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Showing content with the highest reputation on 03/10/2015 in all areas
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8 points
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Great thread and a reality-check for formulating an investment strategy... Big, expensive, proven lines (mods, UCS, etc.) really are not that exciting to acquire. But they pay. And less folks hold them as entry-costs are high. And demand will always drive their price in the right direction. The problem is.... Buying (for example) four hundred bucks a month in 2-3 next-to-eol large sets is, well... boring. Two clicks on Amazon and it's over. Lather, rinse, repeat next paycheck. All done on-line in three minutes. Not very thrilling. But the same four hundred can be a blast to spend, considering the thrill of finding epically discounted sets that are long retired- or very near it- in obscure locations. Acquisitions of this type feel like an adventure, and large discounts are deceptively appealing. It really is fun to stumble on deeply bargained or long-retired sets. Sadly.... The less fun strategy typically would have paid a lot more. A $5,000 miscellaneous "bargain" inventory of low-demand sets acquired over unimaginable trips and hours spent to collect them risks never seeing a return. Think of the fuel costs, selling fees, etc. Had the same 5K been spent on, say, the next-to-eol modular- and that single set alone even purchased at or near MSRP- expect investor/collector demand, ROI, and potentially a lot of it. As an investor, $5,000 of hodge-podge is completely unappealing. However, $5,000 of the GE alone, or SSD alone, or R2 or AA or TH or any other set that will have future demand- let's talk business. I would gladly negotiate and find a win-win situation for someone that needed to liquidate $5k of a single set that is a Winning set. I don't want to sort through a mountain of clutter as an investor. But tell me you have 12 SSD's and are looking to liquidate the lot as a whole... Now you're cooking with oil. Regardless of your strategy... Post your deals and use affiliate links through this site. Do your buying/selling through the brick trader channels right here. The most knowledgeable, qualified, and respected Lego investors have chosen Brick Picker as their home.7 points
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I think the set is a poor investment. I mean it hasn't even hit $1000 and it's been like 3 or 4 months. Jeez Louise!6 points
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I've been pleasantly surprised by the performance of modulars lately, and GE is my single biggest investment (well, after DS... sigh). But at some point, there must be diminishing returns from a strategy that breaks down to 'buy $150 Lego sets at MSRP and sell them on eBay for double your money one year later'. That's just too easy not to end up being overexploited.5 points
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Scored another lot today. The calculator values it at 863.31. Will sort out the Harry Potter and Pirates to sell and throw the rest of the blocks in our collection. http://brickset.com/sets?query=4736-1,4865-1,4867-1,4194-1,4183-1,4191-1,4181-1,4192-1,4182-1,8089-1,9443-1,9442-1,7914-1,7948-1,6863-1,2508-1,2504-1,2856134-1 http://brickset.com/sets?query=2258-1,2259-1,2516-1,9441-1,3181-1,7915-1,7929-1,7913-1,7957-1,7848-1,7942-1,7630-1,6858-1,70722-1,70721-1 4194-1 4867-1 2504-1 4183-1 9443-1 8089-1 4182-1 6863-1 9442-1 7948-1 2508-1 4181-1 4192-1 2856134-1 4191-1 4736-1 7914-1 4865-1 7848-1 3181-1 7929-1 7957-1 70722-1 70721-1 9441-1 2259-1 7915-1 7942-1 7630-1 6858-1 7913-1 2258-1 2516-14 points
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4 points
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I have a feeling alot of members blindly follow what a few others are buying on this site and are stuck with alot of subpar inventory. What they do not realize is that those vocal members are experienced enough to dump them all off to wholesalers quickly or do not have day jobs so they are content to make scraps on each item all day long. Meanwhile these guys following work day jobs with families and have closets full of duds with no time and no knowledge on how to liquidate them. Sorry to hear about your situation OP and I wish you the best in finding a solution. Hopefully your story will inspire others to research beyond reading these boards. Reselling is a job your create for yourself and should not be viewed as an alternative to an emergency fund or investing for your retirement.4 points
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I've actually always asked myself how one can - exactly - buy something "accidentally". Maybe you could ask her how she did it. Knowing this could help me understand those "accidental" buyers on my ebay auctions better. Thx4 points
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79111 constitution train chase for $119 + shipping4 points
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when people are consistently putting sets on brick classifieds above eBay and Amazon value.4 points
