My mother does quite a bit of volume on e-Bay selling her many beloved artifacts as she cleans out her attic. She sent me an email describing somebody who was looking for a certain comic book and was offering $300 for it. She suggested I get rid of my several boxes of comics from my youth by selling them. These are general Marvel/DC stuff from the ‘70’s-90’s. Nothing like Amazing Tales #1 or First appearance of Superman or stuff like that.
What I’m looking for are options to keep this fairest to all involved. I don’t want to seriously overcharge somebody by mis-judging the condition of my comics (most are bagged and boarded and in very good condition) but I don’t want to sell a gem for a big loss.
What are some suggestions to figure how to do this most fairly? Many years ago, I walked into a comic shop to describe some of my #1s and “collector” issues, but the guy cut me off and said flat out he bought “at a bulk rate”, meaning something like $5 per box, all sales are final. I know I can go online and find a pricing guide, and I know the difference between “mint” and “fine” condition, but what’s the deal with this other rating system (looks like a 10.0 point system)? Should I go to a retailer and ask for a “ruling” on the condition of an issue?
I also realize that the buyer’s market is pretty small for just regular Marvel/DC comics, but I’ve done a bit of browsing and it seems that some of the ones I have can go for upwards of $90 or more.
What’s a good place for me to start so I can figure out how to get the best price? I’m guessing this will be mostly through e-Bay and Paypal.
Provide high quality photos so customers can judge condition for themselves. And naturally provide return for any reason if someone is not satisfied. You can look at eBay completed auctions for pricing information.
The 10-point system is the condition rating scale of the CGC (Certified Guaranty Company), a third-party independent rating company and probably the most recognized one for comics, if not the only one in existence. I wouldn’t touch that scale if I were you, unless you are very, very conservative - i.e., don’t ever say “Looks like a CGC 9.0,” because if the buyer sends it in to be rated and slabbed and it comes in under CGC 9, he/she will not be happy.
As long as you take really good photos, you can just use your traditional descriptive scale. However, if you have a gem like Incredible Hulk #181 or Giant-Size X-Men #1 in really good shape, I would consider sending it in to CGC yourself to get it slabbed. High-grade copies of those kinds of books bring in huge premiums.
Ask for an appraisal, and indicate a willingness to pay for the appraiser’s time. I know that a lot of people will drop into a used book store just to get an idea of what a book is worth…and that these people take up a lot of the appraiser’s time, which might be why this guy cut you off so quickly.
Based on my conversations with local comic store owners, the guy is more likely just swamped with people trying to sell collections to him. He’s not interested in acting as an appraiser at all.
OP : I have sold relatively few comics on eBay; I try to describe all defects in detail and provide photographs so that the buyer can make their own estimate of condition. It’s also important to include information that may not be visible in the photos, such as what printing the issue is from. (Usually legible on the first page or the inside front cover on cardboard-cover books)
I’ve had more success selling comics as lots that have a common connection. Vertigo, Star Trek, or based on an artist or writer. The only individual books I’ve bought or sold are slabbed.
I haven’t gotten that far in the process yet. I was going to spend this weekend taking pictures, and then trying to figure out descriptions and conditions and placing ads on ebay later on. Like I said, I’m not chomping at the bit to do this, but I figure I may as well do it sooner than later. I’ll post a link as soon as I can.