When do you draw the line?

[fendiixx]

I started Lego investing around late 2010 and since then i've invested a fair chunk of my wages each month into Lego. I have completely maxed out my loft now (which is a decent size) and have a decent amount of sets hiding in cupboards, under beds etc. 

 

However now i'm somewhat at a cross roads as i'm sitting on a pretty big gold mine i'd like to think, but very much playing the waiting game of retirements/sets increasing in price and getting the sales. I keep saying to myself that's it for now until i sell x amount of sets. Yet I still find myself buying Lego when it's on discount or if a new set comes out and I really like the look of it, i'll usually buy it. Generally i've been buying 20-25 per set (depending on the price/discount). Of course in an ideal world i'd like to be shifting sets each week and having new ones to replace them but i'm far from that.

 

But without getting off the point, what point do you draw the line and say I have enough Lego for investing, without it becoming more of an addiction/obsession? I know that sounds weird but I have little self control, especially buying online it's very easy to buy a lot of a set without really thinking much of it.

[justafrog]

Go about it more intentionally than, "I have some money left from my paycheck and a set's on sale".

 

Look at what you have and what you paid for it. Set goals on when you want to sell it (double price, triple price, when you judge it's reached the apex of its value?)

 

Set a buying budget that fits in with your overall finances for investment. I personally don't believe in keeping all my eggs in one basket investment-wise, so I invest in our business, in a variety of mutual funds of varying levels of risk, etc.

 

Once you've spent your Lego investment money for a given time period (weekly, monthly, quarterly, whatever), stop buying until the next time period's money is available. There will always be another deal, you don't have to buy just because it's on sale.

[pickleboy]

I set a budget.  I don't buy if I don't have it in the budget...I sell if I want to buy something else.  At some point you need to quit putting new cash into your investment and let it sustain itself.  If you have sets from 2010 then quit putting new cash into and start selling those... 

Start a one set in...one set out policy with yourself...  don;t buy a new set unless you sell one.

[MartinP]

I started Lego investing around late 2010 and since then i've invested a fair chunk of my wages each month into Lego. I have completely maxed out my loft now (which is a decent size) and have a decent amount of sets hiding in cupboards, under beds etc. 

 

However now i'm somewhat at a cross roads as i'm sitting on a pretty big gold mine i'd like to think, but very much playing the waiting game of retirements/sets increasing in price and getting the sales. I keep saying to myself that's it for now until i sell x amount of sets. Yet I still find myself buying Lego when it's on discount or if a new set comes out and I really like the look of it, i'll usually buy it. Generally i've been buying 20-25 per set (depending on the price/discount). Of course in an ideal world i'd like to be shifting sets each week and having new ones to replace them but i'm far from that.

 

But without getting off the point, what point do you draw the line and say I have enough Lego for investing, without it becoming more of an addiction/obsession? I know that sounds weird but I have little self control, especially buying online it's very easy to buy a lot of a set without really thinking much of it.

I always draw the line at storage and financial. If I do not have enough space to store all the set, I would sell a few of each to make room for new ones. If it is money, then I would do the same thing, but sell some of the valuable sets first. It does not hurt when you see a set at a deep discount and you know that you will make money on the set in the future. Playing the waiting game is very hard for Lego investing, expecially when you do not know when a set may EOL.

[@rtisan]

I`m sure many can relate. I know I can! Credit Cards can be very bad in this department... 

 

Self control is a big one, and it`s hard to walk away when you find a discount that you "just know" will yield some profit, or at least how I tell myself. Simplest way to put an answer to your question really is to just stop. Recognize that what you have purchased was a good deal at the time (hopefully it still is) and that now it`s time to wait until you start to see some of the money come back. You have to also realize that you can`t have everything, which is far easier said than done. You draw the line in the sand when you are confident in your ability to have purchased sets at prices that will produce profit, then you have to choose to walk away.

 

If I understand your post correctly about having purchased 20-25 of a set, one more point may be to purchase smaller numbers of a particular item (unless you score a massive deal). This means you investment more gradually and diversely, which also allows for more time for previous investments to grow and be sold. Just something to think about. And keep in mind, I haven`t sold really anything yet (some small items locally) so that really isn`t my department 

[MartinP]

Another way to draw a line is to put a spending limit per month. It can work wonders.

[DoNotInsertIntoMouth]

I`m sure many can relate. I know I can! Credit Cards can be very bad in this department... 

 

 

This is exactly my problem. I buy stuff and worry about it later. Lol. Luckily I am good enough with numbers that I make it work most of the time. but I should be more deliberate.

[Anakinisvader]

LEGO is like a drug man    But its hard to go      You must ease your way out of it.

[pickleboy]

I never put anything on credit either. 

 

EDIT: That's not entirely accurate.  I'll use a credit card to get the points but I never buy anything I can't pay at the end of the month.  No questions asked.  The majority of interest rates are much larger than the growth on most Lego sets. 

[justafrog]

I never put anything on credit either. 

