During the Pokémon card market boom in late 2020 and early 2021, no card was safe from slipping into a penny sleeve, jammed into a card saver and your third-party grading company of choice with the hope of profit was sent to. rear end.
Old Wizards of the Coast Commons and Uncommon, modern Ultra Rare (which aren’t really rare at all), some modern reverse holo… you name it, and people were grading it.
Of course, anyone who had any experience in the Pokémon card market knew that this trend was going to be short-lived. The benefits of the PSA 7 Base Set Unlimited Charmanders apparently weren’t sustainable, and many people found it the hard way when they got their submissions back a year later and the change was made.
To put this in perspective, things have gotten so dire that some people who accidentally threw everything but the kitchen sink into PSA a year and a half ago are apparently skipping their submissions that are still waiting for PSA features. (This is for those who have not paid their grading fees in advance).
People who had the knowledge to know what was happening never became an issue, but new businesses didn’t have the framework of reference to predict this outcome.
Here we are at the end of 2022, and the market dynamics have changed a lot in the last six to 12 months. Normal graded cards are no longer ordering Premium on eBay, and some sellers who did Get them back their submissions are really making losses. Those PSA 9 Base Set Unlimited Charmanders and Squirtles that were going for almost $100 a year ago? Yes, they are now $20 cards. Take into account grading fees, shipping fees, and eBay fees, and there’s no money to be made.
While your heart has to go out for those who bite off more than they can chew, things have returned to a perfectly healthy state as far as the market is concerned. The massive price spikes defined in late 2020 and the first half of 2021 are gone, and now there is more stability and liquidity now.
PSA has now reopened its wholesale tier to $22 per card (which I talked about recently), so some people are debating which cards they should eventually collect for grading. (or if they wish to submit any card).
So, here are some types of cards that you probably shouldn’t send in PSA if your end game is to make some kind of profit. If you want to send a card for your collection, get it. It is strictly targeted towards businesses and people who want to earn money.
3. Wizards of the Coast Non-Holo Pokemon Cards
There are exceptions here, but as I’ve said in the past: the exception is not the rule.
Most non-holo cards (hence the commons, uncommon and non-holo rare) of Old Wizards of the Coast era don’t make sense at just $22. Those base set Charmanders and Squirtles I mentioned earlier? They were selling for about $400-500 in PSA 10s about two years ago. Now, they typically go for around $80. It’s obviously still a benefit, but it’s not worth the risk when PSA 9s are reaching $20-25 (and trust me: PSA 10s are absolutely No Guaranteed older cards like these).
Even most first edition base sets aren’t a wise choice to ship non-holo at the current price point. I mean, yeah, if they get a PSA 10, great. But again, it’s hard to get 10s with vintage cards, and 9s aren’t very profitable right now, except in a few isolated instances. Keep in mind, you also have an initial cost of acquisition, and the first edition base sets are commons and uncommons. No Cheap, even in raw unclassified form.
Whether it’s a base set or Jungle or Neo Destiny or whatever, now’s not the time to send any of these cards to a PSA for grading. The market is not the right place for this. Not at $22 per card. Oh, Even If The Price Was $10, There Would Be Many Of These Cards Even then Can be disqualified because their PSA 9 price is not worth the risk.
Here’s an important strategy to employ: Even if your card looks completely impeccable, always, Always Assume a PSA 9 and see if it’s still worth it. You’ll save yourself a lot of money over the long haul.
2. Wizards of the Coast Holos Unlimited
Vintage Unlimited (hence the non-first edition) is also not protected at this time.
I would like to preface this by saying that there are some obvious exceptions here. For example, base sets like Charizard, Blastoise, and Venusaur Holo are undoubtedly fine to hoard at $22. Most Neo Destiny Holoes fit that criteria as well. But for the most part? The current cost of grading is too expensive for a large portion of Wizards of the Coast Unlimited Hollows.
When you see many of these cards selling for $40-50 in the PSA 9, it’s probably time to put whatever Holos you were considering sending back into the holster. Those with any experience in grading Wizards of the Coast Hollows understand how difficult it is to score a PSA 10. Even getting a 9 is remarkably difficult. So why take the chance to get a PSA 8 (or worse) and lose money entirely?
I’ll reiterate that I think a lot of people forget about the cost of acquisition when it comes to selling graded cards. Even if you bought the card three or four years ago, you still spent money on it. Let’s say you got it for $10. You grade it for $22. It’s already $32. Throw in a $4 shipping fee and eBay fee, and you’re barely making a profit even if you manage to sell the card for $50. If you make a profit at all, it’s a lot of time and effort for minimal profit.
So keep your jumpluffs and kingdrasses and mucks for now. Once the price of grading drops, you might be able to pull them back from storage and send them on a trip.
1. English Modern Pokémon Cards
This should be easy for most people, but in case there are some newbies entering the hobby who don’t quite understand it yet, let me tell you.
Most English Modern cards are not worth grading at $22. key term: majority of,
Sure, you have your big hitters from the developed skies and such, but gone are the days of sending in the usual Ultra Rare GX or Ultra Rare Vs and hoping to make some money. long above. Even in the last few years, we had accumulated regular hollows and reverse hollows. In case you didn’t know, there are modern holos No Similar to vintage Holos. were vintage hollows Chase the cards in their respective sets. Modern Holos are far below the totem pole, thanks to the fact that we now have 894 different rarities (okay, a bit of an exaggeration, but you get the point) when it comes to grading for resale. So they don’t even deserve a second thought.
Save your money and time by understanding that 99 percent of Modern English cards are clearly No Worth submitting to PSA or any grading company.