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I was as awesome then as I am now Check out this pearl of wisdom:4 points
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Sold two items in past few days. One lady contacts me to tell me she is paying in teo days once her pays check comes in. No problem. Thanks for letting me know. The other..... '' just letting you know I don't have the money right now but still want the item. I will be paying on March 28th. Ummmm, yeah that's not gonna fly.3 points
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I think he's talking about the rest of us here in SoCal. Haters gonna hate 80 degrees in March.3 points
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This is the internet unfortunatly. When you ask questions of random people for whom no one really knows the truth of who they are and what they do you are in essence holding up a big target. Your motivations for buying and selling are not relevant. Peoples opinions are not relevent. I expect there are not many on this or any other website that truly do what they talk. I few on here have shown the man behind the curtain but not many. It is just like stock investors who boast about their wins and dissapppear or never discuss their losses. Good luck selling your sets, it will prove tough I expect but who cares. That is the name of the game. There are quite a few names from years past on here that are nowhere to be seen.3 points
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I'll trade you my 6862's for your arctic batman's (anyone) response crickets chirping3 points
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Well... at least you can buy what you want now. When your wifes dares to complain you can say you bought it by accident p.s. I respect that you take responsibility and paid the seller. Many people simply wouldn't pay.3 points
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Question for the original poster. Seems to me this list is all the sets you do not want anymore. Where are all the big exclusive sets in your collection. Most members who have been investing for any length of time would have a few exclusives in there portfolio. I do a 180 on sets I have in my portfolio all the time. Re-assessing sets we own is something that we all must do regularly. I assume most off your list were bought with a 30-50 percent off discount. Moving them quickly individually on ebay or amazon to break even or take a slight loss can be done. It requires rolling up your sleeves and getting your hands dirty doing the work. It will fetch you a better price than selling it all to one buyer.3 points
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3 points
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3 points
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There was a brief(ish) moment that some members were getting under my skin but I've done a lot of thinking and realized how awesome this entire community is and my attitude was not reflective of how I feel about this forum and it's members. I'm good now!3 points
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Started looking around at what's out there. The best thing I could find were both IKEA solutions. Either a series of LACK coffee tables (about $80 / 4x8 space) or a build-your-own table using: 1x http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/00251135/ 4x http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/90217972/ I like the table better because it will be higher. Each one is about 2x4 and runs $20 a table, so about the same price as 8 LACKs. The other option seems to be plywood and folding legs, which runs about 70$ a table and requires sanding, sealing, and painting. For $10 I'll go the IKEA route. I think I will start with 4 tables and expand from there. I plan to use hook hasps underneath to hold the tables together but allow them to come apart if needed. 3.50 each. http://www.homedepot.com/p/Unbranded-3-4-in-x-1-1-8-in-Satin-Nickel-Hook-and-Staple-19764/204485787 So, has anyone else played with this idea? What did you find?2 points
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Set Name: Marina Bay Sands (Republic of Singapore) Set Number: 21021 Theme: Architecture Year Released: Late 2013 / Early 2014 Retaile Price: SGD 89.90 (converted to $64.77 as of March 10, 2015) # of Elements: 602 # of Minifigs: 0 Introduction : This set was a limited edition set exclusive to Singapore. I've read that only 10,000 sets were produced and was available in the Marina Bay Sands gift store and selected retailers. Box: The box design is beautiful with various pictures of the hotel. The standard black Architecture styled was used. The box itself is comparable to the Lego Ideas / CUUSOO Back to the Future set (10.24" x 7.48" x 2.76") and esign. When opening the box, the sturdy manual (booklet style) and elements are easily seen. Lego used two standard tape seals with the "seal code" on one of them. note: My box was damaged when purchased. I purchased the box separately from the rest of the set. Elements: Lego included 5 bags of elements. Nearly all elements are widely available except the 1x8 black Marina Bay Sands printed tile. Unfortunately, fake versions of this element has been seen on eBay so be very careful when buy the set used. I would assume most sale listings of this set w/o the box and manual probably contain a reproduction Marina Bay Sands tile. For more pictures, information, and pricing about elements, please refer to2 points
