Second hand record prices rising well over inflation?

Discussion in 'Marketplace Discussions' started by babaluma, May 31, 2022.

  1. OnTheRoad

    OnTheRoad Not of this world

    I see a store outlay of $30 and a profit income of $25 on that....not bad, almost 100% profit with potential of $70 more if and when those remaining 7 cds sell. So potentially a profit of $95 on that $30 investment. Nearly 300%.
     
  2. irwin69

    irwin69 Forum Resident

    Location:
    France
    I can't work out yet what the impact of having the Russians out of the market will have. Will prices of high end start to drop? Will dealers who dealt direct with Russians now have to put their inventory online and therefore start to 'flood' that end of the market? Or will the fact that a considerable amount of highly collectible vinyl in Russia is unavailable mean prices will actually rise. My instinct is that dealers will turn more to online for high end...though as we have seen recent VAT changes and Brexit have made online selling so much harder.
     
  3. Spencer R

    Spencer R Forum Resident

    Location:
    Oxford, MS
    During my last vinyl purge, after selling the really collectible records on eBay, and then renting a booth at the local every-six-months flea market at the local civic center, and advertising that I was selling records there, I took what didn’t sell at the flea market to my local record store. The owner gave me a fair price for them, and, maybe three years later?, I still see some of the records I traded in that day in his used bins. Some of them, in my opinion, are fairly collectible/desirable records that I would have expected him to sell rather quickly. But he paid me a couple hundred bucks for this batch of records, and he hasn’t come close to moving them all. I couldn’t move them either, at least not without renting another booth at a another flea market or record show, which I wasn’t willing to do. I could sell my Beatles or jazz collection for fairly big bucks tomorrow on eBay if I chose to, but trying to move middle-of-the-pack records, even if they’re ostensibly “worth” $10 to $20 a pop, is harder than it looks, even if you personally are upset that a used copy of Rumours now has a $20 price sticker on it at your local record store. I used to work at a very good used record store, and I know what amount of time and effort goes into the owner buying the collections (and declining the crap collections and dealing with wild goose chases from blind phone calls from people who think they’re sitting on a hoard of million-dollar records) that allow him to get that copy of Rumours and sell it for $20.

    But please carry on with your “ooh, mean record store man won’t give me a fair price for my valuable collectibles” complaining. In the real world, however, if you want the “book price” for your records or CDs, you have to sell them yourself on eBay, Discogs, the SHtv classifieds, or at a flea market or record show. Mean record store man can’t afford to pay you the book price for your heirlooms, because he has to pay rent, pay employees, sit on tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars of inventory at any given time, deal with the customers who are upset that he is asking $20 for his copy of Rumours, etc. etc. etc.
     
    RonaldC, ARK, bjlefebvre and 11 others like this.
  4. negative1

    negative1 80s retro fan

    Location:
    USA
    i bought imports from the UK in the 80s for many bands. because they got a ton
    of exclusive remixes, releases, special limited editions, and everything we wouldn't
    get in the US, until about the late 80s.

    one thing they didn't have was better packaging.
    every 12 inch had a super flimsy thin cardboard sleeve.
    nothing like the thicker US ones. also they didn't come
    with inner sleeves either.

    same for the albums. so maybe earlier records were ok,
    but definitely not the ones i bought.

    later
    -1
     
  5. negative1

    negative1 80s retro fan

    Location:
    USA
    here are some cds i bought (not including shipping) from amazon, discogs and ebay
    i have no idea whether they are popular titles or not
    ------
    [OWN]
    ABC - Abracadabra
    $3

