The Long Boxers - Hero - Not All High Grade Books Part 4

Comic Investing: Not All High Grade Books Are Created Equal – Part 4 of 4

Comic Investing: Not All High Grade Books Are Created Equal – Part 4 of 4 1024 585 Craig Coffman

Comic Investing: Not All High Grade Books Are Created Equal – Part 4 of 4

This is the end… You have made it through quite a bit of information. I am assuming you found it interesting or I am prepared for a massive flame. If you happened to miss any part, you can navigate to the different sections using the buttons at the bottom of this page once they are posted. Now let us wrap this up with a discussion of when to sell your comic book investment.

Kill Your Idols

The art of timing the selling of comic books to reap profits

Sell the books to re-invest. If these are truly investments, you need to know that they get sold to reap benefits. As seen from above, even if you buy in at not the optimal time, because everyone cannot be there at the right time all the time, you can still have your investment work out. Take even the small wins and be proud. Those gains are then used to secure your next target.

This is no different than stocks. Prices jump, you sell and then move on to the next item. If they keep going up, that sucks. No way to sugarcoat that. However, find comfort in the knowledge you just made money. And potentially, at least percentage wise, more than you would have in most other investments over a similar timeline.

The hard part and one I am not the best at is knowing when and what to sell is as much an art form as knowing what to buy. I suffer from attachment to my babies. I know how long I looked for them and how hard it was to locate the copies I buy. When they start to perform, I feel happy and proud and I greedily assume the highs will be far higher than they might go. The exit point is a tricky thing.

Deciding when to cash in on your comic books

The biggest key to me is the entry point. If you are in at $10, perhaps you are not too worried to sell a book after it gets hot. Most books go up and then fall around 30% before rebounding to a steady plateau. It is likely below the peak, but hopefully it is still above where you got in. You love the book, just hold it. If it was actually an investment, you need to move it.

I consider moving a book when I can hold down at least a double. That is, I buy it for $10 and I can clear $20 as a general rule. If I bought before any news, I know that the first flush of news will likely get me a double. I can move them then or wait until closer to the announced movie releases. Typically I would say one through three months prior to release. I like the two month window. After the first wave and before the final wave.

Flying too close to the sun

If you hold until after the media release, you are likely to be selling into the falling prices mentioned earlier. Granted there are exceptions, but the standard book goes through this period. It is important to know that the book should still be at a higher price than your entry point, which is a great place to find yourself.

This holds true for raw and graded books. Though graded might have a slightly longer tail when it comes to selling as you will have people who feel like the ‘missed’ the high grade on the first run through. They are still willing to pay a higher amount to get that dream book.

Big Finale

Final thoughts on how to speculate wisely on comic books

Feeling confident about selling may cause trouble with many key comic books gaining value over time. There is a valid argument that you should never sell and always buy key comic books as investments. Perhaps that is accurate. But it can be done strategically. That is what I hope you take from this. Tools and perhaps ideas to better use your money wisely. Will everything work out? Nope. Can something be phenomenal? Yep. Will you ever be able to guess which ones? Nope. Can you get better at it? Absolutely.

Fortunately these ideas work regardless of your investment capital. Sure, you could buy a copy of Amazing Fantasy 15 and do well with that over time. Not everyone has that level of capital. I know I do not. Using the above as a launch point, you can find and secure books that work with your budget and collecting style. In the end, that is what will make a collection you are proud of, and potentially growing in value along the way.

Buy what you want, but be aware of what you are buying. Thinking that just because it is a high grade book or a flavor of the week you have an investment piece can be flawed logic. Obviously know one knows what is coming down the road, but there are some strong indicators that should be considered when guessing the future of an investment comic book.

End of Part 4

Hopefully you have learned something that you can find useful through all of this. It was quite an endeavor to complete and ideally it was worth both your and my time. You will always be adding to your toolbox as you become a better comic book investor. Concepts and techniques presented through these four posts ought to get you along your way, or potentially add new knowledges!

 

This information is presented as of 2/15/2019.

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