Avoid These Risky Investment Ideas (4 of 10)

Baseball Cards: What Traps People

A long time ago, baseball cards might have looked like a sound investment. But that boat has sailed long ago. In the 1980s, the baseball card industry was a $1 billion dollar industry. That wave has stopped by the early 1990s as the market had peaked.

The Dangers Of Baseball Cards

But why exactly did it peak? Well, that’s very much the case with any kind of art. The main issue with baseball cards, cars, and other collectibles is that oversupply is a constant threat. If there is too much of something, the price is going to drop.

What also threatens art is the change in fashions. Not only that, but you also need to look at conditions and rarities too.

When you look at vintage cards, the high valued cards are going to be the ones that have a high quality stock, and high grade scores. A signature on the card by the athlete might also raise the value too. But outside of that, the card needs to be in pristine condition.

But even then, cards like these can be hard to make any kind of money. In short, you’re betting. You’re betting that the value of the cards is going to stay the same or rise up in price. And like with any card out there, it’s not always guaranteed to hold any kind of future value.

There’s nothing wrong with building up a collection over the years, however it’s important to be optimistically pessimistic. Be fully prepared to lose money, but be surprised and happy if you walk away with a good chunk of change from trades or sales of these cards. Just don’t use this as your only way of building your wealth.