Lets be Realistic People

[Bold-Arrow]

Great post.. I'm still waiting on the name calling part. That's a dare btw..

In all seriousness people need to read the valuable information on this site. When I first joined I remember reading almost every single article out there before I bought my first investment set and looking back I still made some mistakes but not as many as I would have if I were just to buy every deal posted .

Thanks again DNIIM

[Bold-Arrow]

Oh thing I would add:

Don't go into debt...ever

It is easy to get caught up in a buying frenzy especially with the holiday season knocking on our door. There will be tons of daily/weekly deal and before you know you are slammed with a huge CC bill and interest rates will eat you alive. Don't do it . There will always be deals

[Grolim]

Very nicely said DNIIM and others in the thread.

 

I'd like to add:

 

Don't Always Follow the Herd

 

Sometimes it is ok to follow the heard, like buying up a few pretty obvious winners like Fire Brigade or 41999.  But most of the time, the sets that show (PROVEN WITH DATA!) the largest returns are sets that not many people talk about.  I submit 7936 and 3187 as evidence.  Branch out and explore unknown gems.  Start looking at already retired sets and buy them on the secondary market if they still look ripe for growth, many of them still get great returns.  Not only good profit focused decisions but they help you diversify as well and when you sell you don't have to compete with many other sellers.

[DoNotInsertIntoMouth]

Oh thing I would add:

Don't go into debt...ever

It is easy to get caught up in a buying frenzy especially with the holiday season knocking on our door. There will be tons of daily/weekly deal and before you know you are slammed with a huge CC bill and interest rates will eat you alive. Don't do it . There will always be deals

 

Definitely one i had to learn a few times. I was bad in the beginning and I ended up having to liquidate stuff that I wish I still had.

[naf]

I'll add a couple:

 

When it stops being fun, stop doing it!

 

I think most of us do this in our spare time as a hobby and not as a full time job.  It should be fun.  If you're spending so much that you're worried about how you're going to pay next months credit card bill, you're not gonna have a good time.  If you're stressing because you can't find all the clearance deals people are talking about, you're not gonna have a good time!  People burn out, there is always a deal to be had somewhere, sometimes its good to just take a break.  Don't buy anything for a while, stay off the forum for a bit, etc.  Everyone needs to regroup now and then.

 

This one kind of goes with the above....  You don't need to buy up every deal!

 

I fell into this trap in the beginning, I was buying up everything that came up in the daily deals forum.  I learned to take a step back, come up with a plan, and stick to it.  Deals come and go, as do the sets themselves, and if you missed something go on to the next thing.  People are stressing about getting the last of the GE's, you could just refocus  your efforts and dollars on the Pet Shop so you're not scrambling when that set retires next year.

[DoNotInsertIntoMouth]

I'll add one:

 

When it stops being fun, stop doing it!

 

I think most of us do this in our spare time as a hobby and not as a full time job.  It should be fun.  If you're spending so much that you're worried about how you're going to pay next months credit card bill, you're not gonna have a good time.  If you're stressing because you can't find all the clearance deals people are talking about, you're not gonna have a good time!  People burn out, there is always a deal to be had somewhere, sometimes its good to just take a break.  Don't buy anything for a while, stay off the forum for a bit, etc.  Everyone needs to regroup now and then.

 

This one kind of goes with the above....  You don't need to buy up every deal!

 

I fell into this trap in the beginning, I was buying up everything that came up in the daily deals forum.  I learned to take a step back, come up with a plan, and stick to it.  Deals come and go, as do the sets themselves, and if you missed something go on to the next thing.  People are stressing about getting the last of the GE's, you could just refocus  your efforts and dollars on the Pet Shop so you're not scrambling when that set retires next year.

 

Another great one. I get really frusterated when I miss a set. But if we didn't, it would be less fun. the rush of getting those deals every once in a while is what makes it fun.

[brickmasterson]

Here's one to add: Those that over bought and can't hang will be out of the market soon will be dumping product which will drop prices for the next 6 months to a year.

[DoNotInsertIntoMouth]

Here's one to add: Those that over bought and can't hang will be out of the market soon will be dumping product which will drop prices for the next 6 months to a year.

 

Awesome avatar.

[mudcatsfan]

I think its interesting all the concern for fellow investors out there. Several posts of this nature lately.

 

Don't get me wrong, i think it's nice and morally admirable.

 

However, If things were so great back in the olden days when there was less competition..............wouldn't you want the herd thinned?

 

All i'm saying is 3/4 of the earth is covered by water, and the other 1/4 is covered by morons. Darwinism exists in investing too. Unless you put safety measures on everything, and pretty soon we're smack dab in a dystopic future, Idiocracy style.

[jerryherb]

duplo is where its at

[DoNotInsertIntoMouth]

I think its interesting all the concern for fellow investors out there. Several posts of this nature lately.

 

Don't get me wrong, i think it's nice and morally admirable.

 

However, If things were so great back in the olden days when there was less competition..............wouldn't you want the herd thinned?

 

All i'm saying is 3/4 of the earth is covered by water, and the other 1/4 is covered by morons. Darwinism exists in investing too. Unless you put safety measures on everything, and pretty soon we're smack dab in a dystopic future, Idiocracy style.

 

Yes you would want the herd thinned - but thats not the spirit of this site. You sacrifice a little profitability and leg up in competition and gain invaluable information.

[Alpinemaps]

 

Some of the more experienced investors on here provide very valuable information to us.  They don't spoon feed it, but they certainly give us subtle hints.

 

 

But most of the time, the sets that show (PROVEN WITH DATA!) the largest returns are sets that not many people talk about.