    2 ordered-> amazon
    ABC - Alphabet City
    $3

    3 ordered-> amazon
    ABC - Up
    $3

    4 ordered-> amazon
    Alphaville - The Breathtaking Blue
    $5

    5 ordered-> amazon
    The Art Of Noise - The Best Of The Art Of Noise
    $2

    6 ordered-> amazon
    Art Of Noise* - Re-works Of Art Of Noise
    $3

    7 ordered-> amazon
    Art Of Noise* - Below The Waste
    $4

    8 ordered-> ebay
    Art Of Noise* - The Ambient Collection
    $2

    9 Cabaret Voltaire - Code
    $8

    10
    Dead Or Alive - Youthquake
    $4

    11 ordered-> amazon
    Dead Or Alive - Nude
    $4

    12 ordered-> discogs
    Depeche Mode - Speak & Spell
    $5

    13 ordered-> amazon
    Depeche Mode - Construction Time Again
    $4

    14 ordered-> discogs
    Depeche Mode - Some Great Reward
    $4

    15 ordered-> amazon
    Depeche Mode - Catching Up With Depeche Mode
    $4

    16 ordered-> amazon
    Depeche Mode - Music For The Masses
    $1

    17 ordered-> discogs
    Depeche Mode - 101 (2xcd)
    $1.50


    18 ordered-> discogs
    Depeche Mode - Violator
    $4

    19 ordered-> amazon
    Duran Duran - Duran Duran
    $7

    20 ordered-> amazon
    Duran Duran - Seven And The Ragged Tiger
    $5

    21 ordered-> amazon
    Duran Duran - Notorious
    $2

    22 ordered-> amazon
    Duran Duran - Arena
    $2

    23 ordered-> amazon
    Duran Duran - Decade
    $3

    24 discogs cart
    Echo & The Bunnymen - Porcupine
    $5

    25 discogs cart
    Echo And The Bunnymen* - Heaven Up Here
    $6

    26 discogs cart
    Echo & The Bunnymen - Ocean Rain
    $5

    27
    The Fixx - Phantoms
    $30

    28 discogs cart
    The Fixx - Walkabout
    $15

    29 ordered-> discogs
    Frankie Goes To Hollywood - Welcome To The Pleasuredome
    $2

    30 amazon cart
    Frankie Goes To Hollywood - Liverpool
    $4

    31 discogs cart
    Missing Persons - The Best Of Missing Persons
    $2

    32 discogs cart
    Nitzer Ebb - Showtime
    $3

    33 discogs cart
    Nitzer Ebb - Belief
    $2

    34 discogs cart
    The Psychedelic Furs - Forever Now
    $4

    35
    Scritti Politti - Cupid & Psyche 85
    $3

    36 amazon cart
    The Sisters Of Mercy - Floodland
    $3

    37 amazon cart
    The Sisters Of Mercy - First And Last And Always
    $4

    38 discogs cart
    Skinny Puppy - Rabies
    $2

    39 discogs cart
    Tears For Fears - The Seeds Of Love
    $3

    40 discogs cart
    Thomas Dolby - Astronauts & Heretics
    $2

    41 discogs cart
    Thompson Twins - Here's To Future Days
    $3

    42 discogs cart
    Thompson Twins - The Best Of Thompson Twins / Greatest Mixes
    $3