 

EDIT: That's not entirely accurate.  I'll use a credit card to get the points but I never buy anything I can't pay at the end of the month.  No questions asked.  The majority of interest rates are much larger than the growth on most Lego sets. 

 

Exactly. You either have to be disciplined about paying them off each month or just chop them up and use the various debit cards offering points and cash back instead. It's not worth carrying a balance no matter what kind of perks you get for the ridiculous interest you're paying.

[segreto]

When my closet is full, and I am too lazy to drive to our storage unit.  My family lives in a condo, but when we buy a house with a basement, I am going to be in dangerous territory.  I don't think I would let my Lego investments overshadow what I have in the stock market, but I will match what I have in my day-trading accounts (30k). Once I am over that price, I think I need to reevaluate my position and start selling and putting the funds back into both Lego and some mutual funds.  I gamble a lot with stock options and writing naked options, and I put Lego investing in the same category, so same amount of funds can go into both investment vehicles. 

[sadowsk1]

When you say you are lacking self control it makes me think you should look for some help.  People can get addicted to shopping just like anything else.  If I was taking up common living spaces with my collection I would start selling some off.  If I wouldn't be yielding any profit at this point in the game I would say as an investment buying Lego isn't working out so well.

[stephen_rockefeller]

Another way to draw a line is to put a spending limit per month. It can work wonders.

If works no wonders if you have no self control, as the OP stated.

[TheOrcKing]

Where do I draw the line? Hmm, soon as I stop gettin' high off my own supply I'll let you know.

Alright, I'll be serious now. Ahem.

I would draw the line when your house starts to look more like a warehouse with stacks upon stacks of boxes filling up the rooms and you have to sleep on the couch or floor because of your purchases. While it is true not everything gains value at the same rate there should be some kind of system where new stock flows in while the old ebbs out.

[Alcarin]

I set a personal line on 1000$..... I never have more than 1000$ invested in LEGO at one point (not actual current value buy i can buy sets up to 1000$ worth in store)

 

I stick to that and its ok....

[legoman12323123]

I set a personal line on 1000$..... I never have more than 1000$ invested in LEGO at one point (not actual current value buy i can buy sets up to 1000$ worth in store)

 

I stick to that and its ok....

 

$1,000?  You arnt gunna make any real cash with that wimpy investment .. add another zero and that is a good starting point

[Guest TabbyBoy]

I have a very blurry, wavy and flexible line drawn under

[Alcarin]

$1,000?  You arnt gunna make any real cash with that wimpy investment .. add another zero and that is a good starting point

 

I made around 1500$ pure profit (after all fees etc) since December 2012 to today.... but I am not here for profit just funding my Hobby and a few extra bucks for drinking and parties....

 

I have diverse funding of different investments etc

 

And the way investing is going in LEGO I might aswell jsut lower that 1000$ sooner or later lol

[Guest TabbyBoy]

I made around 1500$ pure profit (after all fees etc) since December 2012 to today.... but I am not here for profit just funding my Hobby and a few extra bucks for drinking and parties....

 

I have diverse funding of different investments etc

 

And the way investing is going in LEGO I might aswell jsut lower that 1000$ sooner or later lol

 

What about after tax? ;-)

 

There's a rocky road ahead so, I'm treading extra carefully from now on.

[Alcarin]

What about after tax? ;-)

 

There's a rocky road ahead so, I'm treading extra carefully from now on.

 

 

What tax ?

[stephen_rockefeller]

Where do I draw the line? Hmm, soon as I stop gettin' high off my own supply I'll let you know.

Alright, I'll be serious now. Ahem.

I would draw the line when your house starts to look more like a warehouse with stacks upon stacks of boxes filling up the rooms and you have to sleep on the couch or floor because of your purchases. While it is true not everything gains value at the same rate there should be some kind of system where new stock flows in while the old ebbs out.

Hey I know someone who does that!

[Spartikis]

There will be time when you play the waiting game, especially when you first start, there is a dead period of 1-2 years after you start that it hard to get through. For year i would get the most evil look from my wife everytime i bought LEGOs, even though i said it was an investment she was thinking "oh yeah right hes going to open those sets by the end of the week" Now that time has passed and she has seen the closet fill with lego and never get built as well as just starting to sell some of my first sets, such as Emerald night, imperial flagship, imperial shuttle, etc... we now both wish i would have filled the spare bedroom to the ceiling with those earlier sets, prob could have paid off our house and bought a lake house with the profits and still had some cash left over.

 

But there is a time when you have to say enough is enough, you cant let it cut into your everyday spending, remember its an investment, dont fail to pay the credit card because you were "investing" but also the space can be an issue, i wish i had another bedroom just for lego but that would mean a bigger home, bigger mortgage, more heating, more insurance etc...

[Anakinisvader]

$1,000?  You arnt gunna make any real cash with that wimpy investment .. add another zero and that is a good starting point

 

Add two zero's and you are really rockin. 

[StarCityBrickCompany]

I draw the line whenever it gets covered with more cases of LEGO (usually 5-6 feet at a time). 

[Darth_Raichu]

Line ? What line ?

 

Seriously, just have a budget and STICK WITH IT.