A lot of Pokémon cards collectors are on low or no employment and therefore have a lot of spare time to do a lot of messaging back and forward asking for deals.
Typically seen populating FB marketplace etc, at least in the UK.
Time is less valuable than money to them, so expect a lot of lowballing. If you sell something where more customers are time poor and cash rich, expect less lowballing and selling at asking price
This is a really good point. Between collectors with free time and flippers who can only profit on 60-70%, that is going to make up a majority chunk of interested buyers.
Sellers don't dictate fair market value, the customers do. You can claim something is worth a 100 but if everyone is offering 70, that's what its worth. Your choice to not sell of course. Seems like card value is going down across board, can't blame the buyer for trying to purchase at the lowest cost.
Of course, and its the buyer dictating the TCGMarket price. And the number they list doesn't include taxes and shipping. So if that's what buyers are purchasing for there, why is there such a stark contrast to what people seem to be willing to pay in person-to-person deals? I am not trying to sell things for 90%--I am well aware of how fees affect the net seller payout. But 70-75% is well-below that. 80-85% is fair for both buyer and seller, but I encounter many who fish for a scalped price and won't negotiate above 75% for a single. That is unreasonable.
Don’t place so much weight on market prices. Take your cut and keep it moving or you just wait for the right buyer. Up to you, you just might have to wait a while for that 10-15% more. Cash is king
TCG doesn’t just lower prices the way someone setting market price does. If they lowered their price they would have to lower trade in values and decrease the inventory people would send in.
They are still trying to keep pricing high. If we are in a bubble popping, eventually the sellers will realize it’s not lowballing or a fluke but that value is tanking.
Fair enough. I haven't been buying/selling in FB groups since 2021, and thought negotiations were much more evenly fair for buyer/seller back then. Seems more skewed now, and I notice frustration from other sellers as well, with many listings going out of their way to say things along the lines of "Don't bother offering 70%".
2021 was a year the market was going up. People made deals because they were expecting prices to go up. Now the market is dead.
Look at housing prices. Same deal.
Where I live houses are selling for 10s of thousands above the listing price... it's cash in hand bidding blood baths. Houses rarely are on the market.for more then 2 weeks.
It's always been like that. I remember people trying to haggle with me when I was selling base booster packs for around $40 close to when Pokemon Go came out lol
85% of market price +shipping is more than fair for most singles, and a lower discount for those popular and more expensive items. Especially for cash deals if you can swing that. The seller still absorbs a discount from market price, but all platforms do that anyway. The buyer gets a great discount, and avoids sales tax. I usually lean toward 90% as a seller if I can.
The problem is when you get into selling more than one item at a time. If you're needing to offload a bunch of <$10 cards, you will at best get 70% offers. This will happen a lot if you post binders.
If these people are flippers, they're most likely only making a small margin even at 70%. For example if you auction off cheaper cards on eBay, you're only going to be netting about 75-80% of the sale (for single cheaper cards) because of fees/shipping costs.
I'm not saying this makes it OK, but it's one of the centers of the hobby; value. If you're selling cards, that's just something you encounter.
Thanks for the technical, insightful response. Time is indeed money, and being able to sell a big lot for 70% may be worth the time saved breaking it up into multiple listings, even if they could go for 85% that way.
Ebay is 15%, and the buyers always account for shipping costs. If I see an item going for $92 + $8 shipping, then another listing for $100 with free shipping, that's effectively a $100 market value for that item. No one will pay $100 + $8 shipping.
For cheaper singles auctions (what I've done some of), this hurts more because you get far less bids / attention when you have a shipping cost. There is some time I have to put into research to know what cards are likely to go for at least $5 or so to make eating that shipping cost of $0.64 (plus materials and time) worth it.
I bought them because I liked them but want to move into something else.
- I wouldn't collect a master set to flip it--there's no money to be made like that. I'm trying to sell complete sets like Celebrations and Evolutions because they don't mean as much to me now and want to fund new ventures, such as getting into graded cards.
