Financial Samurai
Slicing Through Money's Mysteries
Updated: by 45 Comments
From the guy who told you to buy heartland real estate in 2016, I’ve got another long-term investment idea I think you should consider. Investing in rare books and various types of memorabilia with autographs. Not only can investing in collectibles be lucrative, but it’s also a ton of fun as well.
For example, I have been a collector of rare Chinese coins since I studied abroad in China in 1997. In fact, there’s a possibility the rare Chinese coins I purchased in 1997 are now worth big bucks!
Back in 1997, I was a foreign exchange student in China. The country was just opening up and I had a fascination with the warring states period between 475-221 BC and the various dynasties.
As a result, I bought all the rarest coins I could find. Initially, some of them were fakes. But over several months of intense research and discussion, I began to recognize the real coins from the fake ones. Now, I have a full booklet full of rare coins from every dynasty and every warring states period.
And one of the reasons why I believe my Chinese coin collection could be worth a lot is because I saw several of my most prized pieces at the British Museum in London in 2016! You don’t put common goods in museums behind bullet-proof glass. Six years later, they are surely worth more.
The reason why I enjoy investing in collectibles is that they are tangible objects that can be enjoyed. It’s the same thing with investing in real estate. If you can enjoy your investment and then sell it for a potential profit years down the road, that’s a huge win.
During my Chinese coin collecting phase, I purchased books to learn about Chinese coins and their history. I spoke to other collectors and dealers to gain more insights as well. Then I methodically went to build my collection for every dynasty. It was so much fun! And now, for them to be worth a small fortune feels even better.
I used to collect fine watches as well. Watches such as the stainless steel Rolex Daytona can sell for large markups because they are hard to come by. You need to be a long-time purchaser of watches for dealers to even offer you the opportunity to buy. But investing in luxury watches has a high hurdle rate in the tens of thousands. Therefore, I stopped.
However, investing in other collectibles, such as rare books, rare comics, and shoes has a much lower hurdle rate. Given I spent more than two years of my life writing my new book, Buy This, Not That: How To Spend Your Way To Wealth And Freedom, I had a realization that could be lucrative for collectors.
For the most part, the pandemic has been terrible. But there are silver linings, such as being able to work from home and spend more time with family.
The pandemic has also boosted the intrinsic value of real estate, probably forever, since we’re all spending more time at home. In other words, the real estate demand curve has shifted up.
Before the pandemic began, foreigners were purchasing roughly $100 billion in U.S. real estate each year. Given the pandemic has lasted for over two-and-a-half years, there could be at least $250 billion worth of pent-up demand for U.S. real estate once the pandemic is over. Foreigners will be gobbling up U.S. real estate once borders fully open once again.
Hence, a logical conclusion is to buy up as much coastal city real estate before foreigners do. In fact, Bloomberg recently reported the return of foreign buyers of U.S. real estate to the tune of $59 billion in the 12 months through March 2022. The amount is likely to accelerate in the future.
But here’s another realization. The pandemic has also throttled in-person events since 2020.
One of the most fun things collectors used to do was go to trade shows. Going to card shows, stamp shows, book shows, and so forth pre-pandemic was so much fun! I once went to Comicon and was able to collect all the He-Man figures I owned from the 1980s. So sweet!
At these conventions, you could meet your favorite sports figures, authors, and actors. You could also pay a pretty penny for signed pictures and books if you were a super fan. I remember there were 80-person lines for the three actors who turned out from a Star Trek TV show.
Given the law of basic supply and demand, the value of collectibles with signatures should now be much higher. Given the pandemic reduced in-person events, it also reduced the supply of collectibles with autographs!
And what are the types of collectibles that are not damaged by autographs, but actually enhanced by autographs? Books, comic books, pictures, and sports memorabilia!
Take my situation for example. If COVID didn’t exist, I would probably do 15 in-person book-signing events in San Francisco, Berkeley, Los Angeles, New York City, Honolulu, Washington, DC, and Williamsburg. I have family in New York City and Honolulu. Meanwhile, I haven’t returned to Williamsburg, Virginia, the city of my alma mater, William & Mary, in almost 10 years.