    43 amazon cart
    Thompson Twins - Big Trash
    $2

    44 discogs cart
    Thompson Twins - Queer
    $2

    45 amazon cart
    U2 - October
    $4

    46 [Will keep]
    U2 - War
    $5

    47 discogs cart
    U2 - War
    $3.00

    48 discogs cart
    U2 - Under A Blood Red Sky
    $3

    49 amazon cart
    U2 - Wide Awake In America
    $3

    50
    U2 - Rattle And Hum
    $1.49


    51 discogs cart
    Xymox - Twist Of Shadows
    $2

    52
    Xymox - Phoenix
    $2


    53 [OWN]
    Joy Division - Substance
    $4

    54 [OWN]
    Kraftwerk - Computer World
    $5

    55 [OWN]
    The Human League - Greatest Hits
    $3

    56 [OWN] discogs cart
    Frazier Chorus - Ray
    $5

    57 [OWN] discogs cart
    Talk Talk - The Party's Over
    $4

    58 [OWN] amazon cart
    Simple Minds - Live In The City Of Light (2xcd)
    $4


    =========

    59 The Art Of Noise - In Visible Silence
    $2

    60
    Arcadia (3) - So Red The Rose
    $6

    61
    Depeche Mode - Black Celebration
    $4

    62
    Depeche Mode - People Are People
    $4

    63
    Duran Duran - Big Thing
    $3

    64
    Duran Duran - Liberty
    $2

    65
    Duran Duran - Duran Duran (The Wedding Album)
    $5

    66
    Echo And The Bunnymen* - Crocodiles
    $5

    67
    The Fixx - Greatest Hits – One Thing Leads To Another
    $5.50


    68
    The Fixx - React
    $5.00


    69
    Nitzer Ebb - Ebbhead
    $2

    70
    Pet Shop Boys - Actually
    $2

    71
    Thompson Twins - Close To The Bone
    $2

    72
    U2 - Boy
    $3

    73
    U2 - The Unforgettable Fire
    $4

    74
    U2 - The Joshua Tree
    $3

    75
    Underworld - Underneath The Radar
    $4

    76 talk talk - history revisited
    $3

    77 steely dan - gold
    $3

    78 new order - substance (2xcd)
    $5

    =======
    a few were over $5, and a couple were $10, >$20
    but thats it.

    i think the average price is probably $3-$4

    lots of great deals out there for thousands of cds
    that were $1-$2

    they make up with for the shipping, which is usually $3-$4,
    if you buy them in bulk, you can save a lot with just one
    low price for shipping in the US.

    later
    -1
     
  6. Sax-son

    Sax-son Forum Resident

    Location:
    Three Rivers, CA
    They may have used thinner cardboard, but many were laminated with protective plastic to prevent ware. I have some British pressings that I have had in my collection for close over 50 years now. From my experience, they have held up better than many of my US pressings over the years. Less ring ware and very little splitting at the seams do to aging. I have always babied my LP's with as much protection as possible, but something like deteriorating due to age, is hard to stop. US pressings use the cover art paper to bind the cardboard together. That starts to breakdown and get fragile with age. The British pressing covers used a fold over binding to prevent that from happening. The results have been through the test of time and it is not just something I was making up.
     
    caravan70 and negative1 like this.
  7. 131east23

    131east23 Person of Interest

    Location:
    gone
    If I never bought another record or CD I'd still be set for the rest of my life, so whatever... I spent an average of about 60 bucks per used LP that I have bought so far this year and even though they are all quite nice, none of them was the NM they were graded at.
     
    Mikewest and negative1 like this.
  8. Simoon

    Simoon Forum Resident

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    Maybe it's because here in LA, we have quite a few used record stores, so competition is high, but I have not noticed any increase to speak of over the last year.

    As I look through the racks at Amoeba, Counterpoint Records, Freak Beat, Record Surplus, Atomic Records, etc, etc. I see very few standard rock, jazz and classical records for over $10. Most are between $5 and $10.
     
    cchristopherr and lazydawg58 like this.
  9. Front Row

    Front Row Finding pleasure when annoying those with OCD.

    Location:
    Chicago IL
    I empathize with you. Gone are the days when I could buy CDs for a penny from Zoverstocks. No longer can I purchase a hefty stack of used records for twenty bucks. Some used music is still cheap, but the supply has gone down. Consumers are not buying as many new CDs or records as compared to twenty years ago because downloading and free music is so easily accessible. Thus the supply to used music stores has dwindled while the demand for "previously played media" is still somewhat strong and has pushed prices up. Also, the exorbitant amount for 180-200 gram records has seemed to greenlight used music dealers to raise prices on original releases.
     
    globule2 and babaluma like this.
  10. Many Clouds

    Many Clouds Forum Resident

    Location:
    England
    Not so sure , there’s still bargains about . I’m currently spinning a uk first press Alice Cooper Love It To Death which I paid £7.50 for . Nowhere near mint , but decent enough condition with a few crackles. Purchased some other good albums for less than £10 each the last week or so
     
    negative1 likes this.
  11. Danby Delight

    Danby Delight Forum Resident

    Location:
    Boston
    I find that's true of any city with a decent number of record stores. There are 10 record stores within less than a 30-minute walk from my house (soon to be nine, unfortunately -- Reid is closing the Allston location of In Your Ear! to focus entirely on the Warwick, RI store as he moves toward retirement), so nobody has a captive audience and that keeps prices reasonable.
     
