Rising record prices at your local shop. Is it happening to you?

Meaning that I don't have to wade through them myself. All the better.

 

The point is that the guy didn't price the records until the OP took them to the register. Even if they're worth that, nobody should feel compelled to pay it.

 

I don't have any problem with anyone shelling out cash for anything or for him raising the price. Everything is worth only what some other person agrees to buy it for. We've all paid premiums for something at some point. It just amuses me that people fork that amount cash out for extremely common multi-platinum albums from the seventies/eighties. A little patience and they can be found at a more economical price. Thriller sold in the ballpark of ten million LPs in the US alone. They aren't that rare in the wild in excellent condition.

 

They don't have to pay it, no. They can leave the records there for someone else to buy them.

 

Actually, it would have been a $1-3 record 5 years ago in many stores. And it's probably a $1-3 record today. But as long as there are people buying vinyl who don't have a clue about anything, the new order will remain. But there are a zillion copies of stuff like LZ II out there, and this too shall pass.

 

There is an element of supply and demand, though -- it's a very popular title with people who are still building record collections. I can tell you the only way that "patience" will get you a cheap Thriller around here is if you are willing to wait for good luck at a yard sale. Plenty of people will pay premium at a trustworthy shop.

 

Yes, rising record prices, and CD prices as well. Can't say they're overpriced though - more like they were underpriced for many years.

 

I do wonder though, is the seller getting $16-$18 bucks for Thriller, Hotel California, Purple Rain, and Rumours offering comparable trade in or cash value to the customer selling it or is he offering two bucks. taking the margin and running to the bank?

 

Right, some of them may sell right away and some of them may sit around forever. I doubt that I'd shop much at a store where the owner can't be bothered to put a price tag on a $100 record.

 

I notice it at the Utrecht Record Fair. What's in the 1 euro bins is getting worse and worse each time. Not just the condition, the titles also get less interesting. It's also getting harder to find stands with good prices. The good stuff is often getting too expensive and the cheap affordable stuff is too often bad quality. The good LPs are still out there, but usually they're a lot more expensive than 5-10 years ago.

 

Just watch. Those $1 Linda Ronstadt LPs are gonna go up. Mark my words.

I say this because, first of all, I brought my dad's old copies back from my parents' house and listened to them. And you know, they're good records. Quality singing (of course), quality production, and quality songwriting.

Second, much like the hipper kids/young adults of today have found they like Steely Dan (heck, I'm one of them), Linda is about due for some Pitchfork-like reappraisal. I already saw people I know dropping her name after her book came out a while back.

 

Prices are definitely up and quality is down.

 

While true enough remember that 1994 is 20 years ago. Believe it or not someone 10 years old then could be looking for vinyl for the first time at the age of 30. The 1990s are a fair ways back except to the elderly gents that frequent this Forum.

 

Around here its the later.

 

In my experience, a lot of the people pricing vinyl at places I dig at don't know much beyond the big hits and don't have time to get in to the nuance of exactly the right price. Instead they price Beatles, DSOTM, etc. way high regardless of condition/pressing and it will still sell to someone who isn't discerning. On the other hand I see a lot of people younger than me and older than me buying things I think are total garbage musically/condition-wise and they aren't complaining about it at all. I still find great deals fairly often but have to strike out and pass on overpriced stuff along the way. Some places have figured out popsike and discogs and others probably still have an old price guide book. Just my two cents.

 

People sometimes don't realize the overhead at a business. If he offers $2 and sells at $18 so what? He has rent or mortgage, employee salaries, utilities, etc. What's wrong with that?
You don't have to buy it.
I'm more upset about the price of new records that aren't rare selling in the $30-$40 range. But I find myself buying them anyway. So there you go.

 

Its funny to read about people complaining about records selling for $15 rather than for $8, typing out their frustration on a device that they paid hundreds for that cost pennies to build.

 

I feel so lucky that I came back to vinyl in 2002, well before vinyl started seeing a big resurgence. I had also kept all my vinyl records that I had accumulated as a teenager (I was actually going to get rid of them shortly after going to college, but my Mom said "Why don't I just keep them stored for you? You might want them again one day".......thanks Mom!!). Most of those records were in excellent shape when I got them back out of my parent's attic in 2002. My existing vinyl collection then was primarily hard-rock, metal, and progressive rock oriented acts (Led Zep, Van Halen, Rush, early Ozzy, Metallica, Iron, Maiden, Aerosmith, Pink Floyd, Genesis, Yes) which are still sought after today.

I then started in 2002 buying a lot of other used vinyl which was very plentiful, in excellent condition, and fairly cheap then . Today, most of what I bought in the early to mid 2000s is not so easily available in the used shops, and if even found they are much more expensive and generally in poorer condition (Bowie, Stones, AC/DC, Allman Bros, The Who, Prince, Judas Priest, Dire Straits, Steely Dan, etc).

 

I ran a record store for a decade so I'm well aware of all the costs that go into a business before you can even unlock the front door. (Pricing also is based on making up for theft - internal and external - too)

My point was that most dealers buy from folks on the cheap before rising to "market value" based on Goldmine/Ebay/Public Demand. Part of it is very neccessary but a small faction of unscrupulous dealers are seeing what can be gotten away with by suckering a newbie to the vinyl habit. The sad part is that when they succeed it convinces others to raise their prices as well and inflates the value of titles for all the wrong reasons.

Then these same dealers wonder why folks try to sell the stuff directly on Ebay for those premiums instead of bringing them into the stores. Instead they get offered endless Anne Murray/Doobie Brothers collections to clog up their buck bins.

Music shouldn't be worthless but there is a happy medium to satisfy both the seller and collector financially.

 

Yeah, but one day it's going to be a box of first pressing, mint, Beatles 45's... And you won't be moaning then...

 

How come you can suddenly get away with posting the word "wanker" in this forum?!?!?

Does that mean I can now use "$£*^"...?

 

That's a possibility, but usually when a cachet of records is stumbled upon--or given away-they are usually trashed, not stored properly, or they are albums of which there are literally millions of copies still around and available relatively cheap. The truly rare finds are rare for a reason--few were pressed, few were sold.
I'd like to make a point about young hipsters becoming vinyl obsessive--and driving up the prices. My advice? Be patient. They're called "hipsters" for a reason. They'll be into something newer--and hipper-- soon, and they'll be unloading. Others will simply grow up, get married and have kids--and find that there just isn't enough room in their cramped apartments and starter homes for crates and shelves full of albums--the intrinsic contents of which -- can easily be downloaded onto their computers, pads, tablets and phones. Just wait.

 

I tend to buy nothing but cds and Chicagoland has seen a price increase on both lps and cds. BUt you can still get amazing deals on cassettes (for now) and 8-tracks). With that being written, everything is getting more expensive. Anyone check the price of ground beef lately? How about college tution?

 

That's too bad. They don't have a clue!

 

At my local the other day I saw a VG- Sticky Fingers with broken zipper for $23, LZ I - VG (Rockefeller)for $35, Talking Heads Fear of Music $35 NM. I bought similar pressings in the last 9 months of all these for 19.99 in same or better condition. I shouldn't care but made me wonder what's going on.

Beat to hell Blue Notes for $70 to $80 with gashes I would be frightened to watch my stylus go over.

I went in for vinyl and walked out with 3 Beach Boys twofer CDs at $4 to $6 each. Six albums for $15.

What's worrisome is that used LPs are selling at these prices. I love vinyl. It's my preferred listening medium but the reality is I do have a limited amount of dollars to spend on music. It's got me wondering if I should be using that finite amount of funds to upgrade my dismal digital setup.