At each event, I would probably have signed between 50 – 200 copies of Buy This, Not That. As a result, there would be between 750 – 3,000 signed copies of my book. But because I plan to do zero in-person events due to COVID and having two young kids, there will be much fewer signed copies. So far, I’ve only sent out ten signed copies to folks who have gone above and beyond to help me market my book.
Personally, I’m on the hunt for collectible books with autographs. I will build my collection over time from authors I really appreciate. And in 30 years, I will pass on my rare book collection with signatures to my children.
I’m a big fan of enjoying my investments. Therefore, I plan to not only collect rare books with signatures but also carefully read them as well.
In fact, I might buy two versions of each book.
The first version won’t have a signature and will be less expensive so I can read it without fear of damaging it. The second version will have a signature and will be sealed in a hermetically sealed plastic bag so its condition will stay pristine for decades.
I’m going to start small and work my way up with my book collecting.
For example, I’m going to look for promising new authors who are coming out with new books. Because a new author is a relative unknown, they’ll probably have some signed books readily available at bookstores. They might even directly send you a signed book if you pay them.
The investment cost for a signed new author’s book will simply be the retail cost of the book. An insignificant amount. However, the upside from your investment could be massive. Because not only are you entertained or enriched by the contents of the book, the book itself could end up being worth more in the future.
First of all, we will only buy a book if we believe the value we receive will be equal to or worth more than the cost of the book. Adding more value is one of the reasons why I decided to include 110,000 words in Buy This, Not That, instead of the suggested 80,000 words. If the book was going to cost $25 – $29 anyway, I wanted to provide 38% more pages of advice!
However, few people think BEYOND the retail price of the book. Because few people are collectors with an investor’s mindset. The signed book you buy at retail might end up being worth 100 times more if the author becomes a bestselling author and does something significant. Heck, in some cases, it might be worth 1,000 more.
The other great thing about investing in signed books by first-time authors is the higher value associated with first-edition books.
Let’s say you read The Catcher In The Rye by J.D. Salinger in 1952 when it first came out. You thought the book to be brilliant for the relatively unknown author. You decided to purchase a signed copy for $3. Instead of storing it in a protective bag, you let the book sit on your shelf for the next 70 years. How much would it be worth?
By one online marketplace, the book could be worth $55,000! That’s a nice 18,333% return on your $3!
And if the book was in pristine condition, even without a signature, the book may command a sale price of $65,000. Now imagine how much a pristine book with a signature would be worth? I would say in the hundreds of thousands of dollars!
In my mind, if you can identify a promising writer who is going places, it is a no-brainer to at least buy two copies of their book and try and get a signature. You will know the book is going places if you read it, have good taste, and love it. You can also catch the book on the upswing if it hits one of the bestsellers lists.
The cost of the book is already covered by the joy you experience by reading the book. But to then have the optionality of the book becoming a multi-bagger investment is very enticing.
As a first-time traditionally published book author myself, I ended up learning a lot about the book publishing process.
My wife and I spent around 40 hours editing and re-editing Buy This, Not That over five final revisions. Each time the book was revised by a Penguin Random House content editor, we had to re-read the book to make changes. Then we’d send the book back to the copy editors, who would then spend hours editing the book for grammar and technical issues before sending the book back for our review.
After multiple “passes,” the book goes to final editing. A typesetter then makes sure the book’s content fits appropriately on the hardcover pages.
All told, over 100 hours by seven people went into editing Buy This, Not That before it went to the printing presses. You would think the book would be perfect right?
Wrong!
One of the reasons why first-edition hard copy books are the most coveted books by collectors is due to ERRORS!
After 40 hours of editing, my wife and I felt great submitting the final version. I was told after submission, I was no longer able to make any changes. I was fine with this because the book was as perfect as it could be.
Then one day in the hot tub, I decided to re-read my book. The version of my book I was re-reading was the one Penguin’s PR team was sending out to the media for review. And to my surprise, in this final version, I found four spelling errors of the same word! What the heck?
I reached out to my editors and PR and asked if this PR version was hopefully not the final version. My wife and I wife looked at the final version we sent the copy editors. It didn’t have this obvious spelling error at all.
Unfortunately, or fortunately, the final first edition of Buy This, Not That will contain this annoying spelling error! It turns out, that someone ended up retyping the four subtitles to capitalize the first letter of each word. In the process, the person proceeded to spell a word wrong multiple times. I won’t tell you what it is to not ruin the surprise.
