Its not all bad , some stuff i bought at 20-30 % mv has gone up significantly. Some of the stuff i am currently buying is down 50-70% off highs and even then i buy at 60-75% mv only. Lots of offers daily/weekly that i still lowball, maybe 5% conversion on offers in that ballpark. I am constantly amazed by what larger sellers are willing to accept on cards … they must have had ridiculous margins to begin with… i am also underwhelemed at basic-ness /packaging /branding from some of the larger sellers , especially within such a competitive market.
Also overall, japanese sellers package and ship items on average 400% better than us sellers.
-I am a magikarp in a land of Gyarados.
(Kanto port-a-potty plumber)
1 Like
enigma
122
Definitely not surprising, but certainly funny
bk2021
123
It’d be more believably obvious if anyone had said it before it already happened lol.
bigman
124
I started collecting again in 2021 after 20 years out of the game, buying collections on eBay and selling the cards I was less interested in. I had 0 knowledge of the market within those 20 years.
I made a conscience decision to try and maintain a “net zero” spend on cards, ensuring that i have effectively spent nothing to accumulate the collection.
I kept a spreadsheet of what I have bought and sold, and about 10 grand and 800 transactions later, I have somehow managed to (give or take a few hundred quid) stick to this. This was a massive learning experience and I found it very enjoyable.
The greatest upside of this is that I am not sweating about the market. And if prices do go up - and there is a demand for 1999-2010 MP to LP cards 
- then I’m happy too. I’m still buying pre-2010 holos regularly to beef up the collection too!
2 Likes
Ive been hoarding alt arts for this very reason. I have about 100 raws ready for sale. Usually people wont tell you their money moves before it happens because then it makes doing those buyouts harder
There is honestly some fantastic opportunities in modern rn. People like to turn their nose up at it, but like you can very easily slide in and take advantage of poor optimization if u know what youre doing. Modern is arguably the largest, most casual, inexperienced sector of Pokemon. give the casuals what they want. They pay good money. Let the speculators speculate
There is solid flippability in modern, using that to buy vintage is definitely something i think is worth exploring!
1 Like
If vintage is the obvious play, the contrarian thing to do would be to buy modern.
1 Like
Kuja
128
Modern is overprinted, and Modern demand is crazy. I believe Pokémon will continue to print at the same pace (or higher?) for many years/decades to come.
Graded modern keeps selling high and their graded pop reports are continuing to climb. In comparison, vintage PSA 9 and 10s with lower POP reports are cheaper or more reasonable.
A lot more people now know how to take care of cards carefully. % of damaged Modern cards is much lesser than % of damaged Vintage cards. Modern is also easier to grade.
I mean, you all probably know that anyway but the Modern market is truly… fascinating. Just my thought.
6 Likes
jawsh98
129
Didn’t mean to come off aggressive, but didn’t know how to type to be clear. Do you buy more modern or vintage Raw Eeveelutions?
I did a similar thing, but am only up to a $2000 collection. Totally agree that it’s SUPER fun.
