Tough Questions... Value of a collection upon death of player

TJCloutier · Nov 20, 2017

There are a lot of variables surrounding the question above. I can't express my condolences to the Terry Glenn family since his passing earlier this morning. With that being said I have an extensive Glenn collection. Glenn was a minor star and I don't expect his collection to go up at all in theory. But at the same time I was racking my brain trying to figure out the average % that death would cause the market to surge for that particular player. If at all.

For instance I know that if Derek Jeter died today or someone of his caliber his cards would surge considerably more than a lot. (Don't mean to name drop but just anyone big in their respective sport)

Any thoughts on the subject?

If it seems unthoughtful then that's not my intent. Navient's calling and they want there student loan money! Also if there were ever a time to sell than this would most likely it. Finding a solid buyer would be the toughest part for the whole collection but figured I'd throw it out there. Thanks again

katester44 · Nov 20, 2017

Couldn't think to tell you what the values may turn out to be - but a quick ebay search turned up 39 completed items already this morning, all Buy It Now. For a minor star, this may be time to dip the toe in the water and see what you could get for some items. As morbid a thought as it is - this may be the only/best time to get value out of what you are looking to sell.

TJCloutier · Nov 20, 2017

katester44 said:
Couldn't think to tell you what the values may turn out to be - but a quick ebay search turned up 39 completed items already this morning, all Buy It Now. For a minor star, this may be time to dip the toe in the water and see what you could get for some items. As morbid a thought as it is - this may be the only/best time to get value out of what you are looking to sell.

Thanks for the response. This is essentially what I was thinking. I'm seeing big ticket items pop up so people are coming out of the woodwork trying to cash in. I listed 2 jerseys. One for 29.99 and one for $50. Within 10 min the $50 one had a bid with 7 days left. These aren't even my nicest jerseys I have about 13 others sewn on brand new with tags. I'll piece them out to not saturate the jersey market all at once though.

SymphonicMetal · Nov 20, 2017

I've never gotten the whole increase in demand when a person dies since 1) we are all going to pass away some day and 2 ) the chapter in that person's book of life is closed forever. They'll never be able to add to their accomplishments in their field or even go into a different occupation (coach, actor, musician) which may add to the desirability of their memorabilia. I remember arguing with people when Mantle died that his death only would increase his collectables value up for a short period of time until the news of his passing wore off.

Same thing holds for music. A famous artist dies and news reports constantly talk about their records and cds flying off the shelf. It happens every time a famous artist dies. My question is WHY? If you were such a fan, wouldn't you already own their music? And after a month or two won't their records be just as widely available as they were prior to his death? I'm sure you can find plenty of Prince, Michael Jackson, Glenn Campbell etc etc products available months and years after their deaths. If any of my favorite artists pass away, I won't buy a single thing of theirs. Why? Because I already own their music.

Bottom line is a famous person's death does tend to artificially rise the value of their memorabilia for a short time until the news of their passing is out of the news. After the public's attention moves on to the next thing, their collectables settle back down to their normal levels.

SymphonicMetal · Nov 20, 2017

And I should add that I don't blame you for selling Glenn's stuff now. It is good business and good sense. Strike while the iron is hot especially in sports collectables these days. In a few weeks the demand for the same items will collapse and it'll be really hard to sell them

katester44 · Nov 20, 2017

SymphonicMetal said:
And I should add that I don't blame you for selling Glenn's stuff now. It is good business and good sense. Strike while the iron is hot especially in sports collectables these days. In a few weeks the demand for the same items will collapse and it'll be really hard to sell them

Very true. Again, looking at Terry Glenn on ebay - on November 17th/18th/19th, there were 2 BIN purchases - today, there were at least 70+ at last check.

mrmopar · Nov 20, 2017

The average person is going to respond to something sudden like this, rather than having planned ahead. Think of it this way, many of those buyers may have had a Glenn item way down on their "need to buy" list and figured they would get around to it someday. All of the sudden, some day got forced on you! I collect autographs and have a wide variety of subjects. I try my best to plan ahead of something like this, but my budget only goes so far and my time is limited in what I can even think about, search for, find and buy.

If you are going to list anything with the intention of a greater return, get to listing! The surge in demand (and price) will end fast and you'll probably never see another increase ever again. Of course, you'll have to feel and hear the disapproving stares and comments of those who feel it is wrong to "profit" on his death by listing your items at a timely point.

mrmopar · Nov 20, 2017

The exception would be (and usually is) signed items. They are usually the first and best items that get snapped up upon news of a celebrity death. That pool dries up at that point for any new additions, where as cards and albums can keep being churned out as long as there is demand.

SymphonicMetal said:
I've never gotten the whole increase in demand when a person dies since 1) we are all going to pass away some day and 2 ) the chapter in that person's book of life is closed forever. They'll never be able to add to their accomplishments in their field or even go into a different occupation (coach, actor, musician) which may add to the desirability of their memorabilia. I remember arguing with people when Mantle died that his death only would increase his collectables value up for a short period of time until the news of his passing wore off.

Same thing holds for music. A famous artist dies and news reports constantly talk about their records and cds flying off the shelf. It happens every time a famous artist dies. My question is WHY? If you were such a fan, wouldn't you already own their music? And after a month or two won't their records be just as widely available as they were prior to his death? I'm sure you can find plenty of Prince, Michael Jackson, Glenn Campbell etc etc products available months and years after their deaths. If any of my favorite artists pass away, I won't buy a single thing of theirs. Why? Because I already own their music.

Bottom line is a famous person's death does tend to artificially rise the value of their memorabilia for a short time until the news of their passing is out of the news. After the public's attention moves on to the next thing, their collectables settle back down to their normal levels.

SymphonicMetal · Nov 20, 2017

I agree with Mr Mopar on two of his points. The autographed items would be a finite supply since no more could be produced. And I would put all your better items (GU, Autograph, low serial #d items etc. ) on Ebay right now because the stats that katester44 posted are going to from 2 sold to 70 sold and right back to 2 in a week or two. So I would not hesitate to put as much as you can up for auction right now.

I was just thinking that Terry Glenn was part of that "Class of '96" where a bunch of great to good receivers were drafted that year. Keyshawn Johnson went 1st and Marvin Harrison, Eric Moulds and Terry Glenn all went in the first round. And in one of the later rounds T.O. was selected. That was a heck of a WR class!

David K. · Nov 28, 2017

The auto's will go up for sure....but other stuff...like cards will have smaller or no effect. Best regards, David

Tough Questions... Value of a collection upon death of player

TJCloutier

Pro

katester44

MVP

TJCloutier

Pro

SymphonicMetal

Veteran

SymphonicMetal

Veteran

katester44

MVP

mrmopar

All-Star

mrmopar

All-Star

SymphonicMetal

Veteran

David K.

Legend

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