all the hard earned cash I have spent over the last 35 years (especially when money is tight). But then I think about how much joy and entertainment comics have given me over those 35 years and it isn't too bad. I was never foolish enough to buy anything thinking I would get "a big return on my investment", I just bought what I enjoyed. But I am running out of room and I need to come up with a way to trim away the deadwood that isn't painful. Luckily, I have a young daughter that genuinely loves comics as much as I did at that age, and it has been super sweet to pull out key issues and runs to share with her. It makes holding onto it all worthwhile.
If you don't think there is a lot of value in the boxes you want to clear out of the collection, you might consider making a donation to a non-profit entity such as the Popular Culture Library at Bowling Green State University. (my alma mater) They will want to review the offering and they will only take what they need for their collection. However, donating the books to a non-profit is tax deductible. You'll need to catalog the books, grade them, and assign the current guide value. Which is a much higher amount in many cases than when the books get tossed into a $1 by a dealer. If memory serves me correctly, you can write off 33% of the value. Meaning that $3 book is a $1 tax write-off and much better than getting a 10¢ a book. Check with your accountant for their recommendations. We donated about $1,500 worth of modern books to BG (about 500 comics) several years ago.
If you don't think there is a lot of value in the boxes you want to clear out of the collection, you might consider making a donation to a non-profit entity such as the Popular Culture Library at Bowling Green State University. (my alma mater) They will want to review the offering and they will only take what they need for their collection. However, donating the books to a non-profit is tax deductible. You'll need to catalog the books, grade them, and assign the current guide value. Which is a much higher amount in many cases than when the books get tossed into a $1 by a dealer. If memory serves me correctly, you can write off 33% of the value. Meaning that $3 book is a $1 tax write-off and much better than getting a 10¢ a book. Check with your accountant for their recommendations. We donated about $1,500 worth of modern books to BG (about 500 comics) several years ago.
That sounds like a pretty good plan. Unfortunately I'm not a US citizen so a US tax deduction doesn't do me much good. But it might be worth looking into a similar non-profit on my side of the border.
If you don't think there is a lot of value in the boxes you want to clear out of the collection, you might consider making a donation to a non-profit entity such as the Popular Culture Library at Bowling Green State University. (my alma mater) They will want to review the offering and they will only take what they need for their collection. However, donating the books to a non-profit is tax deductible. You'll need to catalog the books, grade them, and assign the current guide value. Which is a much higher amount in many cases than when the books get tossed into a $1 by a dealer. If memory serves me correctly, you can write off 33% of the value. Meaning that $3 book is a $1 tax write-off and much better than getting a 10¢ a book. Check with your accountant for their recommendations. We donated about $1,500 worth of modern books to BG (about 500 comics) several years ago.
That sounds like a pretty good plan. Unfortunately I'm not a US citizen so a US tax deduction doesn't do me much good. But it might be worth looking into a similar non-profit on my side of the border.
What I do is 2 times a year I go through all my longboxes and get rid of stuff I don't want anymore. I make two stacks. One stack is all ages stuff. Then I take the all ages stuff and give half of it to the local children's ward of the hospital. The other half I take down to the local woman's shelter.
........then suddenly I got a call from someone who was interested all of the titles (about 6 short boxes). Shortly after dinner one night, a small tattooed dude shows up with an SUV at my house. We hit it of immediately. That fellow was none other than James Murphy of Fearless Readers and we would become good friends. And James would provide a lot of insight and advice over the next 32 months.
Finally getting around to reading this. Funny, I didn't know Murph had tattoos.
"What’s the value of that blanket your Grandmother hand stitched? Or the hutch your Great Grandfather made? Or your children? I have three bound collections titled “My Favorite Comics” that were shaved, sewn, and glued into hardcovers and some of you might cry to see what I’ve included in there. It’s not a monetary thing for me. I have a comic book collection I’ve spent my life working on and what I’m going to remember most is that both of my children read many years above their grade level having learned to read with it. I really can’t put a price on that."
Best quote and advice from the article that I like to live by: "Buy what you like. If you enjoy what you’re reading you can’t ever go wrong."
Pretty much says what I've been saying for years. And if you get into collecting anything, it has to be for the love of the item not for the "value or investment". Every #1 issue isn't going to turn into a ASM #1 or FF #1. In fact, most will be in dollar bins within a year. No one can predict the success or failure of a character in pop culture that will drive up the value of a specific issue or character.
The ROI on my collection was just luck, that and holding on to it for so many years. I had put together ASM #1-150 by 1977/78, then held on to them for nearly 35 years. But if you are looking to build wealth for retirement or your kid's college, I would recommend investing your money in a mutual fund.
I tell my two sons to save the things from their childhood that they liked and have fond memories for them. If in 15 years, the items have value…. that's just a bonus….. and sell them quickly and cash out. :)) I also sold off a bunch of my childhood toys at the same time I was selling off the collection. I probably was on the back side of that curve, but still did pretty well.
Comments
Otherwise, the entire collection is gone. The final box left the house in late June. I need to go through the handful of Archives and Masterworks. I'll be posting them soon.
(The good news is a bunch my cherished ASM books are in good hands ;) )
I just saw a sale on ebay where the seller was moving books as lots of 90 books in a mystery type lot for 16.99, no promises of what you get. I may go this way, first check the lots to be sure I'm not putting a 100 book in it, then sell them that way. Maybe do a 100 mystery lot for 20 bucks, I think shipping is anywhere between 11-20 bucks.
My other thought is to bring all the books to my local and say, hey, you can have 12 boxes of comics for that ASM number 14, or something like that.
This is a tough process. The funny thing is its not getting ride of say a run or Green Arrow, its the fact that I then look at a run of something new I'm reading now and saying well might as well sell these also. Someone on a post said something great. They said the stuff we get now is for entertainment, not collecting.
So moving forward I am getting trades on many titles or maybe digital, and only buying books I "collect", like ASM, Flash, GL and Hellblazer to name a few. Keep that number low and then move forward filling gaps in those books.
Just some thoughts.
Unfortunately I'm not a US citizen so a US tax deduction doesn't do me much good. But it might be worth looking into a similar non-profit on my side of the border.
What I do is 2 times a year I go through all my longboxes and get rid of stuff I don't want anymore. I make two stacks. One stack is all ages stuff. Then I take the all ages stuff and give half of it to the local children's ward of the hospital. The other half I take down to the local woman's shelter.
Funny, I didn't know Murph had tattoos.
"Buy what you like. If you enjoy what you’re reading you can’t ever go wrong."
Read more at http://thecelebritycafe.com/feature/2013/11/your-million-dollar-comic-book-collection-november-20
The ROI on my collection was just luck, that and holding on to it for so many years. I had put together ASM #1-150 by 1977/78, then held on to them for nearly 35 years. But if you are looking to build wealth for retirement or your kid's college, I would recommend investing your money in a mutual fund.
I tell my two sons to save the things from their childhood that they liked and have fond memories for them. If in 15 years, the items have value…. that's just a bonus….. and sell them quickly and cash out. :)) I also sold off a bunch of my childhood toys at the same time I was selling off the collection. I probably was on the back side of that curve, but still did pretty well.
chron.com/news/texas/article/Wis-collector-puts-rare-comics-on-auction-block-4997908.php