Investing in Lego

Discuss about retailers that carries LEGO products here! Got a LEGO Product Find or Polybag Find from a store? Share it with us. It can be a new or even a really old retired set!
User avatar
ncbarrett
Retired Staff
Retired Staff
Posts: 2295
Joined: Thu Feb 25, 2010 11:45 am
Location: SE MI USA

Re: Investing in Lego

Post by ncbarrett » Tue Aug 30, 2011 7:42 am

NIGELTTF wrote: Yeah, only moderate damage to two bigs Starwars sets sets, very light damage to an Indiana Jones and two "Dragon Fortress" sets from Orient Expedition. Maybe I should just open them and add it to the brick I build with.
Or sell them to those who don't really care about boxes.
I have inoperable cancer and am unable to work. Any gifts would be appreciated. Thank you!

lukeskywalker
Royal Guardian
Royal Guardian
Posts: 503
Joined: Tue Mar 30, 2010 6:12 am
Location: Cleveland, Ohio US of A

Re: Investing in Lego

Post by lukeskywalker » Tue Aug 30, 2011 8:54 am

Like Me.

condor
Knight
Knight
Posts: 215
Joined: Tue Jan 18, 2011 8:17 am
Location: MA

Re: Investing in Lego

Post by condor » Tue Aug 30, 2011 11:21 am

NIGELTTF wrote:I'm feeling sad on this as the hurriane flooded my basement and dmaged some of my "speculation" boxes.
Grr at my girlfreind for insisting I free up closet space.
That sucks man... You should still be able to sell them without boxes though. List the stuff on Amazon. I'm sure you'll still get more than the ebay value even without the box, unless the manuals are messed up too.

User avatar
legitimatealex
Count
Count
Posts: 1636
Joined: Tue Jun 01, 2010 7:48 pm
Location: Valparaiso, IN, USA

Re: Investing in Lego

Post by legitimatealex » Wed Aug 31, 2011 6:20 am

Forget the boxes. Honestly I'm confused why people want the boxes when collecting. You will never ever use them for anything. Ever. Its whats inside the box that counts! But I shouldn't derail the thread. Sorry for your loss man. I'd suggest wrapping them in tied up garbage bags next time.
http://www.eightclickbrick.com/ Find me here on the internet.

Playing with LEGO when I can. Where does the time go?

NIGELTTF
Royal Guardian
Royal Guardian
Posts: 503
Joined: Wed Jul 21, 2010 1:30 pm
Location: Baltimore, MD

Re: Investing in Lego

Post by NIGELTTF » Wed Aug 31, 2011 8:02 am

legitimatealex wrote:Forget the boxes. Honestly I'm confused why people want the boxes when collecting. You will never ever use them for anything. Ever. Its whats inside the box that counts! But I shouldn't derail the thread. Sorry for your loss man. I'd suggest wrapping them in tied up garbage bags next time.
What do I use them for? To get maximum resale value.

Seriously, today I just tossed out almost dozen boxes of the stuff I opened for me, not the speculation piles. I am just about done sorting the 7 copies of "Fight for the Dagger" I bought. Unfortunately a bit too many tan "L" bricks than I'll ever need.

gator06
Peasant
Peasant
Posts: 22
Joined: Sun Jul 31, 2011 10:23 pm
Location: home

Re: Investing in Lego

Post by gator06 » Wed Aug 31, 2011 11:08 pm

The idea of investing in lego brings a smile to my face, to have a hobby that can support itself is just awesome. If I thought I could make a better return than the market on lego, then I'd want to. The biggest problem in my eyes would come from the size/space/storage problem. For example, $10,000 worth of the death star takes up a lot of space. Now if the return would be good enough, it would be worth it. On the other hand I would see "investing" in lego as a GREAT way of legitimizing the hobby to your spouse or other adults. "I just sold 5 lego sets I bought for $75 on sale for $130 each" sounds great. That way you seem more a shrewd investor than an adult with a kid's hobby. :) I know that any money I may make from selling old sets is just going to be plowed back into more new sets. BTW, I've never sold a single thing, so take what I say with a grain of salt. If there was a way I could buy LEGO with my IRA, That would be fun.

User avatar
legohunter
Count
Count
Posts: 1304
Joined: Sun Aug 15, 2010 9:40 am
Location: Canada

Re: Investing in Lego

Post by legohunter » Thu Sep 01, 2011 3:10 am

NIGELTTF wrote:
Seriously, today I just tossed out almost dozen boxes of the stuff I opened for me, not the speculation piles. I am just about done sorting the 7 copies of "Fight for the Dagger" I bought. Unfortunately a bit too many tan "L" bricks than I'll ever need.
Sorry for your misfortune. Your bad experience reminds me what had happened to my comic collections.

