Many people will find a passion or hobby in collectibles. Those amusing, satisfying, and nostalgic items that makeup baseball card collections, model train sets, and vinyl record collections. While many collectors will successfully put together highly valuable treasure troves, some dedicated hoarders are simply sitting on a small mountain of relatively valueless junk. While it may break someone’s heart to learn that their life’s hobby only has worth to them, sometimes a much-needed yard sale will free a person of their unbeneficial obsessions. It is time to discover whether your collectibles are worthy of an auction, or a charity shop.
Model Train Sets
We start our list off with one of the most widely enjoyed hobbies: model train sets. There are so many different clubs, websites, and organizations filled with many dedicated model train set builders, painters, and general experts. Sadly, while many model trains will be acquired for a large sum of money, their resale value often pales in comparison. There are some people that believe that their prized model train set will sell as much as the Howard Gondola product, which went for $1,175 recently on eBay. In reality, there are so many model train sets being bought both first and second-hand that most are not worthy of a high price. There are countless historical model train sets that will fetch about $100 on a good day.
Model Train Sets
Porcelain Dolls
Whether you find them creepy or cute, porcelain dolls are another kind of collectible that people cannot seem to get enough of. Many people will happily reserve a fine room in their home for the sole storage and presentation of dozens or hundreds of porcelain dolls. While many will collect porcelain dolls for the nostalgia of it all, others believe that they are amassing a profitable hoard. The truth of the average porcelain doll’s individual worth is that most people will not fork out much more than $10 for one, even if it is a vintage piece.
Porcelain Dolls
Baseball Cards
Baseball cards might not be much of a craze in modern times, but for the older folks among us, these were the hottest trading cards in the market, long before Pokémon was a thing. While there are certainly many vintage baseball cards out there of some of the most iconic players in American history, the average player’s likeness will not score a financial home run. Someone like Ken Griffey Jr. and his 1989 card will only fetch about $100, while the card based on Mark McGwire will produce only $10 for the unlucky seller.
Baseball Cards
Pez Dispensers
Most people will remember the excitement of buying a Pez dispenser, those handgun magazine-shaped candy cases that were crowned with a cute character’s head, which when flipped backward would pop a crunchy piece of delicious candy into one’s mouth. Those that have spent many years amassing a huge collection of noteworthy Pez dispensers, like the pictured gentleman, might only be sitting on a total worth that results in a single dollar for each dispenser. There are some famous Pez dispensers, such as the Elvis Presley-themed one, but even they will only fetch around $9.20.
Pez Dispensers
Royal Family Memorabilia
The Royal British family has countless supporters across the world, well beyond the United Kingdom. Some of these fans take their support to incredible heights, decorating their homes with all manner of mementos from historical events such as royal births, weddings, and jubilees. While this kind of patriotism is well-meaning, it does not necessarily mean that the thousands of pounds (or dollars) that one spent on Queen Elizabeth II-themed fine china will be of much interested to collectors and auctioneers. These items are nowhere near as unique as one may think.
Royal Family Memorabilia
Vintage Band T-Shirts
Classic rock ‘n roll shirts have been a craze among youngsters for some time now, much to the ire of sincere superfans, who made a point of honoring their favorite bands by acquiring vintage clothing honoring classic bands like The Eagles and Queen. As for the latter British pop-rock band, a 1978 tour shirt can be bought off eBay for a humble $9.49. Even when classic rock band shirts are decades old, and commemorate incredible concerts, they often do not pique much interest from buyers.
Vintage Band T Shirts
Antique Silverware
Your great-great grandmother’s precious silverware collection, that generations have kept in fabulous, sparkly condition across many decades, could easily only be treasured by the families that it passes through. Silver is objectively a valuable metal, but given how many people are also trying to sell their silverware on sites like eBay, the demand for the sets has been drowned out by the immense supply. An antique store might be the safer and more profitable alternative, but don’t keep your hopes up.
Antique Silverware
Pandora Charms
Pandora Charms became a craze among young and old women alike during the middle of the 2000s, when Pandora cleverly released an intricate and diverse set of charms that could be strung together into colorful and meaningful bracelets and necklaces. Many people spent thousands of dollars creating their personalized sets. Sadly, these charms are a dime a dozen nowadays, and there is just a select bunch of charms that are considered rare after they were discontinued.
Pandora Charms
Beanie Babies
Beanie Babies should be avoided at all costs if you want to make a pretty penny out of a collection. These should only ever be purchased for sentimental or nostalgic means, turning your bedroom into a crazy mess of colorful cuties. That being said, in 1995, people commenced hoarding Beanie Babies when rumors of their potential resale values caused something of a buying spree among collectors. Their investments were well-founded, with eBay seeing plenty of profitable sales in the plush toy department, but this was a short-lived mania.
