Thoughts on over-valuing pins while trading?

[Girugamesh]

Hello there,

Just wanted to gather some opinions about if it is right for a trader to trade away a pin at a higher value than what most would agree on because that trader traded for that pin at that higher value.
Is it wrong that the trader simply wants to get back the same value he/she traded away even though it constantly sells for at least 20 dollars less? Is that considered sharking (taking advantage of other traders)?

In my opinion, I think that the trader has a right to value their pin what they want because they gave up more for it and other personal reasons, such as that trader sees more potential in the pin's value than what people would currently buy it for. I don't think the trader is taking advantage of another trader if he/she trades it at that higher value as long as the person they are trading it to personally values it the same, or sees the same potential value.

Don't know if anyone else has questioned this as well but if you have or you are now wondering, leave your thoughts below. Thanks!

 

[Kiragigi]

You totally have the right to value your pins at whatever you want. But you have to recognize you will likely not be trading that pin anytime soon. If the market values my house at $300,000 but I paid $500,000 for it 4 years ago that information is irrelevant to a potential buyer. They are only looking at what it's worth at the time they are buying (or trading).

Personally, I would love to get away from pin dollar values. I prefer to trade very intuitively-- looking at the pin's origin, LE size, age, popularity of character... all that info is right there on the pin. I don't have to be constantly checking ebay to make sure I'm getting a good "deal." That's how trading used to be, and I much preferred it that way. Nowadays I feel like 90% of the time I am trying to trade pins I'm entering into a used car negotiation. That is so NOT fun.

 

[AvatarAng1]

I can tell you from experience, that when someone in person whips out their phone and starts looking at eBay I don't trade with them. I haven't been trading that long yet, but I have a list of traders I will avoid like the plague at Disneyland. If you bought a pin at cost, don't try and trade for what EBay sellers are making it go for. If you bought the pin above cost, or it's older or sentimental to you, I can understand you maybe wanting a little more for your Pin. I personally also trade more from my pins if someone has a Lion King that I don't have, just as a way of saying "thanks" to the person who gave it to me. Also when people start throwing around "values" and "cost" is sounds more like a business transaction than a pin trade, and that's who is sucking fun out of my new hobby.



So yes, everyone has a "right" to value their pins at whatever they want. Just don't expect people to trade with you if you're a jerk about it.


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[Girugamesh]

You totally have the right to value your pins at whatever you want. But you have to recognize you will likely not be trading that pin anytime soon. If the market values my house at $300,000 but I paid $500,000 for it 4 years ago that information is irrelevant to a potential buyer. They are only looking at what it's worth at the time they are buying (or trading).

Personally, I would love to get away from pin dollar values. I prefer to trade very intuitively-- looking at the pin's origin, LE size, age, popularity of character... all that info is right there on the pin. I don't have to be constantly checking ebay to make sure I'm getting a good "deal." That's how trading used to be, and I much preferred it that way. Nowadays I feel like 90% of the time I am trying to trade pins I'm entering into a used car negotiation. That is so NOT fun.

I agree. Values were not the most important thing when I first started pin trading and definitely miss that. Now it's difficult to disregard values because most new traders go by it. I would love to purely go off the rarity, personal attachment, and LE size of the pin as I did before but I know that doing that now could get me stuck trying to trade a pin that isn't worth much away. How can we make everyone go back to the old style?

 

[AvatarAng1]

Personally, I would love to get away from pin dollar values. I prefer to trade very intuitively-- looking at the pin's origin, LE size, age, popularity of character... all that info is right there on the pin. I don't have to be constantly checking ebay to make sure I'm getting a good "deal." That's how trading used to be, and I much preferred it that way.

That's an awesome way to value your pins while trading! I wish more people did it that way. :3

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[Tbird]

I agree with Vicky, people can value their pins at whatever they want to but I hate it when people are using ebay values, that takes the fun out of trading. If the edition sizes are close and the original prices are close and both people value the pins the same then why not trade, who cares what people are selling them for on ebay.
BTW Vicky, the pin that you want of mine that you pm'd about I would sell it to you. It's going for $800 on ebay but for you I'll sell it for $700. JK...lol. I'm looking at it now and will let you know. :rofl:

 

[Girugamesh]

I can tell you from experience, that when someone in person whips out their phone and starts looking at eBay I don't trade with them. I haven't been trading that long yet, but I have a list of traders I will avoid like the plague at Disneyland. If you bought a pin at cost, don't try and trade for what EBay sellers are making it go for. If you bought the pin above cost, or it's older or sentimental to you, I can understand you maybe wanting a little more for your Pin. I personally also trade more from my pins if someone has a Lion King that I don't have, just as a way of saying "thanks" to the person who gave it to me. Also when people start throwing around "values" and "cost" is sounds more like a business transaction than a pin trade, and that's who is sucking fun out of my new hobby.



So yes, everyone has a "right" to value their pins at whatever they want. Just don't expect people to trade with you if you're a jerk about it.


