I completely agree. But, companies like PSA also give a lot more depth to the Pokémonmarket (it gives some kind of scale/measure). I think without grading companies (in which PSA has the most trust), Pokémon would be much less of an ´investment´. So kind of double.
i consider an old cert to be before the bubble
I think psa was shocked with the grading craze that came with corona… When ppl saw headlines of charizard selling for house money, it created a huge grading rush. Everyone opened their old binders and would say, “maybe these cards are worth a lot” or "I have charizard too! "
and i think psa understood that their service is directly related to the values of the graded cards. and that by virtue of having these cards be worth potentially thousands, ppl would keep ripping, keep grading and keep giving them business in large numbers
and this is entirely related to card population. They create a problem, by grading all these cards they are flooding the market with population… and by default this crashes card prices, which in turn kills interest in cards, grading, and their services
so i believe since the bubble they have tightened their standards to essentially gatekeep and keep psa10 population growth slow and steady
It’s in their best interest to be strict on valuable cards due to their Grade Guarantee policy. For those who are inexperienced, I can see how this can be interpreted as pop control or inconsistent standards. Humans are grading our cards, don’t forget it. It’s a third party opinion, nothing more
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It doesn’t have to be all or nothing. It’s like for autographs - I have PSA graded autographs but if I was buying one, I’d add little to no premium on an auto grade or the fact PSA graded it. The value added by the slab should be proportional
So i just want to understand something looking at the last 20 or so posts
As a lot of you are basically saying something that implies that psa has tightened
Which is essentially the equivalent to my original argument that its harder to get a psa 10 now. Which was met with fervor
So its not what i say, its how i say it 
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I agree. It has gotten a little out of hand. It´s grade or bust.
Sometimes I feel like I am in a strange loop answering questions like this over and over again. This has been debated ad nauseam and will continue to be debated until the end of time.
Regarding within-grade variance:
Every era has strong and weak certs for each grade. Think of it like a bell curve. Most 10s fall in the center, some are very strong, and some are weaker and might pass as a PSA 9.
Consider the possibility that stronger-older certs are currently in collections and weaker-older certs are constantly being recycled on auctions as collectors upgrade. There is some level of survivorship bias at play.
We will always see strong and weak grades of current certs as they are sent to market, but we may disproportionately see weaker grades of older certs due to this form of selection bias.
Regarding standards changing over time:
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It is possible that PSA has silently changed their standards. But I do not believe that this was intentional if it has happened at all. It may be that the greater amount of modern being graded has skewed the average PSA grader’s perspective of what “gem mint” actually is. So a “gem mint” vintage card from 20 years ago will not look like a “gem mint” modern card, and that may affect the harshness of recent grading.
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I do not believe that the PSA cert has any meaningful bearing on the accuracy of the grade. However, I do believe that the variance in each grade category has potentially changed over time. When companies are forced to grow exponentially and increase/decrease training rapidly, there is going to be shifts in the inter-rater reliability of graders. It could be that the newer certs are more/less variable than older certs, but the average grade may look similar at a population level.
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Crucially, as the value of Pokemon cards has increased, so too has PSA’s desire to accurately grade these cards so that they are not shelling out hundreds of thousands of dollars in Grade Guarantees. In other words, PSA has an incentive to grade more accurately now that Pokemon cards can be worth substantial amounts of money. But this should not be misconstrued to mean that PSA is gatekeeping 10s. They may be overly cautious when the card is worth more money because their name is financially on the line if they messed up and someone claims the Grade Guarantee.
Overall, I am hesitant to suggest that major changes have taken place. If there are appreciable differences, they are likely to be accidental, related to changes in the average submission, potentially informed by fluctuating inter-rater reliability due to staffing changes, and likely influenced by Grade Guarantee claims.
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Omg, 30+ posts on this? Here’s a tough pill, the cards are meant to be played with by kids! You’re creating trash by sending them to get graded and encapsulated in plastic that will be on this planet for decades after we’re all dead. I hope all those charizards in the landfills stay gem-mint for centuries to come!
@POKEBEAST also, its consolation prize, not constellation prize, as in “You didn’t win so here is a prize to console you”
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Ill take it lol
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Not sure how big these are but I could see these being hard to swallow.
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I’m not sure i’ll ever buy the whole “older collectors dont admit old certs suck because they want to protect their collection” thing, when most people just buy labels anyways. Only on the highest of high end do you see a significant difference between weak and strong 10s imo
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Should have just stuck with this is good 
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Ofc, everything I say take it with humor!
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I havent had a good laugh in a long time. Thank you.
Just wanted to add that if this is the case, as you say, then it means it’s much easier to get a 10 today then before. Negating your argument.
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The average pokeinvesting poster doesn’t have a firm grasp on the concept of investing generally - pokemon related or otherwise.
That sub is full of people who randomly buy pokemon product and rationalize it by calling it investing. They then post on the sub asking “was this a good buy?”
I’m coming across salty here, but I find it really frustrating when people “invest” in things without any real plan. It’s a great way to put yourself in a tough spot, and I think for pokemon it’s driven by a lingering get rich quick mentality from the 2020 boom days.
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You’re missing a key point here. At its most basic level opening packs is gambling.
People like gambling (see casinos), and there’s plenty of research showing that winning doesn’t matter. The endorphine rush comes from pulling the lever (opening the pack), not from hitting the jackpot.
Add in whatnot/ebay live/etc where the streamer hypes up viewers and there’s a parasocial sense of community, and you’ve got jet fuel. People want to feel like they’re part of a group, that’s why they’ll pay a premium to have packs ripped live.
Also remember that people regularly gamble away their life savings, build up debt, and borrow / steal to fund the addiction. Price is a thing, but it doesn’t stop people from gambling above their means.
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i will never be able to wrap my head around how spending real money on such a large negative EV play makes sense to anyone
When I got into the hobby as an adult i didn’t realize opening packs was negative EV. Then I read a lot on here. I imagine some people don’t get to that second step.
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