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Anyone that took advantage of the Meijer $12 clearance on those should be doing some backflips2 points
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2 points
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My credit card was just charged for the Red Five I bought in December from LEGO Shop at Home. Looks like that order might just be fulfilled. Can't wait to see the seal codes and either celebrate or groan.2 points
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Ok I see how you actually asked a question and were hoping for an answer instead of discussing your investment strategy, fair enough. I don't think you should conclude too much about the community here from that though, from what I've read people weren't overly judgmental but simply went a bit off topic. Now to answer your question: If you look at your brickfolio, the current prices are more meaningful than MSRP or what you paid for. When it comes to selling, it doesn't matter at all how much it once cost but just how much it is worth today. Obviously, if you intend to dump it quickly, you won't get what's listet as current value, but rather a percentage of that. How much depends on how exactly you are dumping it. I don't know how fast exactly you want to get rid of it and how much time you are willing to spend. Here's what I would do if I would try to dump everything: First, you should find some good threshold for how much a set should be selling for in order to be shipped individually, I would recommend $30-40. Anything lower than that needs to be sold in bulk somehow. Now for the sets above that threshold, look at the physical dimensions. Find out what box size would fit all or at least most of all sets and buy as many boxes as you have sets that fit them, along with filling material. These things can also be ordered online easily. And then, start packing these sets, so that they are 90% ready to be shipped. Now you could put everything up on eBay, if you want to make sure that it gets sold, auction it starting for $1, let all your actions end Sunday evening. Streamline your payment process. Paypal makes your life easier, I wouldn't hesitate to accept PP exclusively. Up next, streamline your shipment process. Have an easy way to label all those boxes with the corresponding recipients. Then bring all those sold items to the pick up place (e.***. post office), depending on how far that is, you definitely want to avoid individual trips but at the same time, you need to wait until everyone paid on PP for one shipment batch. For sets below that threshold, make smart bundles, aimed at other investors. Put them up on a place that's more suitable for re-selling like BC. Price these bundles competitively and they will sell, but expect making losses for sets that don't have a promising future. You will need to find a buyer that is planning to brick them on BL or is willing to go through the micro management of selling them individually.2 points
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Nice to see this set doing well at Amazon. Been tracking it since I own several sets. Seems every few days price level jumps up a bit. Gonna be good returns for many people. Especially those that bought on sale. Really is a great build.2 points
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Hopefully newer (and older ) members have learned a few things from reading this thread. If you haven't started selling anything, might be time to get the feet wet. I have been here less than a year, if I had to liquidate, I have made power seller status on ebay, have a customer base and learned a lot of the lessons I needed to already (shipping, fees, inventory, cash flow etc) Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using Brickpicker mobile app2 points
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Remember me...yeah I caught some flack last week about sending a reminder to a seller to ship my item on the second business day when his shipping policy clearly states he has two business days to ship. Items was bought last wednesday mid afternoon. Today is Tuesday 6 days later and no shipping notification or tracking number yet. Now is it acceptable to bother this poor seller?2 points
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As a few others have said: i would sell off the winners individually (Tie's and Arctic Batman come to mind), it may be more work, but if you lump the winners in with the less desirables; you aren't going to see those winners return what they should. It is more work, and maybe you don't have the time or enthusiasm to do it this way, but i think it would be for the better. My list looked very similar when i first started, when i realized i need to not buy just anything on clearance i started trimming the fat. I quickly realized that selling in bulk across many themes was going to lose me money in the long run, so i bit the bullet and sold them off individually, most actually at a profit. /2 cents2 points
