Art works only.
York1One of the comments was that younger adults are not collecting things like their parents or grandparents did. Maybe that will change as they age, but it could be many years.
I am not a younger adult, but I can kind of relate to the not collecting antique things. I've been to a number of antique shops over the past 20 years and they don't do anything for me and I don't want to collect them either. But maybe you have to be an antique yourself to be fond of such things!
York1About the only things that have consistently increased in value are artworks by well-known artists.
So the only things that continue to hold or increase in value are the really old things!
Rio Grande. The Action Road - Focus 1977-1983
rrebell this trend to lower prices has hit many antiques also, some going back hundreds of years (kinda kills the people getting older thing to some extent although in model railroading it has played some part I am sure.
Like physically killing them? Or financially because they are expecting to unload antiques for a tidy profit.
Any investment into things involves some risk - choose wisely young padowan.
rrebellAlso this trend to lower prices has hit many antiques also, some going back hundreds of years (kinda kills the people getting older thing to some extent although in model railroading it has played some part I am sure.
My wife and I are fans of the PBS series, "Antiques Roadshow".
Sometimes they repeat a show from years ago; they list the appraisal price then, and the appraisal price now.
Not all, but most of the things have gone down in value. Even in the new programs, the appraiser often comments that ___ years ago, the value would have been higher.
One of the comments was that younger adults are not collecting things like their parents or grandparents did. Maybe that will change as they age, but it could be many years.
About the only things that have consistently increased in value are artworks by well-known artists.
York1 John
The post war Lionel answer is the type I was looking for, I know economics and trends, ect. What I was looking for was insite into items I am not into, like Lionel. Also this trend to lower prices has hit many antiques also, some going back hundreds of years (kinda kills the people getting older thing to some extent although in model railroading it has played some part I am sure.
Tinplate ToddlerThe price is finally determined by the demand and supply.
Agreed. That is what they taught in my Econ 101 class back in the late 70's. It's a mantra now.
mobilman44Speaking for postwar Lionel/Flyer, they reached a peak in the 90s and early 2000s. Of course that was when I bought most of the items for my collection. The reason for the spike in demand/prices was fairly obvious....those of us who had trains as kids of the late 40s and 50s were now retiring, and we had disposable cash..........so we bought and bought and bought. Well, in the last 10 years or so those same people have aged or passed on. And they and/or heirs began selling off their trains, creating a glut in the marketplace. And to top it off, Lionel began producing reproductions of those early pieces. So now we have a market value of maybe 1/4 of what it once was............
+1 I think that assessment summed it up for those items.
Value is in the wallet of the beholder. I model in HO, in the Transition Era, and as time moves forward model companies are making more and more modern models, to keep up with the demand for modern equipment and to account for the sad demise of older hobbyists.
So, sometimes we end up paying above market value just for something no longer available on the retail market.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
Speaking for postwar Lionel/Flyer, they reached a peak in the 90s and early 2000s. Of course that was when I bought most of the items for my collection.
The reason for the spike in demand/prices was fairly obvious....those of us who had trains as kids of the late 40s and 50s were now retiring, and we had disposable cash..........so we bought and bought and bought.
Well, in the last 10 years or so those same people have aged or passed on. And they and/or heirs began selling off their trains, creating a glut in the marketplace. And to top it off, Lionel began producing reproductions of those early pieces.
So now we have a market value of maybe 1/4 of what it once was............
ENJOY !
Mobilman44
Living in southeast Texas, formerly modeling the "postwar" Santa Fe and Illinois Central
The price is finally determined by the demand and supply. As more and more model railroaders and/or collectors come of age, there are more and more collections in the market, pushing prices down. Last but not least we are talking about "toys" which seems to have less and less appeal for the younger generation, even as collectibles.
Not a good investment if you expect gains.
Happy times!
Ulrich (aka The Tin Man)
"You´re never too old for a happy childhood!"
What this is about is that a lot of train items like brass and wood kits have dropped in value over the last few years, alot. What I wondered is about prices for other train collecting areas like Tyco or Lionel etc., things outside the scope of what I follow ?