How to - Purchase decesions?

[the.asics.kid]

I'm curious to hear some thoughts on this; since the custom playing card market is boomin atm, the number of freshly published cards is pretty high. Problem with this is, you can't have them all; at least I can't  .
How do you guys decide what to get with limited funds?

[Don Boyer]

Simple - you buy what speaks to you and your interests. And you stay within your budget, whatever that budget happens to be.  You can’t have it all, but you can have some really cool stuff!


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[the.asics.kid]

Simple - you buy what speaks to you and your interests. And you stay within your budget, whatever that budget happens to be.  You can’t have it all, but you can have some really cool stuff!

Generally speaken yah, of course.
What I meant was, for example the Lotrek Silk decks sold pretty slowly (due to their high retail price), so there was no rush to buy them and you could focus on other decks on the bucket list. Lotrek's Less on the other hand sold immediatly for $25 retail and if you would have missed out, but want it in your collection you now have to pay scalper prices of $50-70 (there even was an eBay listing for $200(!) - LOL - nice try). I'd like to avoid such things  . And praised be, have most of the times, since I'm good informed and have a good sense for what will sell and what not.
So the topic was more meant to be about any tips on how to look into the crystal ball and after what criterias other collectors organise their bucket lists.

[Jackbrutuspenny]

Simple - you buy what speaks to you and your interests. And you stay within your budget, whatever that budget happens to be.  You can’t have it all, but you can have some really cool stuff!

Generally speaken yah, of course.
What I meant was, for example the Lotrek Silk decks sold pretty slowly (due to their high retail price), so there was no rush to buy them and you could focus on other decks on the bucket list. Lotrek's Less on the other hand sold immediatly for $25 retail and if you would have missed out, but want it in your collection you now have to pay scalper prices of $50-70 (there even was an eBay listing for $200(!) - LOL - nice try). I'd like to avoid such things  . And praised be, have most of the times, since I'm good informed and have a good sense for what will sell and what not.
So the topic was more meant to be about any tips on how to look into the crystal ball and after what criterias other collectors organise their bucket lists.

I understand what you’re saying but agree with Don, playing cards are to some extent a form of art for collectors/appreciators, and as with art, if it doesn’t speak to you then any amount is a waste of money (assuming you’re not purely in it for resale business), and if it truly speaks to you then it’s priceless.

[Don Boyer]

Simple - you buy what speaks to you and your interests. And you stay within your budget, whatever that budget happens to be.  You can’t have it all, but you can have some really cool stuff!

Generally speaken yah, of course.
What I meant was, for example the Lotrek Silk decks sold pretty slowly (due to their high retail price), so there was no rush to buy them and you could focus on other decks on the bucket list. Lotrek's Less on the other hand sold immediatly for $25 retail and if you would have missed out, but want it in your collection you now have to pay scalper prices of $50-70 (there even was an eBay listing for $200(!) - LOL - nice try). I'd like to avoid such things  . And praised be, have most of the times, since I'm good informed and have a good sense for what will sell and what not.
So the topic was more meant to be about any tips on how to look into the crystal ball and after what criterias other collectors organise their bucket lists.

Collectors really do collect what speaks to them, what excites them, what makes them say, "Wow, I want that."  Doesn't matter who makes it or what it costs - well, that's not entirely true, as collectors do generally have budget limitations like most of the rest of the world!  But yes, they buy what they're really enjoying to look at.

There are people who buy speculatively, trying to find what the market is interested in and buying with the intent to resell.  These are the people who are the most concerned with prices going higher later.  A true collector, who's buying simply for their own pleasure, only concerns themselves with after-market prices when they have to look for a deck in the after-market - and at times, it means that a deck they want is outside their means, at least for the time being.

Some collectors might buy a few rare decks they're not as interested in, but for the purposes of trading fodder.  They see a cool deck they missed when it first came out, they find someone who has it, they offer to trade, rare deck(s) for rare deck(s), and voila, they're filling in the gaps in their collection that they otherwise wouldn't be able to afford to.

There's frequently some risk to this, though.  While one can guess as to the later value of a given deck, you never know for certain if the value will go up or down.  I've seen decks that were once absolutely coveted become so cheap that card retailers, instead of selling them, were using them as "box stuffing," protection for keeping valuable decks in a shipped box from getting damaged in shipping!

It's hard to say what's going to retain value or how long a deck will remain available, but it's also hard to go wrong if you simply stick to what makes you happy and doesn't totally break your budget.

[Justin O.]

Keeping up on the communities will help you know what decks are going to be hot; knowing the players, who is popular and relevant. Basically just being a part of the community, paying attention and watching how things sell will inform you. There aren't any tricks or shortcuts. You can reliably assume Lotrek, Fontaine, JR etc will always be somewhat of a Veblen Good, and a reliable buy.

What you are going to continue to hear is "buy what you like", and while I agree with this to an extent, it's important to factor in why you collect. And I can offer a different perspective: I am someone who gains an immense amount of pleasure from owning things other people don't. I buy what I know people will be jealous of. I have a pool of money set aside for new releases I know will fit that concept. The decks I cherish most aren't my favorite decks, they are the decks I know other people wish they had. And I like to feel like I am part of a private club of elite collectors that own the rare stuff and know that having a Tatler is more impressive than having a red Fontaine. I like to have decks that other long time established collectors of modern decks appreciate but the kiddies on Reddit have never even heard of. And I like to flex my collection.

That said, I still always get decks that resonate with me, and buy a couple extra when one really sings to me. I had to step away from collecting for several years when collecting became unhealthy, I was chasing trends, trying to play to valuation game and spending more money than I had on decks I didn't even like, just to be a completionist, or because everyone else was going to have one of whatever deck and I couldn't handle not being a part of that. I stopped collecting because I loved cards, and ultimately that should steer your decisions to buy. Coming back to it now, I am finding it much easier to say no to decks, it has to really be something that speaks to me. I'm still putting money towards that envy pool, because decks that other people want definitely still speak to me, but I finally am only getting decks I feel a worth having, and I set money aside to make sure I don't miss a release that I would kick myself for missing.

[Mckinnon]

How much money do you think a new release will cost, Justin?

[Don Boyer]

How much money do you think a new release will cost, Justin?

There's no one answer for such a question.  A new deck of Bicycles might be only $5 at the Walgreens on the corner.  A new deck by Lotrek might cost $100 or more.  A new gilded deck by Uusi will certainly cost more. - and good luck finding one, as they rarely make more than 50 of any one kind.

Just consider what you can AFFORD, period.  It doesn't matter if it speaks to you or if you just think it will make great trading fodder or will fetch a good price on eBay - if you can't afford it, you can't AFFORD it.  By that, I mean if you're missing rent payments, late on your bills, not eating regularly, etc. because of your playing card habit, you REALLY can't afford it.  If you wanna chase after the occasional Holy Grail deck, fine - but know that having too many Holy Grails to hunt down will frustrate you and leave your wallet pretty empty most of the time.  You do so smartly, not without regard.