Hey! So I’ve noticed a very sudden jump in the price of all EX cards from EX Team Rocket Returns. A few months ago, $35ish or less could get you any EX card you wanted from the set in NM condition.
A Rocket’s Zapdos EX was listed on Ebay about a month or two ago that went for $70-$80 if I remember correctly. (Auction, not buy it now) After that listing, everyone started asking CRAZY prices for the cards. Birds/Beasts (not Raikou) started to be listed at $60+, especially on Instagram. But, checking Ebay sold listings, a lot of the cards are still selling around the price they were listed at a few months ago. For example, a Rocket’s Mewtwo NM sold for $36, $36.5, and a best offer from $50 in the last month. These prices don’t reflect the currently ridiculous asking prices.
Still, people have been buying, especially on Instagram (don’t know if Instagram is the best judge) the cards listed at $50 + $60. I recently made a post on Virbank with a wants list that included Rocket’s EXs. (I did not have prices listed next to the cards) I got told the cards were over my budget. My budget was $100. $100? That’s Gold star and Charizard EX money! (EX series wise)
I’m wondering if it’s a good idea to track down the cards now before the asking prices become the sold prices, or if you believe the market will eventually settle on these cards. I’d much rather pay $35 on a Rocket’s Suicune than the asking price between $60-$70 for a NM one.
So, what do you think E4? Invest now? Wait for the bubble to pop/hype to die down?
Wait for the hype to go down. My speculation is that someone must’ve posted a box opening video or a valuation video exclaiming how rare these cards are and now everyone is on the bandwagon to “collect”.
Forgive my harsh words, but Instagram is the most unreliable, cancerous community for Pokemon cards. Anyone there who’s telling you Rocket’s ex cards are worth over $60 is having an aneurysm.
I’d value NM or better copies of Rocket’s Suicune and Rocket’s Mewtwo at around $35 and $45 respectively. That should be the highest price you’d pay. Any other ex should be in the $25-30 range in NM or better condition.
I second this. Granted it is tough to find a number of these cards in NM condition it seems. So many have bends or peeling issues. Just look at the Rayquaza stars and how hard those are to find.
There certainly is a hype wave rolling through I’ve noticed. It’s even driving up Lv X cards and Primes too. I’ve basically stopped buying from those eras for the time being until the market settles down. I don’t think the market will hold for all of these chase cards, though some may continue to drive a premium for a while.
There is some good to instagram for sure! I have plenty of friends that started out there. There are some deals and general opportunity as well. However it is hands down the worst arena for scams and general trash. Mostly due to the fact there are no rules. With that said, you can find deals here and there, and there are plenty of people who genuinely enjoy the hobby.
I started on YouTube myself, but I only transferred to Instagram because it was very time consuming to make videos and trade binders and such. Plus everyone adopted the rule “you come to me, you send first” which basically means that a 3 day old account with no trades will make someone like me, a 7 year member of YouTube with hundreds of successful trades, send first. And likely get scammed. Unacceptable.
Instagram is done mostly by reputation, whoever has the least refs or followers will send first (unless both agree to send same time) of course buying there is also a risk, it just pays to send goods and services or do your research to know who you’re dealing with. Over 2 years I’ve been scammed twice for a total of $12. It’s a safe community and a great place to make friends. However, I won’t disagree when I say there are tons of people abusing the community for it’s deals and friendliness. Toxic comments and hate is all over the place. It makes me sick to see people buy from there and turn around and sell the exact same cards for retail. Like bruh, you don’t even like Pokemon. Just stop…
Anyways, sorry for getting off topic. In my opinion, I do think the rocket ex cards will die down, but I also think they will remain to be some of the higher end old exs in terms of price. The people that are making them hyped up and high in price are grading them and using the “low pop” excuse to drive up values when they sell them.
Crossing my fingers they’ll drop again! Probably. I remember someone on one of the Pokemon sites I’m on (probably Instagram) uploaded a screenshot of an Ebay listing that went WAY over past sold prices. I think that’s where the hype started. A user promptly posted a bunch of Rocket’s EX cards for high prices, and of course, a bunch of people bought. My favorite are the people paying $30+ for Raikou and Persian. Those were box toppers, 'ya sillies, and not worth as much as the others.