Thankfully, the reader will still be able to understand the meaning of the sentences despite the typo. It just makes me look careless for those who don’t read this post.
There may also be other errors in the first-edition of my book I’m not aware of. Like opening a pack of Topps cards, you might discover a book has an off-centered cover. Who knows! But what I do know is that finding misprints in books is like an exciting treasure hunt that could yield a large fortune.
The reason why errors in collectible items are valuable for collectors is once again due to supply.
Errors will be corrected in future editions of books, thereby making those first-edition books with errors limited in supply. The more limited the supply of books with errors, the more valuable the books may be in the future!
Let’s take a look at the example of how valuable a stamp error could be.
The Inverted Jenny (also known as an Upside Down Jenny, Jenny Invert) is a 24-cent United States postage stamp first issued on May 10, 1918, in which the image of the Curtiss JN-4 airplane in the center of the design is printed upside-down. Only one pane of 100 of the invert stamps was ever found, making this error one of the most prized in philately.
A single Inverted Jenny was sold at a Robert A. Siegel auction in November 2007 for $977,500. A block of four Inverted Jennys was sold at a Robert A. Siegel auction in October 2005 for $2,700,000.
On May 31, 2016, a particularly well-centered Jenny invert, graded XF-superb 95 by Professional Stamp Experts, was sold at a Siegel Auction for a hammer price of $1,175,000. The addition of a 15% buyer’s premium raised the total record high price paid for this copy to $1,351,250.
Then on 15 November 2018, the recently discovered position number 49 stamp was auctioned by Robert A. Siegel Auction Galleries for a new record hammer price of $1,350,000, with an 18 percent buyer’s premium raising the total cost to US$1,593,000.
For a collector’s item that only cost 24 cents, a $1+ million return is pretty damn good! Look out for errors in your collectibles.
The reason why a Stainless Steel Rolex Daytona watch can sell for a large premium over retail is partly due to Rolex limiting the supply of the watch. Rolex could easily produce more if it wanted to. But that would take away from the value of the watch and its brand.
Personally, I don’t plan to sign more than 100 first-edition hard copies of Buy This, Not That. Part of the reason is that I can’t get my hands on that many copies. As part of my book deal contract, I only received 24 hardcopies to keep and give away to friends and family.
If I wanted to sign 100 copies of Buy This, Not That, I would have to go to bookstores, show my ID, and ask if I’m allowed to sign. Meanwhile, each bookstore might only have a couple of copies each. And like I said earlier, I don’t plan to host in-person book-signing events until COVID dies down.
Besides, virtual talks are so much more efficient and have much larger turnouts. My talks with Google and Yelp had about 500 people sign up each.
If the book ends up selling 15,000 copies over a 12-month period, that would mean only 0.67% of first-edition signed copies of Buy This, Not That will ever be available in its existence.
Because after 15,000 copies are sold, Portfolio Penguin will issue the second edition. The second edition fixes any apparent errors and updates with new figures if necessary.
If BTNT goes on to be a big hit, then the value of a first-edition and first-edition signed copy of Buy This, Not That will go up.
For example, let’s say Buy This, Not That sells 1 million copies. That would mean only 1.5% of books in circulation will be first editions. And only 0.01% of all books will have signatures. As time goes on, these books will be lost, sadly thrown away, or destroyed, making this first-edition copy all the more rare.
If you are a collector, just make sure you try to keep the book in as pristine condition as possible. The value of a book is logarithmic based on every increased level of its condition.
Upon release, Buy This, Not That became an instant Wall Street Journal bestseller. My book will be reprinted with a new cover with emblem within the next six months. As a result, the first edition and signed first editions with stamps will be even more rare!
For a limited time, if you purchase at least 10 hardcopies on Amazon and leave a fantastic 5-star review, I’ll send you a signed and stamped special edition hard copy. Just e-mail me at sales AT financialsamurai DOT com with your receipt.
I’m excited about starting my own signed rare book collection and putting out a rare signed book myself. Maybe I’ll even create a secret signed version of BTNT where only five in the world will ever exist.
Readers, anybody else a collector of rare books and other memorabilia with autographs? If so, what are some of the collectibles you’re looking at now? What do you think is the next big investment is?
