Brick-vesting!

Hi all, I’m back! Sorry for the delay in entries, as you all know, I’m still a teen, as such, i’m only able to attend to this blog and create new material once or twice a week.

Today, i’ll be talking about LEGO Investment, general matters about selling or investing in Lego, as well as some general purchasing guidelines i follow when buying a set for my collection, or my investment.

LEGO is a very popular toy among adults and children alike. Some people go to great lengths and expense, and spend thousands of dollars to fund this expensive hobby. 

LEGO Investing is basically purchasing LEGO sets and keeping them for a prolonged period of time, and then selling them to collectors for a higher price after the set retires and is no longer available at retail outlets.

These LEGO sets can be from any theme, although the popularity of a certain theme will definitely help to increase the value of the set in the aftermarket. Personally, I’ve just begun putting it into practice by buying a few small sets, but from what i’ve been able to learn from various sources online, a good set can see close to 30% increase in value 1-2 years after it has retired from production.

Because I’m a LEGO Star Wars fan, I only seek to invest in sets from this highly popular theme, though some of the things mentioned below can apply to all sets.

Look at the Minifigures

When buying a set for investment purposes, always look at the Minifigures it contains, and consider whether they are unique or new releases. For Star Wars, this may include popular characters such as Jedi or Sith or even Jabba the Hutt. The Minifigures included can greatly increase the value of the set if they are highly sought after.

Exclusive Minifigures or New-Releases are always good news for a set’s value.

What kind of Set is it?

This criteria probably only applies to LEGO Star Wars, and maybe some other themes but not all in general. Basically, in the Star Wars theme, sets often fall into a different categories in terms of pricing and the kind of build.

Battle Packs are probably the cheapest sets in the lineup, costing $10-$12 USD or $25-$27 SGD, and each one typically figures 4 Minifigures such as Clones, Stormtroopers, Droids or Rebels. These sets are very popular to fans and collectors, as they often contain soldier-type Minifigures that many collectors would use for MOCs (My Own Creation) and Army Building. Such popularity combined with its low cost, provides the ideal investment. Furthermore, previous Battle Packs in the Star Wars line have seen considerable increase in value on the second-hand market.

Vehicle sets are the Mid-Range equivalent of the Star Wars line, costing $25+ USD or $50+ SGD. Each of these sets typically feature a Star Wars vehicle build, and a few complementing Minifigures for playability. These sets aren’t as clear-cut in investment value, meaning that not all of them would have an increase in value after retirement. For these sets, other than the Minifigures, the Vehicle included in the Set must be considered. Popular or significant vehicles would definitely appreciate more than others.

Large sets are the really expensive sets in every Star Wars line. These sets typically have a much larger build, with 3-4 more mini figures than smaller sets, and can either feature a large vehicle such as the Star Destroyer or a set-piece such as Mos Eisley Cantina. These sets are the riskiest investments, but also promise the highest returns due to the large amount of capital needed per set, and also because of their volatility, with the popularity of the build being the most important factor determining profit or loss.

How popular is the Set?

Every set has its own unique points, whether it being a new ship or an improved build. The problem with the Star Wars line of LEGO, is that many of the sets we have on the market today, are mostly remakes of previous sets, meaning there really aren’t any more “Original” builds anymore. Because of this situation, the popularity of a set has become all the more important, and having knowledge of the actual movies themselves would definitely help. As a general rule, the Original Trilogy (Episodes 4,5 and 6) sets were much more popular with collectors than prequel trilogy or Clone Wars sets, a Millennium Falcon set would almost definitely outsell any other sets with the same release date and price point.

So, there you have it, those are my 3 criteria that I use when buying LEGO sets for investment. Please leave a comment below if you have anything that you would like to add, and what you would like to see in my subsequent posts!

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Also do check out brickpicker.com for more info on Brick-vesting! This website is awesome, and is a great resource for all LEGO Collectors!