However, you may consider this as a good excuse for yourself to open up some set that you want to unseal for a while (but not 7 boxes of "Fight for the Dagger")

User avatar
sadowsk1
Royal Guardian
Royal Guardian
Posts: 725
Joined: Fri Mar 05, 2010 5:59 am
Location: Milwaukee, WI

Re: Investing in Lego

Post by sadowsk1 » Wed Sep 07, 2011 8:05 am

Does anyone have or have tried to sell through Amazon.com? If so, how does it rate compare to ebay or bricklink?

condor
Knight
Knight
Posts: 215
Joined: Tue Jan 18, 2011 8:17 am
Location: MA

Re: Investing in Lego

Post by condor » Wed Sep 07, 2011 10:15 am

^^ ;-)
condor wrote: One other point I wanted to make is to sell new sets on Amazon. While they dictate how much shipping money you will get, buyers there seem to pay way more than what people sell for on ebay. I've sold almost all my new/sealed sets there and have always gotten at least 20% more than the highest ebay and bricklink prices. It's also easy to list because you can list it and forget about it until somebody buys it. There's no up front costs since everything gets charged after the fact. I get around the shipping costs by listing that I will be shipping the parts and manuals only in their sealed bags and that no box is included. That way I can use the one price Priority Mail boxes. It sometimes sucks when shipping to the west coast from here though because shipping could get up to $18 for a large set.

Make sure to put delivery and signature confirmation on anything expensive though because I've heard horror stories where the seller gets scammed and DC isn't enough to prove it was delivered. Also, don't sell used items because buyers always assume used means as new and complete. I almost got burned twice by selling used sets, but I offered them a discount and they accepted.

User avatar
sadowsk1
Royal Guardian
Royal Guardian
Posts: 725
Joined: Fri Mar 05, 2010 5:59 am
Location: Milwaukee, WI

Re: Investing in Lego

Post by sadowsk1 » Wed Sep 07, 2011 12:42 pm

condor wrote:^^ ;-)
condor wrote: One other point I wanted to make is to sell new sets on Amazon. While they dictate how much shipping money you will get, buyers there seem to pay way more than what people sell for on ebay. I've sold almost all my new/sealed sets there and have always gotten at least 20% more than the highest ebay and bricklink prices. It's also easy to list because you can list it and forget about it until somebody buys it. There's no up front costs since everything gets charged after the fact. I get around the shipping costs by listing that I will be shipping the parts and manuals only in their sealed bags and that no box is included. That way I can use the one price Priority Mail boxes. It sometimes sucks when shipping to the west coast from here though because shipping could get up to $18 for a large set.

Make sure to put delivery and signature confirmation on anything expensive though because I've heard horror stories where the seller gets scammed and DC isn't enough to prove it was delivered. Also, don't sell used items because buyers always assume used means as new and complete. I almost got burned twice by selling used sets, but I offered them a discount and they accepted.
Thanks dude!

Blackicep8ntball
I'm New !
Posts: 11
Joined: Fri Jan 21, 2011 4:03 pm

Re: Investing in Lego

Post by Blackicep8ntball » Wed Sep 14, 2011 6:31 am

Something to keep in mind... as time goes on, more and more people are figuring out Lego investing. More and more people are selling old Lego, meaning that supply is increasing and demand decreasing. This equals lower resale prices, and lower profits. Also, more and more people are stocking up in bulk on new sets. Go to Bricklink and check out the number of available sets for sale of even expensive sets (Battle for Endor, which is now retired, or the Republic Dropship with AT-OT, which isn't yet retired, but which some buyers have well over a dozen in stock). Another thing to consider: Lego seems to be keeping sets on the market longer than they ever have in the past. This is a good indication that they're saturating the market, and that resale value will go down. It also is another good sign that investors are stocking up and keeping the market going.

Lego investing may not be what it used to be. That's just how the market works, folks.

youtoo
I'm New !
Posts: 12
Joined: Wed Aug 25, 2010 1:04 pm

Re: Investing in Lego

Post by youtoo » Wed Oct 19, 2011 4:35 pm

I guess things are a bit different if you're in Canada. We're paying extra % of US MSRP, we have fewer interesting deals and sales, and if you wanna take advantage of the sales in US you still will pay for the shipping.

So I think that the only viable way to invest in Lego is buying a few of the big sets. You still will pay for the shipping (and potential customs), but the returns are usually very high.