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Filed Under: Investments
Author Bio: I started Financial Samurai in 2009 to help people achieve financial freedom sooner. Financial Samurai is now one of the largest independently run personal finance sites with about one million visitors a month.
I spent 13 years working at Goldman Sachs and Credit Suisse. In 1999, I earned my BA from William & Mary and in 2006, I received my MBA from UC Berkeley.
In 2012, I left banking after negotiating a severance package worth over five years of living expenses. Today, I enjoy being a stay-at-home dad to two young children, playing tennis, and writing.
Order a hardcopy of my new WSJ bestselling book, Buy This, Not That: How To Spend Your Way To Wealth And Freedom. Not only will you build more wealth by reading my book, you’ll also make better choices when faced with some of life’s biggest decisions.
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Oh, Sam! I wish I would have read this article before taking the cherished book with me on vacation! It’s still in great shape but not pristine! Thank you for the delightful surprise as you are someone I truly admire.
No matter how many of your articles I’ve read, you always share interesting facts that I probably would not have discovered on my own.
I’m taking my time reading the book since I’m evaluating my decisions and finances against the Financial Samurai Way. I’ve made great progress since discovering FS but there’s still room for improvement. I love the detail you put into your blog and know that I can always go back and reread but I like that the book covers the major life decisions. It’s more focused which is better for someone like me who sometimes wants to just do it all. The book helps me to evaluate what applies to me now, at this point in my life where my values, income and assets look different. The book is a good reference to keep going back to throughout life. My nephews, nieces, and godchildren are still very young but I’ve already purchased their copy of BTNT to gift to them upon graduating high school. 🙂
I’ll let you know of all the typos I’ve found once I finish the book — already have one that you haven’t mentioned above yet. There wasn’t any need for me to finish the book before completing an Amazon review though. People just need to hear about how good your writing is!!!
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Nice to hear from you! Are you back from your vacation? You should’ve received some thing extra in the mail. But maybe I sent it to the wrong address! Thanks for leaving a review and I look forward to getting some corrections to update for the second edition!
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I just checked my mail and did receive the bookplates. They’ll be such a nice touch when I gift the books. Thanks!
says
Oh nice! I think you should have received something else though. Hmmm.
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I saw a special on TV once about the guy who got busted for faking autographs. Mostly baseball signatures… the moral was that a lot of the sports memorabilia is fake. So unless I get the signature in person its hard to trust even with a certificate of authenticity. Like you mentioned with the Chinese coins you may be buying a fake. Anytime things start being mass produced and flood the market ie: baseball cards later 80’s early 90’s, Beanie babies, etc. then the value goes way down. You just have to collect what you love. I collect lapel pins from everywhere I travel. Not much value in them by themelves, but I probably have over 1000 of them at about $5 a piece retail. As a whole idk if anyone would buy them. So really depends on what you collect.
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Hello Sam, I believe I meet your criteria but the only person I have ever sent this link and all your others I have read is to my dad. He has always been my greatest motivator toward frugality and it is fascinating how much you write reflects the way he just naturally lives. So thank you for helping us get together over your articles as it is odd but enjoyable for the both of us!
my favorite article is the first I ever read years ago which is how I found out about Financial Samurai is The 1/10th Rule For Car Buying Everyone Must Follow
This article was huge for me because I was about to make a really stupid decision on a truck and I truly believed it helped me get to where I am today. it was this article that made me stop and look around and realize how terrible people are screwing their financial picture up over a car. I don’t live in a coastal large city but instead live in a small town in Florida of under 10,000 so Ive always appreciated reading from the other perspective. I am unsure for the coastal city residents but here in small towns people are crippled by the obsession over a nice new truck/suv(Me as well before FS) and they will happily miss a rent payment or overdraft their account just to keep up the $1,000 note and insurance payments. For small towns like I am in incomes are not what they are in SF and so people lose so much to a vehicle that usually ends up as just a burden with all the excitement from the original purchase gone. After this article I looked at my 300,000 mile truck with pride and my wife and I decided to focus on real estate and we now have two rentals and a gorgeous home we just moved into today! I know it wasn’t just this article that got my wife and I where we are but like I said it was a huge turning point that got us on a path of good financial choices so again it is a no brainer my favorite FS article.
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I started collecting ancient Roman and Greek coins. Bronze and copper are surprisingly cheap and its alot of fun. Of course the real value is in rare silver and gold coins.