I wouldn’t go THAT harsh on Instagram, there’s some good people and some good opportunities. You just have dig around quite a bit. There are a lot of collectors who could do some research. I’d say Youtube is lower than Instagram. Youtube spreads more misinformation (don’t get me started on uneducated popular Youtubers, GEEZ). I also feel it’s easier to get scammed on Youtube if you don’t know what you’re doing. At least Instagram has people trying to call out scammers/provide a list of trusted traders/sellers.
Your prices are what I like to hear, and what I’ll be aiming to pay for my copies once I find them in a condition I find acceptable.
Very true. A lot of those cards were printed poorly. The reverse holos in EX Deoxys, while awesome, def. have some warping problems.
Really? That’s the first I’ve heard of that. Happy to hear, as I pretty much have all the Lv Xs and Primes I need at the moment. I always thought the DP market was the most dead. People never seem to be interested in the cards. I don’t see many people with Charizard Gs, Charizard G Lv.Xs and many of the DP/P Mewtwos in their collections, and those are some of the more popular Pokemon. Only time will tell, I guess.
I’ll probably just ride it out/snoop for deals like I always do!
There are a lot of nice sellers! I’ve had a lot of luck tracking down some very nice copies of cards. Just bought a NM+ Crystal Golem for $50, which is $10 than what I usually see it listed at. Still, a lot of people selling way over market price + trading cards for bulk with the wrong rates. Those are the sellers that annoy me the most.
I agree! Through all the weird accounts/overpriced sales there are some really genuine people/people selling cards for great prices! I guess you could say I “started” on Instagram. It’s what got me motivated to start collecting seriously and setting goals for myself, not just having a rare binder with cards organized by type. I can thank Instagram for that. But, I’m glad I found this forum! I love talking to people with beautiful collections (like yourself!) who are super knowledgeable about the Pokemon TCG. I’ve learned so much just in the few weeks I’ve been a member.
There are a few people trying to have reference/scammer accounts, but those seem hard to manage/always seem to be taken down. I think a lot of users have to come up specific rules for their own accounts.
I usually find deals when people have burnt out (see it happen SO MANY TIMES.) and people trying to make money quick. It’s worked for me! Got some very nice NM cards for great prices. Have a NM+ Crystal Golem I got for $50 on its way!
I feel the Youtube thing. I wish I still had the time to make videos! It’s really fun, just the post production work I’d like to do isn’t possible due to my current schedule. I’ve never had much trade luck on Youtube. Either I get really bad offers or cards in really REALLY bad shape. I think I’ve had a few go through, but it was always hard to reach a deal.
I swear by Goods + Service now, unless the card is less than $10 or something. I mean, really? Scam me out of $10? I’ve had some people who’ve got me for larger amounts, as I can be a gullible trusting idiot sometimes, but hey, you win some, you loose some. I’ve met a lot of awesome people on Instagram, including you! I really enjoy the people who are kind on the site, but def don’t enjoy the hateful/people who will not read a caption/sellers who sell for way too much. (and are usually successful due to the pressure around claim sales)
What erks me the most recently are the bulk traders! Always trading WAY more than they should for a card. Bulk common/uncommon cards are 0.05-0.06 a card! NOT 0.02!!! I wouldn’t name any names, but there are def. some people abusing this… I’ve only made one bulk trade, and it only worked out on my end because I provided the math I had calculated for the card value.
It’s alright! Wasn’t expecting this thread to turn into an Instagram discussion thread, but hey! Sometimes those things happen! Very true! I’ll just keep doing my thing and snooping around for deals. I’m sure I’ll nab the ones I need eventually!
There are a few accounts that have lists of trusted traders (Trusted_Pikas, which is now its own website, a few guild accounts). The best way to check is to ask for references/check follower count/check what they’re tagged in. If you don’t trust a seller 100%, it never hurts to pay the fee for comfort.
I know a lot of people here have way more knowledge on the history of the pokemon market, while I agree that the prices will go down, I think 30-40 could be reasonable prediction for rockets entei/suicune and birds very soon, because it is one of the most expensive sets (maybe most valuable non WOTC) and even then, i think a box can get 2-3k and packs 50 a piece. also the cards are popular and honestly if pokemon announces another “rerelease/reprint” it would probably be phantom forces which changes the entire market, as noone can know what is off limits for reprinting, older cards become seemingly better investments then