 

I said this recently in another thread - you should listen to what isn't being said as much as what is.

 

You will find other investors on this site whose opinions you value.  And they will offer nuggets of info.  They won't spoon feed you.  And sometimes, their silence on a topic is as golden as when they speak.

[Darth_Raichu]

There goes the neighborhood

 

Well said, DNIIM.   Frankly, I find the rampant over-inflated future predictions stated as facts amusing. If every other posts are fact based, this forum will become boring really fast.  We need the BS here and there to keep things colorful.  Although I admit when there are too much BS the topics become unreadable  My point is, at the end of the day it is MY responsibility to figure out which is BS, truth, or half-truth.  Most of the times I am right, other times I was wrong, you cannot win every damn time.   

 

Also, on my part I try to be realistic with my own comments*. Although others have as much right to express their opinions however they wish.

 

 

*Except on the Rovers thread, coz that **** is solid gold :D

[gorbasho]

one important thing to add:

 

Use bold text when giving advice!

 

You may think that standard text is enough to get your point across, but it simply is not as effective. Bold text permeates the mind of your reader and convinces them to believe everything you say.

 

In all seriousness though, this is a great thread. Big thank you to all who have provided tips, I feel there's lots to learn here

[biniou]

 

Invest in what you like

 

You'll have more fun that way.  Find the sets and themes that you like.  Don't worry about the stuff you don't like.

 

It's very important for two reasons:

The obvious one is that if you like a set (or not) it might be the same for buyers.

The other reason is that if you are a small investor (or at least have many-many different sets) it's better to be stuck with a set you like than a one you don't. I was stuck with sets I would like to open for myself and "unfortunately" I was able to resell them. On the other hand, I'm still stuck with sets I hate (that stupid baxter TMNT) and every time I look at it I want to punch myself ah ah...

 

 

 

Don't Post Just Because You Can

 

There are people on this board who reply to just about anything. Opinions are like ..... everyone has one and they shouldn't always be shared. Being helpful is one thing, but filling the forums with nonsense, is well, nonsense.

 

I agree:

"I think we have a winner because this set is cool" is useless.

"I think we have a winner because this superb canopy is exclusive to that set" is usefull.

 

[sroster]

Regarding 7936 and 3187 what can we learn about why these sets took off?  I get the zombies, very timely, everyone is nutso on the zombie thing but I don't really get the appeal of these two sets?  Were they somewhat rare?  I get the logic on some smaller sets everyone is talking up now that have great minifigures but would love to get someone's thoughts who saw the success of these sets coming and why?

[stephen_rockefeller]

The production run for the zombies set was extremely limited and it was a Target exclusive if I remember correctly.

[speedsausage]

Excellent thread DNIIM!

I have to admit I have pretty much come to the exact same conclusions on my own as what has been posted here by logging +150hrs in about a four month time frame scouring all the threads for info.

In that time I've set up a game plan (which has already been changed due to other themes that now interest me and different goals I've put in place). My wife has helped set up an investment spreadsheet that I had actually read on one of the brickpicker blogs.

We have an appointment with an accountant next Friday and I have an in-law that owns a company that deals with packaging so I'll be talking to him in the pretty near future for shipping supplies. After that, I need to sell my first item, oh and don't worry, I'll make sure you guys know when I do!!

Anyone serious about doing this, the info here will definitely get you started on the right track. Again, this a great topic and a must read for any greenhorn getting into this game.

Maybe it should be a sticky.

[biniou]

Regarding 7936 and 3187 what can we learn about why these sets took off?  I get the zombies, very timely, everyone is nutso on the zombie thing but I don't really get the appeal of these two sets?  Were they somewhat rare?  I get the logic on some smaller sets everyone is talking up now that have great minifigures but would love to get someone's thoughts who saw the success of these sets coming and why?

7936: level crossing is uncommon and it's compatible with trains (it's even sold with 4 tracks). Obvious winner IMO when you see the success of trains.

 

3187: here it's all about the name of the theme itself: leave exactly the same set, just change the name "butterfly beauty shop" by "redneck odd fastfood" and you would have seen a negative CAGR.

(to be fair I think the mirror helped this set a little)

 

Too bad the 41007 heartlake pet salon doesn't have more puppies (like a parrot, a kitty...) in the set, it would have followed the same way as the 3187 IMO.

[binici]

Well! I've never been so insulted in my life! How dare you tell me that HH won't be $500 by the holidays! Blasphemy!!!

Great original post. I felt every thought that went into writing it...

Sent from my iPhone using Brickpicker

[tguncurun]

Well i personally dont care for the GE but got 11 ha! ...and 5 T1's after i looked up the beetle. But i guess those are headed to the moon? I do like my super heros twoface chases though.. i think that batmobile is the coolest looking one ever made so far

[glenbart]

Is this the wrong thread for me to predict the Quinjet will be $100 by Christmas?

even Catwoman cycle chase will be $100 by Christmas....

[stephen_rockefeller]

even Catwoman cycle chase will be $100 by Christmas....

Guaranteed huh?

[Neosphinx]

I'm pretty new myself.

I don't think Lego will make me rich as I see certain people claim here (if I read between the curiosity Rovers thread lines)

I do believe investing in Lego is more safe than buying stocks and it will bring in more than if I leave my money on the bank (3% growth?)

Am I being realistic if I expect a ROI of about 20-25%/year on my investment or is that too optimistic?

[Jimking23]

I appreciate the members who post their mistakes. It never easy to admit you were wrong, especially in a public setting. As they say, you can learn as much from your failures as your successes. I promise to not let your honesty go unheard.