I want to collect books but Im afraid I wont store them well. Was at Powells in Portland in their top floor and some rare books caught my eye.
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Hey Sam – Is the limit for being an accredited investor $200k or $250k annually? Your book reads $250k, but I thought for sure it was $200k.
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The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) defines an accredited investor as someone who meets one of following three requirements: Income: Has an annual income of at least $200,000, or $300,000 if combined with a spouse’s income. This level of income should be sustained from year to year.
I should clarify in the second edition! The reality is, expect the figures to change/go up over time, or potentially be abolished altogether. There’s been a lot of debate of what it is to be an accredited investor and whether it’s fair or matters.
Further, after investing in private investments since 2003, I have yet to ever prove my income or net worth before being allowed to invest.
Good catch!
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Thanks for this opportunity! It would be a dream to win a signed copy! I missed the original deadline cause I was busy reading BTNT on this lovely Saturday night from 10pm to 2am PT. I would still love to enter in case you decide to extend the contest by another 24 hours!
1. I am a newsletter subscriber
2. Purchased 1 hard-copy from Amazon
3. Shared via WeChat, IG (in the form of a IG story) and email to friends and family
4. Donated to charity and volunteered annually since 2015 to review scholarship applications and interview scholarship candidates for a foundation. Number of volunteer hours each year exceeds 10 hours
5. your favorite Financial Samurai article and why:
“Why It’s Better To Pay A Small Mortgage Fee Than Get A Large Credit”
I am going through a refinance and found this article to be very helpful. I never clearly understood how the large credits worked but after reading this article, I had a much better idea. I was surprised to learn that the excess credit stays with the lender. It is my favorite article because it prevented me from blindly going with a refi option that provided a large credit. Even my loan officer did not explain to the dot. At the time, without understanding fully, I thought the large credit was enticing.
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Hi Sam,
J&A here again. We left a comment on your previous post, as well a as 5-star review on Amazon before you published this post!
We love your blog and recommend it to many colleagues in our field. And no matter the outcome of this book draw, we will continue to love and support your blog. My wife and I both come from humble origins, with my dad being a janitor and my wife being an immigrant from India, and so we love how you speak from experience and we love your grit!
My wife and I meet your criteria. One of my volunteer gigs is actually teaching junior physicians on personal finance, and I referenced your blog during my presentation in February this year! For my wife’s volunteer work, she has volunteered with the Canadian National institute for the blind. Although in full disclosure she has not done this in 2022 after we moved.
I could speak at length to each of your five points which you have requested but we’ll just touch on a few.
The topic of disability in particular is one very very close to my heart. My mother was in a massive motor vehicle accident as a teenager, and actually spent about 15 years in institutionalized care before meeting my father, getting married, and going on to raise four children with my Dad. She has a significant brain injury and has been in a wheelchair ever since her accident. A remarkable story and, as you can imagine, a phenomenal role model.
I think much of the progress in acceptance of disability is simply remembering that a person with a disability is a person first, with many, many remaining abilities. Too often, disability (especially highly visible disability) is seen as the core component to identify, when the disabled person wants nothing more than to be treated as others. I would see this often in restaurants, when servers would address my father when asking about my mother’s order. I think much of the sometimes unfortunate treatment towards people with disabilities stems from ignorance and a lack of familiarity. Having high visibility disabled people like Rick Hansen helps counter this.
Favorite financial Samurai post was actually an oldie on how profitable blogs are. It was so impactful that I actually recently started a blog of my own. Who knows, if it is a smashing success, I may even share it here in the comment section in a few years. But Sam, you were the original inspiration for this and for that I am again so thankful.
I’ll stop here because it’s 10 minutes to deadline submission and I made my wife drive back early from our hike today with our little one so that I could write this comment and throw my hat in the ring for the book draw.
Thank you again for all that you do.
J&A.
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Thanks for this post. Is your unique book stamp a “chop”? My college boyfriend gave me one as a gift with my name made into Chinese characters. I always thought that was a clever gift for someone who loves cultures and languages.
My favorite post of yours discusses the virtues of buying real estate in Hawaii! I loved it because Hawaii is beautiful and the thought of wining land there is really a beautiful dream to reflect on and strategize to achieve.