    Simoon likes this.
  12. agaraffa

    agaraffa Senior Member

    I almost completely migrated away from physical media since my move from NJ to NC in 2020, but when I was into it I would always buy what was out of season... Many years ago when the front on the record store I used to frequent was all used CDs, I was in the back room at a small rack of used records. Then when vinyl resurgence really kicked in and the entire front room was records, I was sill at the small rack in the backroom buying used CDs. I guess it sucks if you're not into CDs these days though, I feel for you.
     
  13. PineBark

    PineBark formerly known as BackScratcher

    Location:
    Boston area
    These days, the only time I find any vinyl gems that aren't premium priced is if I buy entire lots from people getting out of vinyl or selling off a deceased relative's collection.
     
    lazydawg58 likes this.
  14. jb welda

    jb welda yellow eyed dog

    Funny thing is, no matter that someone seems to be getting high prices for their records, anytime I want to sell anything no one wants to pay above dirt cheap.

    So thats my secret: buy high, sell low.

    jb
     
  15. lazydawg58

    lazydawg58 Know enough to know how much I don't know

    Location:
    Lillington NC
    Try Record Krate off of St. Mary's street.
     
    agaraffa likes this.
  16. lazydawg58

    lazydawg58 Know enough to know how much I don't know

    Location:
    Lillington NC
    That's because you're buying at the same point in the supply chain as the store owner as opposed to walking into the store and buying.
     
    ARK likes this.
  17. It's Felix

    It's Felix It's not really me

    Which bands? As the 80s music I see here in the U.K. has also gone up in price.
     
  18. PineBark

    PineBark formerly known as BackScratcher

    Location:
    Boston area
    Exactly. And I probably pay more than a store owner would, because I'm not looking to resell for profit.
     
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  19. cwitt1980

    cwitt1980 Senior Member

    Location:
    Carbondale, IL USA
    Now what about that hour the store had to waste on the guy with the cds in the CSNY shirt that acted like he knew everything?
     
  20. agaraffa

    agaraffa Senior Member

    Cool! I don't get downtown much, but my daughter gets her hair cut there, next time I'm waiting for her I'll definitely check it out! :righton:
     
    lazydawg58 likes this.
  21. negative1

    negative1 80s retro fan

    Location:
    USA
    here was a list i posted:
    Items by Group
    [* these numbers include CDs also *]
    ==========================================
    Depeche Mode 88
    New Order 60
    Ultravox 51
    Duran Duran 46
    Underworld 34
    Pet Shop Boys 30
    Thompson Twins 29
    Flock of Seagulls 27
    Big Country 23
    Simple Minds 23
    Frazier Chorus 21
    ABC 17
    Frankie Goes to Hollywood 16
    Heaven 17 16
    Go West 13
    Kraftwerk 12
    Kissing the Pink 11
    Blancmange 10
    The Fixx 10
    Midge Ure 9
    Tears For Fears 8
    U2 8
    Boston 8
    Human League 7
    Thomas Dolby 7
    Curiosity Killed the Cat 7
    Talk Talk 6
    Electronic 6
    Asia 6
    Billy Idol 6


    later
    -1
     
  22. John Moschella

    John Moschella Senior Member

    Location:
    Christiansburg, VA
    Yes it is, it practically defines a bubble. At some point it will burst.
     