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I remember the rudest thing to do when I started trading was to pull out your phone. I've seen traders walk away. Personally, I only pull out my phone after I ask the trader if it's okay with them and most of the time, to find out where the pin comes from. If I'm not comfortable with the trade, I pass! There definitely are people who are jerks about it. If a person asks me what I value an over-valued pin, I explain to them the sentimental attachment I have to it. Still, some feel insulted after I explain the reasoning which just confirms to me that the trader takes values too serioisly.. Most of the time sentimental pins aren't in my common trader book.
Values are making the hobby stessful for me and lately have been debating sticking to open edition trading and only busting out LE pins to trade for my collection.

 

[Girugamesh]

I agree with Vicky, people can value their pins at whatever they want to but I hate it when people are using ebay values, that takes the fun out of trading. If the edition sizes are close and the original prices are close and both people value the pins the same then why not trade, who cares what people are selling them for on ebay.

simply well put!!

 

[AvatarAng1]

I remember the rudest thing to do when I started trading was to pull out your phone. I've seen traders walk away. Personally, I only pull out my phone after I ask the trader if it's okay with them and most of the time, to find out where the pin comes from. If I'm not comfortable with the trade, I pass! There definitely are people who are jerks about it. If a person asks me what I value an over-valued pin, I explain to them the sentimental attachment I have to it. Still, some feel insulted after I explain the reasoning which just confirms to me that the trader takes values too serioisly.. Most of the time sentimental pins aren't in my common trader book.
Values are making the hobby stessful for me and lately have been debating sticking to open edition trading and only busting out LE pins to trade for my collection.

I have absolutely no problem with people looking at pin pics, it's a great way to compare wants/trades, see the origin, LE size, suspected scrapper, etc. I've never taken out my phone to look up a pin, because I trust people to much for my own good lol. Maybe I should consider to start asking if it's ok to take out my phone, and looking up pins.

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[Kiragigi]

I think we need to start a Retro-trading pin group! There are lots of us who feel this way but get caught up in the: well everyone else trades that way....

when my seven year old wants to play with the iPad, a lot of times I say: no, it's time that you play with your analog toys (barbies, stuffed animals, etc). Perhaps we can call it The Analog Pin Trading Group?

 

[Chusaurus]

Hmmm. I recently came across this situation with a trader who valued their Ariel pin where she bought it. She bought it at $200, when the value had plummeted in the last three years to $85-$100. While I felt bad for her, I had always valued it at the steady price. So, my personal value for the pin superseded her value, and the trade didn't go through. It didn't help that they tried to trade two WDI LE 250 pins for their one Auction LE 300. I find the only reason people value their pins high is for one of three reasons: they bought it that high, they're a shark, or it has sentimental value.

I go off many different factors when trading, and if someone brings ebay values into it, I'm going to take them into account as well. My lesson learned from this is don't buy pins that high as an investment. Make sure that you're buying the pin for you, because you never know when the pin market is going to plummet.

 

[Girugamesh]

I think we need to start a Retro-trading pin group! There are lots of us who feel this way but get caught up in the: well everyone else trades that way....

when my seven year old wants to play with the iPad, a lot of times I say: no, it's time that you play with your analog toys (barbies, stuffed animals, etc). Perhaps we can call it The Analog Pin Trading Group?

Hahah yes!! The Analog Pin trading group! I'm for it

 

[Girugamesh]

Hmmm. I recently came across this situation with a trader who valued their Ariel pin where she bought it. She bought it at $200, when the value had plummeted in the last three years to $85-$100. While I felt bad for her, I had always valued it at the steady price. So, my personal value for the pin superseded her value, and the trade didn't go through. It didn't help that they tried to trade two WDI LE 250 pins for their one Auction LE 300. I find the only reason people value their pins high is for one of three reasons: they bought it that high, they're a shark, or it has sentimental value.

I go off many different factors when trading, and if someone brings ebay values into it, I'm going to take them into account as well. My lesson learned from this is don't buy pins that high as an investment. Make sure that you're buying the pin for you, because you never know when the pin market is going to plummet.

Yes, always make sure you're buying the pin for you! Especially if you're going to drop a high amount on it.
I do have to acknowledge that pins are selling for lower than usual ever since values have become the focal point while trading. To me, it is a good time to buy keepers but a hard time for those who want to trade off ebay values and have bought their traders for much more than they have recently sold for..

 

[AshleyV]

I usually use eBay prices if I'm trading for extra traders (used to go just by LE and popularity, but a lot of pin traders I've come across have preferred going by $$ value). If it's something for my collection, or if I'm trading with someone I trust or someone who also wants to add to their collection, I'll try to trade in their favor.

 

[AvatarAng1]

Yes, always make sure you're buying the pin for you! Especially if you're going to drop a high amount on it.
I do have to acknowledge that pins are selling for lower than usual ever since values have become the focal point while trading. To me, it is a good time to buy keepers but a hard time for those who want to trade off ebay values and have bought their traders for much more than they have recently sold for..