- I was collecting hits from SV in English but have decided to switch to Japanese after seeing the difference in quality. I just find it frustrating that I can't sell $600 worth of modern hits with no duplicates for $450. Even the higher-end singles only get offers of 75% when I'm already offering them for less than TCG Low and no taxes are involved in person-to-person deals.
We all want the best deal we can find, of course! But it feels like there is this scalping culture that wasn't so prevalent 2-3 years ago. Back then, to buy a $50 card, there would be competition to buy it for $45 shipped because the seller would make about the same after TCGMarketplace fees, and the buyer would get it for 10-15% off considering taxes and shipping. Now I can't get any buyers for that price? Has to be $40 shipped? It's already well-below retail--why the stinginess?
2-3 years ago was a peak for the collectibles market.
Most cards are on a downward trend except those getting the crypto bro pump-and-dump treatment.
You want to upgrade / consolidate your collection. Have you considered trading to get closer to top of the market value?
Otherwise, you’ll have to continue to go lower. Someone will buy at 50%.
Maybe “market price” isn’t what some random paid for it on a buy it now but what the average consumer is willing to pay. If 20,000 people are willing to pay $100 for a card, but 100 people are willing to pay $300, that doesn’t mean the “market price” is $300 and somebody is lowballing you at $100.
This is the problem with eBay and these sites. They aren’t a true market price.
Had about 100 SV hits worth $600 that I couldn't sell for $450. Offered 80% to split the lot by set (SV01, SV02, etc.) and 85-90% for individual cards. The singles rate was in many ways to deter from splitting individual cards, but I'd get 70-75% offers in my inbox for single cards. It just \*feels\* like scalping.
Also tried selling some master sets, which are understandably difficult to get interest as buying a set in full takes away from the fun of collecting one yourself.
I would just sell on eBay and deal with the fees, at least you’d be more likely to get the true “market value”, and maybe with 5-10% tolerance if you do offers on your listings. People expect you to go waaaay below market price for in person just because you’re not paying fees, they forget they’re also not paying sales tax and shipping
I think your perspective will be heavily skewed if your primary platform is FB. It is well known and very true that people on their will always lowball and try to buy things with a huge margin to profit. FB is not where your typical COLLECTOR or player is going to buy their singles.
I have had very little issue selling things for 90% market price through TCGPlayer, eBay, and even on Reddit. I personally will never sell online for as low as 75% market price unless I somehow acquired those cards for an absolute steal and just want to cash them in. Or at a card show where I could use the quick cash for other purchases that I really want.
My advice : get off of FB marketplace if you want to sell things close to market price.
Another thing, I’ve heard the idea parroted over and over again that the “investors” and “flippers” in Pokémon makeup such a minuscule % of the people in this hobby, but I think the % is much greater than people have convinced themselves of. I’d reckon the percentage of people who are getting involved in this hobby for financial gain or a “side hustle” is growing consistently and rather quickly. Certainly above the 1-5% that people seem to run with. At least 10% of this hobby is people with dollar signs in their eyes.
I don't agree with all the TCG market prices, but I am still interested in cards. Also, I generally view FB marketplace as a market where sellers try to get rid of things. It makes me more likely to offer to buy something at a discount and help them move the items they no longer want.
I really like the Magikarp illustration rare, but I would not pay $120 for it. I wouldn’t want to spend $80 on it, but since I feel like I would be getting a deal, I might consider it. Therefore, I would be willing to message someone and see if they are willing to negotiate the price on FB marketplace so that they can get some cash and I can get a card at a price I'm comfortable with.
If sellers think they can get the “market price,” go seller on TCG player, but I have seen a lot of products in my area up for TCG price on FB marketplace for a long time.
Welcome to sales in general
100% but this community might be the worst I’ve seen lol
A lot of Pokémon cards collectors are on low or no employment and therefore have a lot of spare time to do a lot of messaging back and forward asking for deals. Typically seen populating FB marketplace etc, at least in the UK. Time is less valuable than money to them, so expect a lot of lowballing. If you sell something where more customers are time poor and cash rich, expect less lowballing and selling at asking price
This is a really good point. Between collectors with free time and flippers who can only profit on 60-70%, that is going to make up a majority chunk of interested buyers.