I’m a bookworm and book hoarder and would love a signed copy of your book.
I give time and treasure to lots of charitable endeavors but never feel I can do enough to express my gratitude for all those who have helped me along on my life’s journey. My favorite charity is sponsoring children overseas and sending them letters.
Thank you for your informative and entertaining blog! You make it look easy.
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I got into collectibles over the past year to have a portion of my portfolio that moves “differently” than traditional assets like Stocks, Bonds, RE, etc. Lots of autographed rookie cards of Jordan, Lebron, etc and many other fun things.
I’m also officially entering for one of the 5 signed copies of your book. I’ve met all the other requirements 🙂
***How we can better help those with disabilities receive more opportunities. ***
This one hits home because my daughter has a few significant disabilities and also several health issues. The biggest thing we can do as parents and make them understand from an early age that sometimes a disability can be flipped around and become a superpower if applied the right way (see Temple Grandin). There are so many examples in our society – they can serve as role models in all areas of life.
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Hi Nick, bless your daughter. And thank you for your patience and love for caring for her. Our little ones need as much love as we can possibly give them. And then hopefully one day, they will appreciate it.
And yes! Turning a disability into a super ability is a wonderful plan. And I hope she does just that. Fight on!
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Hi Sam,
Long time reader first time writer! I did complete all the requirements to be entered for the drawing. I’ll share some thoughts on the economy:
As an employee in the retail buying space I have the unique opportunity of seeing pricing action and supply chain constraints in real time. The pandemic has caused immense challenges for manufacturers as they have battled through shortages and bottlenecks. For many there have been rounds of stops and starts leading to extreme uncertainty in product availability. Manufacturers have been quick to take price to try to cover profits. We are now hitting a point where supply chains are healing and inventories are recovering to healthy levels. As this stabilization occurs there are now pockets of excess inventories leading to healthy market pricing dynamics. With this trend playing out I expect to see inflation subside to a normal level and possibly see some pockets of deflation. While transitory inflation didn’t quite play out for the fed, I believe we are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.
Congrats on the book! I look forward to reading it and sharing my feedback!
All the best!
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Thanks Rob! It’s good to hear more anecdotal evidence that inflation has peaked. I’m pretty convinced it has as well once the July data comes out.
says
Sam (or should I refer to you as the Financial Samurai),
Regardless, thank you you for offering this contest, and more importantly publishing “Buy This, Not That”. While I’m sure it brings you much satisfaction, based off your newsletters and the book itself, I feel as if you wrote this book as much (if not more) for us than you. I appreciate your sacrifice, by giving of your time, so that others may follow in your success. With that, I would very much appreciate one of these 5 special copies which, if successful, I’ll be sure to preserve. Who knows, one day it could be worth thousands! Ha!
1. I’m currently and have been a newsletter subscriber for several years now. I look forward to your email every Sunday.
2. I can confirm that I have purchased my hardcopy of “Buy This, Not That” (from Amazon).
3. I’ve shared your book’s landing page on my Facebook profile. Happy to do so. I truly believe my friends will benefit from your guidance.
4. My wife and I tithe weekly to our local church and volunteer there as well. We’ve been doing this regularly for 4+ years now.
5. In respect to better supporting writers, I think our society is somewhat headed in that direction with online contract work (e.g. Upwork and many others). A good friend of mine enjoys fitness/health writing and she wants to quit her day job to do this full-time. She’s well on her way thanks to these sites. I think, on a micro level, we need to simply respect and support these people versus swiftly dismissing their desires. Maybe, like you, it’s a side hustle at first (and likely should be), but it can quickly gain momentum and become something much more if people have the needed support network around them. I also want to touch on my favorite article of yours…or more so interview. Very much enjoyed your recent interview you did with Marie Forleo. As usual, your advice was succinct and down-to-earth. I was not that surprised by your appearance and got a laugh out of your recent newsletter saying that some thought you were a “white guy.” Regardless, well done. And for a kicker — thoughts on the stock market. I say we end the year about where we are now. As noted in your most recent newsletter, most are now prepared for a recession at this point, which will likely make for a “soft landing,” much to the Fed’s pleasure. But only time will tell…
Bonus. My 5 star review is posted on Amazon. Well earned. If you get the chance to take a look, I hope you enjoy my attempt at a witty pun (i.e. “FIRE”)…at least in my opinion.