I'd actually like to ask you what you think. I don't have much money to invest, but I was thinking on buying the "sure bets":

1x Fire Brigade: I don't think new Modulars will get to the crazy prices a Cafe Corner fetches right now (the Green Grocer doesn't go higher than 350-400USD) but it's still an interesting return, and Modulars are probably the most popular series among AFOL (and AFOL-to-be). Should I get 2?

1x Maersk Train: I can see this going up to 2x, 3x, 4x times its MSRP.

1x Emerald Green: I'm not sure about this one, it's been available for sooo long... what you think? Also trains in general won't go as high as a Modular, I think the train market is much smaller than the Modular market for example... any thoughts?

1x Death Star: It will probably sell for 1500 in the future... but it's been available for so long... and is so expensive! Such a big bet for my pocket... And I'd have to buy 2 (one to sell and one for myself!)

What you guys think?

User avatar
ncbarrett
Retired Staff
Retired Staff
Posts: 2295
Joined: Thu Feb 25, 2010 11:45 am
Location: SE MI USA

Re: Investing in Lego

Post by ncbarrett » Thu Oct 20, 2011 5:25 am

youtoo wrote:..

1x Death Star: It will probably sell for 1500 in the future... but it's been available for so long... and is so expensive! Such a big bet for my pocket... And I'd have to buy 2 (one to sell and one for myself!)

What you guys think?
This is your best option.
Here are 2 reasons I think this:

#1 It is a great set, and it won't be available forever. (id be surprised if it still is next year)
#2 RotJ will be in 3D theaters in 2017 there will be a high demand for it at least that long.
I have inoperable cancer and am unable to work. Any gifts would be appreciated. Thank you!

legogeek
Knight
Knight
Posts: 209
Joined: Mon Sep 07, 2009 9:24 am

Re: Investing in Lego

Post by legogeek » Tue Oct 25, 2011 11:34 am

Cafe Corner has a cracy price because its the first one. Many people did not have the chance to buy it like the series 1 figures. Fire Brigade still a good one. I can see it going to $300-$400 later.

Death Star may go up even higher than the ucs falcon because of the playability and the scenes in it.

Brickmythic
Knight
Knight
Posts: 225
Joined: Sat Dec 25, 2010 10:26 am

Re: Investing in Lego

Post by Brickmythic » Thu Oct 27, 2011 6:16 pm

Good advice everyone.

Solid big set investments:

Imperial Flagship

Maersk Train

Emerald Night

Death Star

London Tower Bridge

Mideval Market Village

Most of the above are close to retiring, the bigger the set the more you can make but sometimes it takes longer to sell big sets.

Also

Queen Anne's Revenge

Black Pearl

will be solid sets to invest in when they are close to retiring or if you can snag them now for 50% off.

Both Pirate ships are fantastic and will fetch super high premiums a few years from now.


Investing in smaller sets used to be much easier when the market wasn't as saturated with investors/sellers.

There was also a golden age in magnet packs where the figures contained in them were unattached, not magnets themselves and actual figures.
Getting Unglued Magnet packs on sale from $5 to $7.50 could rake in a fortune. Buying them in bulk of course.
For instance the Lego Store had a Harry Potter Magnet clearance for $7.50.
Well both Snape and Dumbledore are only in the Hogwarts castle set so a year or 2 down the road just those 2 minifigs will sell for $20-30 each. So the net profit from things like clearance magnet packs (especially the good ones) is often pretty huge.

Another way to invest in lego is buy keychains on sale for $2 by the hundreds. take off the keychain part with good bolt clippers or tools and resell the figure for more(of course being honest to buyers). Ive noticed over the years keychains themselves end up being pretty collectible.

Lego series minifigs is decent when you find really good clearances or sales. But there is not a whole bunch of money to make once the series is widely available or its been retired over a year. Really only series 1 and 2 will likely ever see ridiculously high prices in next few years.


Buying mid cost sets is always a gamble because you never know what will be worthwhile down the road.

Currently the $10 and $20 PotC sets look to be really strong in the future, especially Isle de Muerta and Fountain of Youth. It may sound silly now, but there are more movies coming out,and both of those sets have many strong characters. The line won't be in production long enough to saturate the market and will start drying up by January 2012. I could easily see both sets hitting close to $50 mark pretty fast, then climbing slowly. The Captains Cabin set has many cool pieces like the printed bottles and globe. There will be a time when Black Pearl is still in production and other sets in the line may not be.

The Battlepacks always end up being worth it too, if you can get them on good sales. Both Clone BP and Indiana Jones BP are selling for 3x what you could buy them for a year ago.

