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 Cary Clark / FAQ / Market / value

How do I determine value?

From Todd Lehman: !

Generally, the older the set, the higher its value. Theme sets with mini-figures are especially valuable.

A set starts becoming valuable when it is no longer part of the current product line, simply because it is difficult to find in mainstream stores. LEGO® Shop-At-Home Service carries most sets for an additional 12 months and some up to 36 months. A set becomes more valuable when it is no longer available through Shop-At-Home (S@H), now because it is nearly impossible to find in local stores.

Smaller sets increase in value much more rapidly than larger sets. Here is a graph to give you an idea:


         |                            #  #  #
      ^  |                      #  #                          *  *  *  *
     /|\ |                   #                          *  *
      |  |                #                       *  *                 +
      |  |             #                    *  *                 +  +  .
      |  |          #                    *                 +  +  .  .
      |  |                            *              +  +  .  .
      |  |       #                 *           +  +  .  .
      |  |                      *        +  +     .
      |  |    #              *        +        .
         | #                       +        .
      P  |                *     +
      R  |                               .
      I  |             *     +
      C  |
      E  |          *     +           .
         |
      |  |       *     +           .
      |  |    *
      |  | *        +           .              . = Small set
      |  |                   .                 + = Medium set
      |  |       +                             * = Large set
      |  |    +           .                    # = Huge set
      |  | +           .
      |  |          .
         |       .
         | .  .
         |
         +-------------------------------------------------------------
           0     2     4     6     8    10    12    14    16   18   20

              --------------- AGE OF SET IN YEARS ---------------->


You can see the graph here.

There seems to be a glass ceiling for most sets around 10 years old -- these seem to go for around US $80 to $100, regardless of their original price. There have even been $2 U.S. and European-only sets that have sold in this range.

But basically, you auction a set if you think you can get more for it than you just paid for it, or if you have it lying around from childhood and it’s just not that interesting anymore.

The only way to be sure about value is to actually go through with the auction.
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