Typo. Speaking of typos, there’s presently one in the paragraph immediately following the bulleted criteria for entry. Therein, you state that your selection of a winner will occur on “Monday, July 24.” Unless you intend on making us wait a year for results (i.e. 2023), I believe you intended to state “Sunday” or “July 25.” Whenever it ends up being, I very much hope to receive one of these special copies.
Thank you for everything you do, Sam.
To your financial freedom,
David
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Hi David! I just saw your 5-star review pop up on Amazon. Thank you so much!
A great review is really an authors best gift. Thanks again for taking the time to write. It means a lot.
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While the watch market is cooling now, I was lucky enough just under 18 mos ago to purchase a new Vacheron Constantin Overseas Dual Time in the sapphire blue dial. The rep told me I was one of the last 2 people to be able to put down a deposit and order direct from Geneve before they ceased all deposits due to high demand.
Purchase price was $27,500. As of 4 mos ago the watch was trading on Chrono 24 for $60k across the board. I just checked right now and it appears the average is now in the high 40’s to low 50’s used.
While I have no plans to sell, it was rather fun to feel I made a great investment and get a great deal of enjoyment when I wear it.
Now, if only the steel Daytona with ceramic bezel and white dial would come down a bit…
says
Wow! Nice investment! I have a couple white bezel SS Daytonas in mint. Haven’t checked their price recently but they are certainly cheaper than the watch you bought! What’s stopping you from getting one?
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Good call on foreigners coming back to buy United States property since we have outperformed the world. I know a friend who has an au pair who wants to come back to America. But she cannot because the embassy did not grant her visa. The au pair said many of her friends want to move to the U.S. based on the past 2.5 years.
We are regular donors of a foster care center in our neighborhood. I got my hard copy of your book this week and I am enjoying it so far.
I think the S&P 500 will end the year at 3850. And the real estate market will still close up about 6-8% for the year.
Thanks!
says
Very interesting insights from your au pair. Thanks for sharing and participating in the giveaway!
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Thanks for the giveaway! I’ve done all those things. Sadly, I think putting in the criteria one has donated in 2021 and 2022 and already purchased a hardcopy will cut out a lot of people. Most people don’t donate their money or time or support authors.
BUT, lucky for me, I have donated both years, purchased a hardcopy and love to learn and support!
I think by sharing the behind-the-scenes of a creator’s process helps prospective consumers appreciate the process more. Since most people no longer create, they just assume things are easy.
As for the stock market, I think the bottom is in! Inflation is rolling over and the Fed will have to stop short of their expected hikes. But the stock market isn’t going to provide positive returns this year.
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Thanks Derek! I’ve done my Best to bring readers along for the journey. It’s been fun and very rewarding to see everybody send me pics of my book in the wild.
I will always remember the advice of one author to enjoy the journey. And despite all the anxiety and anticipation, I have.
I will do it by best to share the behind the scenes overtime. It’s just a balance of diversifying my topics to keep things interesting. There is so much to say about so many different topics.
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Another (harder) thing to do is predict what thing will one day become collectible. In the early 90s my friends and I were guessing what the next big thing to collect would be. The Death of Superman comic hype was raging at this time. I thought about it for a bit and said “old computers.” Everyone thought that was an odd choice and I pointed out that the reason old comic books are valuable now is that no one thought they had value back in the 40s and 50s. In the 90s, no one thought old computers had value and many were thrown away.
In the age of NFTs (which seem a dubious value proposition at best), it may be harder to play this game but I bet there still classes of objects that will be collectible in the future that no one thinks of that way now.
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I have an Apple II C in pristine condition from 1986 or thereabouts. I gotta check it’s value now. I also have the games like Taipan and Where In The World Is Carmen San Diego. So fun!
You think paying thousands of dollars for a JPEG is dubious? Nah. when my wife wrote about NFTs she kept coming to me and saying, “WTF is this?!” lol
The funny thing is, investing in collectibles is still investing and speculating. Nobody knows what the future holds. But if you don’t ever take a chance, nothing will happen.
says
Fun giveaway Sam, thanks! Hardcover purchased and social shared. My favorite posts are real estate related. I like the 30-30-3 rule and stocks versus real estate.