Often promo polybags and convention figures can become extremely limited and valuable. For instance TRU gave away a Chrome Stormtrooper polybag with purchases last year. For a while the polybagged Chrome Stormtrooper was around $10, now it is $20-25. But the Bricktober figures from last year sell for little to nothing. Green Lantern SDCC and NYCC Exclusive minifigure won't be made, possibly ever, so when the Superhero Line comes out, folks will see there is a Green Lantern they need to complete their collection, so it is Likely Green Lantern could be similar to Boba Fett with Printed legs or Jango Fett, and become highly sought after. Generally, if the promo or polybag is cool,liscenced and somewhat exclusive, it could be a good investment.


My best advice is:

Always be patient and hold out for the best deal.

Only spend what you can afford or you'll just be returning a bunch of merchandise which is always annoying.

Look for Bricklink sales. Sellers that have put their store inventory on sale. You can often pick up really good deals like 15 Indiana Jones Minifigs for $1 each.

The best deals are

B&N 40% off coupon stacked with member 10% off (sometimes stacks with another 5-10% off)

Amazon.com sales - Tax on the big sets can be high. Amazon often matches other retailers on sales so pick up your modulars there to avoid hefty tax of big purchases. During the holidays last year Amazon had amazing deals on the Fire Brigade and other Modulars, they were on sale and BOGO, I recall picking up like 6 modulars for less than $100 each shipped, no tax.

Wal Mart- after Christmas but before New Years. Most of their Lego stock rotating out in the new Year will be 50-60% off.

Lego Stores have decent clearances too. check out their sales page.

When buying big sets from B&M Lego Store always ask for the shipping boxes to put them in. The big boxes hold only 1 set but the others hold 2 usually, so buying them in 2's well usually help you get the case it was shipped in. This will help you keep the boxes in good condition and to also ship them later! The Deathstar almost always comes with its shippping box!

Nick
I'm New !
Posts: 4
Joined: Thu Oct 14, 2010 3:26 pm

Re: Investing in Lego

Post by Nick » Fri Oct 28, 2011 5:40 pm

Regarding investing in the Imperial Ship and Death Star:

Although the Imperial Ship is gorgeous and incredibly impressive, LEGO will always have some version of a larger, $100-range Pirate ship available for purchase. Whether it's called Brickbeard's Bounty (Pirates 6243) or Queen Anne's Revenge (POTC), there will always be something to kill the steam of the Imperial Ship. This is not to say that the Imperial Ship isn't going to be worth money; the Imperial Ship will be worth a nice sum, just not as much as you'd expect it to warrant.

The Death Star, likewise, is being hoarded by a great many people. It will be worth money, but you may have to wait a while for it to accrue interest/ wait for other people to sell off their DSs at a price lower than you'd accept.

The London Bridge Tower might be a good buy.

The Superhero line will be money in the bank. All day long.

pterribilis
Honored Citizen
Honored Citizen
Posts: 145
Joined: Sun Apr 17, 2011 5:11 pm
Location: Montreal, QC
Contact:

Re: Investing in Lego

Post by pterribilis » Sat Oct 29, 2011 4:36 pm

@Blackicep8ntball

Someone doesn't like competition huh? I believe the overall price of legos will increase in the future not just current/previous legos but future legos too. The cost to manufactor them will increase as the cost of labor increases, the cost to ship items increases, and the reliance on foreign oil.

Sure there are more investors to the market, but some are in for the short term while others like myself have the capacity to hold on for much longer and reach higher-yielding market environments.

In 2009 I turned over $17,000 of profit in 3 months selling Genuine Women's Oakleys on Ebay purchased from a Oakley Factory Outlet. I see strategic lego purchases yielding far greater profit.

Brickmythic
Knight
Knight
Posts: 225
Joined: Sat Dec 25, 2010 10:26 am

Re: Investing in Lego

Post by Brickmythic » Sat Oct 29, 2011 5:43 pm

Creator House sets like the Lighthouse currently.

Harry Potter is always good around Christmas so most of the 2010/2011 line will be good a few years down the road. The smaller Hogwart's and Forbidden Forest especially since they were later production runs and didn't saturate 2010 shelves during the hoidays.

Forbidden Forest will hit $50 within a year of its retirement. One of the best Battle Packs lego has ever made for any theme, license or not.

Out of the big sets, Tower Bridge and Fire Brigade will be the fastest easy money once they retire. Everyone loves Fire Brigade and it will be gone after Christmas. Fire Brigade has saturated the market but demand is so high and there is room for it to go up right away. Tower bridge is rare like Taj Mahal or Millenium Falcon.