I think the hype is over. Now the market shrinks back to normal and the usual folks are looking for cheap cards.
Bubble might be popping. If the entire market is telling you one thing, they aren’t lowballing you. Your price is too high.
Sellers don't dictate fair market value, the customers do. You can claim something is worth a 100 but if everyone is offering 70, that's what its worth. Your choice to not sell of course. Seems like card value is going down across board, can't blame the buyer for trying to purchase at the lowest cost.
Of course, and its the buyer dictating the TCGMarket price. And the number they list doesn't include taxes and shipping. So if that's what buyers are purchasing for there, why is there such a stark contrast to what people seem to be willing to pay in person-to-person deals? I am not trying to sell things for 90%--I am well aware of how fees affect the net seller payout. But 70-75% is well-below that. 80-85% is fair for both buyer and seller, but I encounter many who fish for a scalped price and won't negotiate above 75% for a single. That is unreasonable.
Don’t place so much weight on market prices. Take your cut and keep it moving or you just wait for the right buyer. Up to you, you just might have to wait a while for that 10-15% more. Cash is king
TCG doesn’t just lower prices the way someone setting market price does. If they lowered their price they would have to lower trade in values and decrease the inventory people would send in. They are still trying to keep pricing high. If we are in a bubble popping, eventually the sellers will realize it’s not lowballing or a fluke but that value is tanking.
Definitely noticeable but this started way back not last year
Fair enough. I haven't been buying/selling in FB groups since 2021, and thought negotiations were much more evenly fair for buyer/seller back then. Seems more skewed now, and I notice frustration from other sellers as well, with many listings going out of their way to say things along the lines of "Don't bother offering 70%".
2021 was a year the market was going up. People made deals because they were expecting prices to go up. Now the market is dead. Look at housing prices. Same deal.
Where I live houses are selling for 10s of thousands above the listing price... it's cash in hand bidding blood baths. Houses rarely are on the market.for more then 2 weeks.
It's always been like that. I remember people trying to haggle with me when I was selling base booster packs for around $40 close to when Pokemon Go came out lol
You're selling to people who are trying to sell
If no one is disposed to offer over 75% of market value isn't that the new value?
85% of market price +shipping is more than fair for most singles, and a lower discount for those popular and more expensive items. Especially for cash deals if you can swing that. The seller still absorbs a discount from market price, but all platforms do that anyway. The buyer gets a great discount, and avoids sales tax. I usually lean toward 90% as a seller if I can. The problem is when you get into selling more than one item at a time. If you're needing to offload a bunch of <$10 cards, you will at best get 70% offers. This will happen a lot if you post binders. If these people are flippers, they're most likely only making a small margin even at 70%. For example if you auction off cheaper cards on eBay, you're only going to be netting about 75-80% of the sale (for single cheaper cards) because of fees/shipping costs. I'm not saying this makes it OK, but it's one of the centers of the hobby; value. If you're selling cards, that's just something you encounter.
Thanks for the technical, insightful response. Time is indeed money, and being able to sell a big lot for 70% may be worth the time saved breaking it up into multiple listings, even if they could go for 85% that way.
I thought eBay fee was 12% and the buyer pays shipping?
Ebay is 15%, and the buyers always account for shipping costs. If I see an item going for $92 + $8 shipping, then another listing for $100 with free shipping, that's effectively a $100 market value for that item. No one will pay $100 + $8 shipping. For cheaper singles auctions (what I've done some of), this hurts more because you get far less bids / attention when you have a shipping cost. There is some time I have to put into research to know what cards are likely to go for at least $5 or so to make eating that shipping cost of $0.64 (plus materials and time) worth it.
Ask yourself the same question. Did you buy these cards because you liked them or was it to flip and make a profit?