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i do believe accidentally buying something is an ailment exclusive to wives...2 points
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2 points
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Expectation = Hope Speculation Reality = An item Is Only Worth what the market will bear TODAY. There are Lessons to be learned here. There is no sure thing. Losing Thousands of Dollars on Lego Speculation is horrible. Only gamble with what you can afford to lose. And then generate positive cash flow. It is not easy...but not Rocket Science. If you have to cash out because of an "emergency"...Your business model is probably flawed. In my situation I cannot ever afford to cash out. Income from flipping, short term and long term holds of Lego and other items is what helps give me Financial Security. Buying a bunch of crap and selling a few items on Ebay does not make you a good reseller/investor. If you are not "In The Black" every month..you are treading water. I think many people would be better off funding a Roth IRA than trying to be a reseller. How many people have experienced the shame of being Lego Rich but Money Poor. Of having your wife cave in to your speculative spending and struggling to pay the CC bills. Of bragging to your friends about making money when in reality you struggle to buy gas and credit card interest eats you away. Of keeping up the farce until one day you throw in the towel and fool yourself into believing "it wasnt worth the time".2 points
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Many more of that sweet and sexy investment: The Double-Decker Couch. I am pushing my chips all-in on this set my friends!2 points
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Well this is confusing. Apparently following the all-girl Ghostbusters there is going to be an all-boy film: http://www.eonline.com/news/633777/another-ghostbusters-with-guys-is-still-in-the-works-and-channing-tatum-is-involved Starring this guy, best known for his role as Danny McBride's gimp in This is the End:2 points
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When I'm leaving the room and I'm not even watching, but I ask the wife to hit record on "Love It or List It" because I want to see how it ends.2 points
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Judging by looking at your collection, it doesn't stand out honestly. This is a learning curve for all of us to mix the balance with exclusives. Assuming you got them at discount and spent close to $5000, the collection would have been worth more had you purchased $2500 exclusives even at retail like TH, MF, GE, FB which were readily available and rest $2500 on chima, lone ranger Galaxy squad etc,. All I am saying is that those exclusives which have risen over MSRP would have helped you absorb the shock of loss on other smaller non-exclusive sets. I am not beating around the bush but just implying for other to learn from the collection you have. I wish you all the best in selling the collection, but in honestly there is not much attraction (for me - no pun intended) or for any other re seller who would try to get it at a very steep cost. I would again advise if you can sell it as a lot even with a bigger discount rather than individually parting it out which takes a lot of effort and time. Wish you all the luck and sorry to hear about you selling your collection.2 points
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I already bought two LACKS from IKEA. Will buy more soon. They are perfect for your city layout. You can make your city bigger by adding more tables. They are cheap, stable and easy to mount. The height is perfect. Also for your back.2 points
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2 points
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I tend to only invest in LOTR/Hobbit, Architecture, and some Star Wars. I'm convinced this series is going to do well long term - key word is long term. Most of the LOTR sets will definitely do better than most of the Hobbit sets, but both will fair well. Fact is that these sets like HD, Weathertop, Mines of Moria only started drying up in the retail stores around fall of last year. Many that grabbed these expecting to make double the profit within months after a set gets scare are probably folding their cards too early. Having something shoot up right away is not how it works in the collection market, unless it's some extremely hot fad, or some rare item that is very hard to find. Most fads tend to crash, and I don't' see the LOTR/Hobbit as a fad - these movies have a huge built in following. Let's not sugar coat it - they are big films, and this series has been out for over a decade. The Lone Ranger film is not even on the same level - as that was a universally loathed film and I don't know many people that think that was a great movie. That's not the case with the LOTR and Hobbit films. I'm willing to sit on a majority of mine for a few years (more than 3 years). To me, this is just a hobby, and not a job, and i'm convinced that those that hold their cards will do well 3 to 4 years from now after many get out of the game and the sets