The most I've ever paid for a trader is $30 or at cost. The most I've ever spent on a pin is 85, just because it was an awesome Lion King pin and I couldn't help myself. :3 I can't understand paying 200+ dollars for a good trader lol

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[AvatarAng1]

I think we need to start a Retro-trading pin group! There are lots of us who feel this way but get caught up in the: well everyone else trades that way....

when my seven year old wants to play with the iPad, a lot of times I say: no, it's time that you play with your analog toys (barbies, stuffed animals, etc). Perhaps we can call it The Analog Pin Trading Group?

You need to start that thread it sounds awesome! XD

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[starry_solo]

Lately, what I have seen for traders, is that for a sales price, they value it at the current selling price but for a trade, it is valued at 1.5 to 2x that value. Not sure why, but that seems to be the way the trend is going right now.

 

[Chusaurus]

Lately, what I have seen for traders, is that for a sales price, they value it at the current selling price but for a trade, it is valued at 1.5 to 2x that value. Not sure why, but that seems to be the way the trend is going right now.

I actually don't think anyone understands what they're doing when they go by that. If you're valuing your $50 pin at $75, that means I can do the same. It just cancels everything out.

 

[Girugamesh]

Lately, what I have seen for traders, is that for a sales price, they value it at the current selling price but for a trade, it is valued at 1.5 to 2x that value. Not sure why, but that seems to be the way the trend is going right now.

That's so strange...I could understand if maybe it was a rare low edition size pin that recently sold for a major steal, then the value can be bumped. But for every trader? naa

 

[jadeites-lady]

That's so strange...I could understand if maybe it was a rare low edition size pin that recently sold for a major steal, then the value can be bumped. But for every trader? naa

I saw it myself at the Pin Trading Event this Saturday. I wanted a LGM pin that the trader told me he valued at $50. But when it came time to trade, he valued it at $100.

 

[Girugamesh]

I saw it myself at the Pin Trading Event this Saturday. I wanted a LGM pin that the trader told me he valued at $50. But when it came time to trade, he valued it at $100.

That's even more strange that this was all to your face. One second, it's 50 and then the other, it's 100. How rude!!

 

[Malefipins]

Personally, I would love to get away from pin dollar values. I prefer to trade very intuitively-- looking at the pin's origin, LE size, age, popularity of character... all that info is right there on the pin. I don't have to be constantly checking ebay to make sure I'm getting a good "deal." That's how trading used to be, and I much preferred it that way. Nowadays I feel like 90% of the time I am trying to trade pins I'm entering into a used car negotiation. That is so NOT fun.

That's how my cousin and I trade with each other .. or when I trade with japanese people. It's not how it is when I trade with some people on the west coast where I once had a guy tell me that I was $2 short from the value of his pin.

 

[Hunterofspoons]

I think its important to go off of supply and demand. For example, just because you paid 300 dollars on a Fox and the Hound pin, doesn't mean a lot of people will want it. Market values always change, so I think its important to keep an eye on these things to value a pin, but again, if not a lot of people are searching for it, then we have to adjust accordingly. Its a good way to keep each other accountable too, so were not scamming others or ourselves. And I think its both a mixture of Getting the most of your money, while still seeing this as a profitable hobby if you decide to cease and desist in the future.

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[Piglet]

It definitely depends on who you're trading with. I personally don't like to look at the eBay values. I haven't been trading for a long time and it did take some time for me to figure out what felt good to me. With a lot of pin friends from Japan and HKDL we just trade pretty straight forward: LE for LE, 2 OE for 1 LE, OE for OE. I have also done a good few trades like that in Disneyland Paris, it's very fun like that! For pins that are rarer there are other deals of course: I would not expect anyone to trade a hard to find WDI LE pin for 2 OE pins. But even then I wouldn't be counting values to make sure the $'s measure up exactly. I also try and look at PinPics for popularity of pins to help a little with the guidance on whether it would be fair or not.

I once traded a high value Disney Auctions pin for lower value (when judging by resale prices, that is) LE pins that I genuinely wanted for my own collection, during a trading night in DLP. It made me so happy to get those pins, and I knew the other trader was also very happy with her rare Disney Auctions pin. And that's the only thing that matters in the end!

 

[froggerway]

A trader has every right to value a pin for whatever they want. HOWEVER, a trader quickly sounds like the most unapproachable person in the world when they share this thought process without being asked. For the love of all that is and then some, just decline! Or make a counteroffer. But if you start rambling off past Ebay auction prices or personal views, then you need to get far away from me becaue I will tell you exactly what I think of said opinion. :rant:

It's one thing if asked for a reason, it's a whole different can of worms if a trader's "experince opinion" is thrown directly in my face. LOL, every single trader unfortunately knows at least one of these types and more likely they know ten to twenty of this type.

Bottom line is, feel free to value pins at your heart's content! Does that make you a shark? Depends on the crowd. But if you start overvaluing all of your pins, eventually no one will trade with you and you earn a bad reputation.