  23. Rents are high, the available stock is at its lowest ever and demand is high. Of course prices are going to go up.
     
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  24. Spencer R

    Spencer R Forum Resident

    Location:
    Oxford, MS
    I would say no, vinyl is not a bubble, because, unlike tulips or bitcoin, there is an underlying value to the asset that’s being sold for higher and higher prices. From the $500 RL cut of Led Zeppelin II to the $20 used bin copy of Rumors, used records sell for “crazy” prices in large part because they are works of art and sonic artefacts that can be played and bring a lot of joy just beyond being speculative assets. As far as I know, nobody’s paying crazy prices for Grand Funk Railroad albums or Linda Ronstadt albums or for the old albums of many other artists, rightly or wrongly (I love Linda Ronstadt) because not enough people today care about their music to collect their albums and play them. The chief reason the Beatles, Floyd, Zep, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, etc. see huge prices for mint copies of their vintage vinyl is because people care about them and their music and vinyl more often than not offers the very best way to listen to it. Is there speculation, greed, and a faddish element to the vinyl hobby in 2022? For sure, but, again, unlike something like bitcoin with no tangible value beyond the Ponzi scheme that underlies it, there is real, tangible underlying value to vintage vinyl records from classic artists.
     
  25. 4-2-7

    4-2-7 Forum Resident

    Location:
    SF Peninsula
    So all this talk about prices is always determined on the area and country you live. Have used record prices gone up for me the past few years? not really.
    Have supplies dwindled down over the past few years in the store I go to? not really.

    For the sake of my comments in this post, most rock records are "common" titles between the years 1964-1986. Zep, Pink Floyd, Stones, Beatles while in demand are still very common records. I have lots of record stores around me but I only really ever go to one, he's been in business since 1984.

    Common used record prices are $2.99, $3.99 & $4.99 this includes the heavy hitters above. Although he might charge me $10 - $15 for supper clean Beatles records like The White album. So mostly all common records are under $5 and yes others with rarity might cost more like $20 to whatever but still will be very fair prices. He doesn't look on Discogs to price records, sometimes if something is pretty rare he'll look at what it might sell for on eBay. However he doesn't charge me that, he just might show me what it might be going for.

    I would say around 7 years ago the common prices in his store was $1.99 $2.99, $3.99 so everything got bumped up a buck back then. Around a year ago it looked like he was trying to get crazy prices from me. I think it was more that he got in deep with an outstanding collection so he was trying to get his money back. This collection was nice, lots of stuff in superb condition and early rock you don't see often. Evidently the collection came from a big collector who was buying top records over 30 years ago and have been stored for the past 30 years safe and untouched.

    But anyway, the amount of records I buy each week is dependent on the quality that comes in the door each week. I used to go two or three times a week, I have so many records that I only go 1-2 times a week these days. I never leave with a shopping bag because generally I fill a box, below is common for me to bring home each week.

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    I used to sell on another site like this one because I knew others did not have the resources I have hear. What I would do is sell in bulk, records by the box load like I buy them, 30 to a box for records costing $3- $5. I would do smaller box loads 10-15 records for $10-$15 dollar priced records. I'd put a grade on the records in the box like V+ V++, and shipping records back then media mail cost about .50 cents a title.

    In order for me to pass on the savings and sell pretty much at cost, I would do surprise boxes. In other words for me to save time, I pick the records and not have to spend time listing each title. You also get the records like I get them, unwashed and visually graded, but all hand selected out of a record store. People like the surprise because it's just like walking in a record store, you never know what your going to see and walk out with. Sure sometimes people would get dups on something they already have, but there is a good chance the new one they got from me is better. Sure there could be a dud once washed and listen to, not all records are perfect even if they look very clean. However a bad record or a dup here and there only adds pennies to the rest of the titles in the boxes.

    People can buy like this, but when records cost you $30-$50 for common $5 titles it's because you're asking the seller to do all the work for you. I want you to buy it, wash it and listen to it, then grade it, then pack it in a new mailer, drive it to the post office and wait for me to complain about any little pop I hear on a 50 year old used record that was imperfect when new. :D

    Anyway, maybe I should give this site a shot at supper deals in bulk, we have many very new members who are just starting a record collection.
     
    Last edited: Jun 1, 2022
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