become more distributed from resellers to consumers. I have the space, and love LOTR and the Hobbit films - so i'm one of those that is convinced of the product.. When the ToO, and TLM goes, i'm not selling a single one of mine within the first couple of years after it goes off of the big retail sites, unless things really start to tank, and even then i'll be hesitant. I think people will want a HD, and ToO to build many years from now, and I don't ever see many of these main sets falling below retail now that they are nearing the end. It's amazing to me when I go on ebay and see 100's of listing on a certain set that just dried out in retail stores, and there's a plethora of pricing structures. Because it has yet to become scarce, there are those that freak because it's not selling at double and triple what they want, so they end up posting it either at retail or barely above retail to get out. And yet, the interesting thing is all the sets with the cheapest prices (mostly at what they retailed for) sell right away - so obviously the demand is there, the market is just resetting in this end of life era that has yet to fully set. While many of them were bought at discount, to me making 20.00 is not worth it just yet. I'm in the game for the long term, not the short term. I'm going to hold my cards, because i'm convinced these films hold up, and there is a fan base, and these sets are pretty darn cool and fun. ToO, TLM, HD, Weathertop, Mines of Moria, and Unexpected Gatherings are going to do well. I personally, have spent my time and money stocking up on some of these sets over the red 5's and modulars, because I think long term they'll be the better bet. While SW sets are re-released continuously, these sets will not. There will be another UCS x-wing, and another UCS millennium falcon, etc. The LOTR sets are more scarce. Personally, I even think sets like Attack of the Wargs, Mirkwood Spiders, and the Dol Guldur sets have a lot of built in playability, and will also do well as an investment too. My little boy has quite a few of the hobbit and LOTR sets, and he plays with them a bit. So, i'm not sure where all the skepticism comes from. I think you will see HD go to 300.00. It just won't be this year. Next year? Well, it could. Especially as many more sell off their horde. Thats really what it comes down to - sets becoming more scarce. The paint hasn't truly dried on this line yet.2 points
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After reading through the 7 pages of responses it amazes me at how many people back then (June of 14) no longer contribute here. Maybe they have moved on or no longer respond just thought the turn over rate as I will call it wouldnt be so large. I just cant get over the fact that people will spend thousands on Legos having never sold anything online in their life or even worse have no game plan at all. I have seen it all too often in collectibles where people horde but never sell or even really plan to sell. So your loved ones have to deal with selling and many times end up basically giving it away. So in the end your horde cost your family money and helped out a stranger make money on your loss.2 points
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Very very interesting because I'm the opposite as you on your last paragraph. The app on my phone now hides the full description yet NY desktop is business as usual. I wonder if I can sue eBay for my headaches. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Brickpicker mobile app1 point
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1 point
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You pretty Californians with the 80 degree weather. OK, maybe I should have said tank tops.1 point
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I dipped my toe into the water last night and quickly sold a Helm's Deep, Uruk-Hai Army, & Weathertop combo for $300 shipped.1 point
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I think TOK moved a bunch of stuff to "Really Non-Lego stuff". http://community.brickpicker.com/topic/8300-fantasy-baseball/1 point
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They labeled one of mine unfulfillable - think it was a customer return. I requested removal and never got it back. Tracking provided by them showed a box that ups labeled at .5 pounds and it only had an advent set in it. Oddly it was a huge box, with just an advent set. I opened a case, showed pics of the box, tracking,etc. They actually argued at first and then 2nd line support must have looked at it and quickly admitted they lost it or screwed up if the tracking said .5 pounds. They reimbursed me $238. At least it wasn't a loss.1 point
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I sold my first duplo ever! Part of 75% off of latest WM clearace. Sold three sets for $57 shipped, buy in was $19, will more than double up after fees and shipping Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using Brickpicker mobile app1 point
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1 point
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Maybe a couple T1s. Haven't seen one in my Lego store for weeks. Might just surprisingly vanish!1 point