All the big sets will do well, some of them just tend to do exceptional. Medium size sets do the same thing. Its just harder to notice the profit from midi scale Falcon compared to the UCS Falcon. And more medium sets tend to be busts.

Out of all the medium size sets and themes, Creator Houses, HP, and PotC are In My Opinion, your best bets currently.

PotC minifigs are popular among adults and kids and some command more than $20 each CURRENTLY while in production which is a very good sign as to what the future will hold.

cpu77
I'm New !
Posts: 10
Joined: Mon Nov 07, 2011 9:02 pm
Location: Mansfield Ohio

Re: Investing in Lego

Post by cpu77 » Mon Nov 07, 2011 9:31 pm

Sorry I am a noob! I was wondering how lego displays (Lighted, Movement ect) fall in to this say from a target store or lego store. My understanding is they are only produced for certain stores and production numbers are very low. Would these make a ok investment? They are glued together and I would assume the themes are important as well. I see them pop up on ebay some times and craigslist.

Brickmythic
Knight
Knight
Posts: 225
Joined: Sat Dec 25, 2010 10:26 am

Re: Investing in Lego

Post by Brickmythic » Wed Nov 09, 2011 9:36 am

Nick wrote:Regarding investing in the Imperial Ship and Death Star:

Although the Imperial Ship is gorgeous and incredibly impressive, LEGO will always have some version of a larger, $100-range Pirate ship available for purchase. Whether it's called Brickbeard's Bounty (Pirates 6243) or Queen Anne's Revenge (POTC), there will always be something to kill the steam of the Imperial Ship. This is not to say that the Imperial Ship isn't going to be worth money; the Imperial Ship will be worth a nice sum, just not as much as you'd expect it to warrant.

The Death Star, likewise, is being hoarded by a great many people. It will be worth money, but you may have to wait a while for it to accrue interest/ wait for other people to sell off their DSs at a price lower than you'd accept.

The London Bridge Tower might be a good buy.

The Superhero line will be money in the bank. All day long.

I dunno, Brickbeards Bounty is $200 right now. The new PotC ships are nice too, aside from QaR having a silly cabin, or lack there of, its a visually stunning ship, as well as the Black Pearl. Brickbeards Bounty has doubled, almost tripled(if you consider getting it on sale as most investors do) in price within a year of it being retired. So despite having 3 Ships on the market (QAR,IF,and BP) Brickbeards Bounty is still able to hit $200 mark.

Most AFOL's, children and Lego enthusaists in general, love the Imperial Flagship. But not many own it.

Imperial Flagship is arguably one of the best Lego sets to ever be made, along with UCS Statue of Liberty, and UCS Millenium Falcon.

regardless of what Lego ship is in current production Imperial Flagship will always be in high demand.

In a previous post I said Fire Brigade and Tower Bridge will be the fastest easy money once they retire (for big sets)but they will cap pretty fast.

Imperial Flagship has the potential for serious long term value. I could see the Imperial Flagship skyrocketing without a cap due to the fact that many rich affluent boating/yacht/sailboat enthusiasts will want the Flagship for their collection many years to come. Pirate history buffs, sailors, Navy War historians, you name it. The market is pretty exponential for the biggest Lego Pirate Ship ever made (yes its Imperial but fits the Pirate model)

Its likely Lego will never make another HUGE ship like this.. its a must have.

I do agree with you about the Deathstar. Also the Superhero line.


cpu77,

not a good investment unless you can get them for dirt cheap or free. However they make great displays for your "toy room" or your 'storefront'. If you can find the giant size Minifig displays however, such as the Target Darth Vader or the giant size Obi Wan display, they are highly sought after. Minfigs that stand a foot tall or so. I think the Vader one had a light up saber or something.

I am one of the largest Lego sellers on ebay. I share what I know in hopes of empowering you. I'm not asking for anything in return. I simply want you to be successful and happy in life.

If you decide to invest in Lego, start small. My speculations are opinions only. Noone really knows what will be the best lego investment. But give it time, experience, and learning from your mistakes. Eventually you can set up a system you are comfortable with. What works for me may not work for you.

I stumbled on investing in lego by accident when the Batman sets were all on clearance at Target years ago. I also happened to pick up 7093 Skeleton tower on clearance for $20 or so from target. I bought all the Batman sets and the remaining 7093 and threw them in a closet in the basement thinking I'd build some of them later. Well a few years passed and I had forgotten about the sets. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw what they were going for.

Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 10 guests