I used to collect the state quarters and saved a ton of them. I was doing it for fun though not for investment value as I was collecting ones that were in circulation. It was like a treasure hunt though every time I’d pay for my lunch at the deli. Alas I don’t carry much cash anymore and pay by credit card. But I still have the coins.
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Right on! Thank you. My wife had a coin collecting addiction ones with the quarters as well. Every time a new one came out from the mint, she collected it. She had so much fun! And we would often just sift through our coins to see if there were any errors found.
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I think your thesis is spot on! And I doubt authors will try to sign more to make up for not signing as much during the pandemic. The 2 1/2 years will be lost forever, and the value of those sign books definitely should increase because they are more rare.
My favorite post of yours is the average net worth for the above average person. It helped motivate me to save more and invest more. I read it probably a decade ago and now I am well on my way to being a millionaire.
I preordered a copy and have shared your landing page.
Thanks!
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Thanks! I really miss going to conventions with memorabilia. Nostalgia is such a powerful feeling that I would happily buy all the He-man toys, plastic flip toys, and more if I could find them.
Thanks for participating!
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Rare items are rare o my, if there is a demand for them. I see 1000 yr old coins selling selling for a few dollars on various sites. I have 1000 yr old coins, that have very little value to the collectors.
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Nice! Can you send me a link to them? I would be interested in purchasing them. What country are they from?
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The online ones are mostly from Greece or Asia. Mine are from India, I literally found them strewn all the floors of my ancestral home. I’ll send you the online link on your e mail if you promise to look at it, not send an automated message
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Cool. You might want to pick up a rare coin collector book that shows you the value of your coins. That’s what I’ve done with mine and my book is from over 25 years ago. And if you see your coins in one of the great museums of the world, you can ask a curator how rare they are and how much they cost. Their values my surprise you, especially if you see your coin in the museum permanent collection.
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Thanks
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Fulfilled all of the above! Totally makes sense that autographed books will be more valuable given there were way less in person signings since 2020. Smart!
The best way to support our artists and writers is to purchase their work and spread the word. I think we take for granted how much effort goes into making art and writing. Yet, the irony is, those who want everything for free don’t work for free themselves!
So I’ve happily ordered a hardcopy of your book and left a review. Thanks Sam!
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Thank you! If I was just a book author, I would really have a difficult time taking care of my family here in San Francisco. We would have to move in with my parents in Hawaii. It’s really tough to make a living as an author. So I appreciate your support and the support of other authors.
I’ll write a post maybe next month about the difficulties of being an author, even with a large established publisher.
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Saturday, July 23? Or Friday, July 22? 🙂
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July 23 Saturday 9pm PST. 🙂
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Cool stuff man. I collect baseball hats but just for fun not for any collectible value. I also collected shoes for a couple years until I moved and decided to sell them.
For the giveaway – Im a newsletter subscriber, bought 2 hardcover on Amazon, donated to Boys and Girls Club, shared on FB, and my fave posts are 1/10th rule for car buying and stealth wealth. Thanks man!
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I am a shoe addict, specifically for retro Nike shoes that I could not afford growing up. No problem I discovered is that I keep them Christine and in the closet for so long that the glue eventually start wearing off and the shoes start disintegrating. It’s time to wear our collectible shoes!
Thanks for participating!
says
As one who worked putting books on-line for sale for a used book store, I can tell yol it’s not always easy determining whether a book is a first edition or not. Publishers have different standards and practices which can change over time.
Also, autographs can be forged.
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Interesting! Well, for my contest, nobody knows what my autograph is as I haven’t showed it. A mystery! And even if there was a forger, I’ve also got my one and only stamp that is extremely hard to forge due to the style, size, and size and placement. And I might even do something else to the signed books that nobody will know unless they know what’s in my brain.
This is going to be fun!
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Yes and see also “the Aristophil affair” (it’s the Madoffs of the collector’s books) one of the biggest scams of the 21st century for more than 1.2 billion euros and 18,000 people scammed.
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Hello SAM,
Good article, sure the collectibles are of very good investments, personnaly I collect of the contemporain artworks of chinese famous artists. To invest in in the books is complex but interesting (should just to do very becarful and good know the market).
There is of collectibles in the sport or cinema too, each at the choice.
Thank you for your article 😉
Good day, Cy soon.
Steph
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