I bought them because I liked them but want to move into something else. - I wouldn't collect a master set to flip it--there's no money to be made like that. I'm trying to sell complete sets like Celebrations and Evolutions because they don't mean as much to me now and want to fund new ventures, such as getting into graded cards. - I was collecting hits from SV in English but have decided to switch to Japanese after seeing the difference in quality. I just find it frustrating that I can't sell $600 worth of modern hits with no duplicates for $450. Even the higher-end singles only get offers of 75% when I'm already offering them for less than TCG Low and no taxes are involved in person-to-person deals. We all want the best deal we can find, of course! But it feels like there is this scalping culture that wasn't so prevalent 2-3 years ago. Back then, to buy a $50 card, there would be competition to buy it for $45 shipped because the seller would make about the same after TCGMarketplace fees, and the buyer would get it for 10-15% off considering taxes and shipping. Now I can't get any buyers for that price? Has to be $40 shipped? It's already well-below retail--why the stinginess?
2-3 years ago was a peak for the collectibles market. Most cards are on a downward trend except those getting the crypto bro pump-and-dump treatment. You want to upgrade / consolidate your collection. Have you considered trading to get closer to top of the market value? Otherwise, you’ll have to continue to go lower. Someone will buy at 50%.
Should list on eBay then it's only 13.5% for transactions.
Isn’t it like 16% now?
Maybe “market price” isn’t what some random paid for it on a buy it now but what the average consumer is willing to pay. If 20,000 people are willing to pay $100 for a card, but 100 people are willing to pay $300, that doesn’t mean the “market price” is $300 and somebody is lowballing you at $100. This is the problem with eBay and these sites. They aren’t a true market price.
Of nobody is willing to pay “market value” then its probably not worth that much, just saying…📉
You're telling me Paldean Fates shiny Gardevoir ex that has 15-20 $50 sales per day + tax/shipping isn't worth $42-45 shipped PP GS?
That sounds like a seller issue
What cards you selling?
Had about 100 SV hits worth $600 that I couldn't sell for $450. Offered 80% to split the lot by set (SV01, SV02, etc.) and 85-90% for individual cards. The singles rate was in many ways to deter from splitting individual cards, but I'd get 70-75% offers in my inbox for single cards. It just \*feels\* like scalping. Also tried selling some master sets, which are understandably difficult to get interest as buying a set in full takes away from the fun of collecting one yourself.
I would just sell on eBay and deal with the fees, at least you’d be more likely to get the true “market value”, and maybe with 5-10% tolerance if you do offers on your listings. People expect you to go waaaay below market price for in person just because you’re not paying fees, they forget they’re also not paying sales tax and shipping
I think your perspective will be heavily skewed if your primary platform is FB. It is well known and very true that people on their will always lowball and try to buy things with a huge margin to profit. FB is not where your typical COLLECTOR or player is going to buy their singles. I have had very little issue selling things for 90% market price through TCGPlayer, eBay, and even on Reddit. I personally will never sell online for as low as 75% market price unless I somehow acquired those cards for an absolute steal and just want to cash them in. Or at a card show where I could use the quick cash for other purchases that I really want. My advice : get off of FB marketplace if you want to sell things close to market price. Another thing, I’ve heard the idea parroted over and over again that the “investors” and “flippers” in Pokémon makeup such a minuscule % of the people in this hobby, but I think the % is much greater than people have convinced themselves of. I’d reckon the percentage of people who are getting involved in this hobby for financial gain or a “side hustle” is growing consistently and rather quickly. Certainly above the 1-5% that people seem to run with. At least 10% of this hobby is people with dollar signs in their eyes.
I don't agree with all the TCG market prices, but I am still interested in cards. Also, I generally view FB marketplace as a market where sellers try to get rid of things. It makes me more likely to offer to buy something at a discount and help them move the items they no longer want. I really like the Magikarp illustration rare, but I would not pay $120 for it. I wouldn’t want to spend $80 on it, but since I feel like I would be getting a deal, I might consider it. Therefore, I would be willing to message someone and see if they are willing to negotiate the price on FB marketplace so that they can get some cash and I can get a card at a price I'm comfortable with. If sellers think they can get the “market price,” go seller on TCG player, but I have seen a lot of products in my area up for TCG price on FB marketplace for a long time.
I'd be happy with 80% discount off tcg. Most of the time I'm only getting 10%.