My mom gave me her baseball cards from the 1970s. Are they worth anything? What makes a card valuable?
We are in a bear market for baseball cards -- the market peaked in the 1980s. “Mass manufacturing and proliferation of card manufacturers decimated the industry,” says Michael Osacky, of Baseballintheattic.com, in Chicago.
The most valuable cards were produced in 1975 or earlier, and the older the better. “The 1950s cards are very popular and valuable because that is when Mickey Mantle, Willie Mays, Hank Aaron and several other Hall of Fame players started in the major leagues,” says Osacky. In general, a player’s rookie card is the most valuable.
Sign up for Kiplinger’s Free E-Newsletters
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more - straight to your e-mail.
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice - straight to your e-mail.
Some rookie cards from after the mid ’70s can still be quite valuable, such as those featuring Cal Ripken and Tony Gwynn. Of current players, Albert Pujols’s rookie cards are becoming more valuable now, especially if they are in mint condition.
To fetch top dollar, cards need to be authenticated, which helps weed out fakes and provides a grade that makes it easy for potential buyers to assess a card’s condition. “Condition is so important,” Osacky says. “A nick on one corner can severely affect the value.” You can get baseball cards graded at Professional Sports Authenticators or SGC, where you can also find links to recent auction prices.
If you want to sell your cards, there are specialized auction houses for sports memorabilia, but they usually take a 20% cut. And eBay is more of a buyer’s market than a seller’s market right now, says Osacky.
For more information about valuing and protecting your collections, see How to Appraise, Insure and Sell Your Collectibles.
-
What Is a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD)?Tax Breaks A QCD can lower your tax bill while meeting your charitable giving goals in retirement. Here’s how.
-
Embracing Generative AI for Financial SuccessGenerative AI has the potential to reshape how we approach learning about and managing our personal finances.
-
Five Reasons You Shouldn't Shop on Amazon Prime DaySmart Buying Think twice before getting lured into buying a bunch of stuff you don't need just because it's on sale.
-
Best Cash Back Credit Cards December 2024Smart Buying Trying to compare the best cash back credit cards? Unlike most reviewers, we include cards from small banks and credit unions, as well as from large issuers.
-
How to Spend $1,000: Find Cheap (or Free) Online Courses to Build Career SkillsSmart Buying There's a huge array of skill-building online courses that can level up your career for under $1,000.
-
MoviePass is Relaunching. Should You Sign Up?Smart Buying The subscription discount movie card company has a checkered past and an army of disillusioned former cardholders. If you want to try the reboot, you’ll need to hurry.
-
HBO Max Is Offering Huge DiscountsSmart Buying Looking for a streaming service deal? Warner Bros. Discovery is cutting the price of HBO Max.
-
Are You Streaming Too Much? What the Discovery+/HBO Max Mashup MeansSmart Buying Fewer original scripted series? Maybe. And maybe it’s time to unsubscribe.
-
PODCAST: Is a Recession Coming?Smart Buying With a lot of recession talk out there, we might just talk ourselves into one. We take that risk with Jim Patterson of The Kiplinger Letter. Also, dollar stores: deal or no deal?
-
What to Expect from the 2022 Summer Travel SeasonTravel Travelers have been dealing with the trials and tribulations of canceled trips and elusive refunds for nearly two years. It will get better this year.