Beanie Babies
New Comic Books
While there are plenty of vintage and sealed comic books out there that will go for a lot of money for superhero fanatics looking to complete their favorite characters’ stories, the newer editions in the many storylines will not be a wise investment. New comic books will rapidly depreciate in value as soon as you walk out of the comic book shop with them in hand. If you want to make a small fortune out of comic books, consider something like the Detective Comics, where Batman made his initial appearance, which sold for an unprecedented $2.8 million.
New Comic Books
Stamps
Back in the 20th century, people would avidly and carefully collect stamps as an investment for the future. Many decades ago, stamps could not be mass-produced like they are today, and the more notable ones commemorating incredible events in history were deemed worthy. Now that people can easily acquire stamps at a low cost, which are sourced from factories, not many people hold the same value in the sticky squares any longer. Too bad for the older folks among us who dedicated much of their overall free time to the hobby.
Stamps
Pogs
We hate to say it, but only 90s kids will remember Pogs. These colorful discs were attractively designed, featuring all manner of zany cartoon designs and incredible textures. These were not just collectibles but were also part of a game. They were an incredible way to pass the time for kids in the 90s, but in modern times, they are virtually useless for those looking to make bank. You can only hope for about $10 even for the beefiest collections.
Pogs
Newer Star Wars Toys
The epic Star Wars film franchise enjoys one of the most lucrative toy franchises in the world, with its 1970s lines being incredibly valued. Something like an original Luke Skywalker action figure will be highly desirable among the most dedicated space opera aficionados. In today’s day and age, the toy market has been oversaturated by figurines based on characters like The Mandalorian’s lovable ‘Baby Yoda’. Even Star Wars toys from the 1990s and 2000s are not that esteemed.
Newer Star Wars Toys
The Majority of Vinyl Records
Vinyl records are wrongly considered to be relics of the past by youngsters who are used to streaming services like Spotify. It was in 2017 that a “vinyl revival” came to be, when Sony Entertainment began reinjecting vinyl records into the music market. This process built on the successes of a similar revival which began in 2007. Sadly, even those in possession of historical vinyl records from some of the most legendary bands, musicians, and composers of the 20th century will not be able to get much profit out of their fastidious collecting efforts.
The Majority Of Vinyl Records
Barbie Dolls
1959 was the year that the initial Barbie dolls began appearing in toy shops and supermarkets, and the rest is history. Barbie has kept its queenly place at the top of the girl-driven toy market. If your grandmother (or mother) was wise enough to purchase an original Barbie for you as a child, you could be in possession of $25,000’s worth of plastic, provided that the doll remained in its box and is in mint condition. The rest of the Barbie lines will not sell for much, with $10 to $20 being a hopeful resale for most of the feminine dolls that have remained sealed and in a perfect state.
Barbie Dolls
Vintage Playboy Magazines
While you might have had a hard time convincing people that you bought Playboy magazine for the writing, the controversial ‘gentlemen’s magazine’ has held a firm place in popular fiction and magazine enjoyment since 1953. Many notable celebrities appeared in the naughty magazine’s spreads, but only those that were in editions prior to 1970 will have a decent resale value. Playboy is not exactly an obscure magazine, being widely available across the world, even when it comes to the older issues.
Vintage Playboy Magazines
Precious Moments
You might struggle to find a home that does not possess at least a few Precious Moments figurines, which were something of a divine sensation throughout America from 1978 onwards. Although there were many special figurines in the countless lines that were designed and manufactured, their worth only lasted as long as the craze itself, and today people are more interested in other kinds of adorable memorabilia. An online auction site like eBay is crammed with Precious Moments listings.
Precious Moments
Norman Rockwell Collector Plates
Few illustrators and painters in American history are as lauded as Norman Rockwell, whose works of art graved the coves of leading magazines like Post and The Saturday Evening Post, as well as classic novel covers for titles like Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer. These collectors plates hold much sentimental value for American history experts, but their value is purely limited to that. You can buy original plated off Antique Trader for around $10 a pop, which is a huge step down from the original $50 to $75 appraisals of the past.
Norman Rockwell Collector Plates
Funko Figurines
While Funko figurines may have exploded in pop culture consumerism in recent years, they first came to be in 1998, where endless amounts of anime, video game, film, and television series characters were transformed into cute bobblehead figurines. Given how new Funko figurines are in the relative collectors’ market, experts have been unable to predict how much they will be worth in the future. That being said, you might want to spend your money on collectibles that the professionals have identified as worthy investments.
Funko Figurines
Franklin Mint Collectibles
If you are trying to establish which dolls will be a worthy investment, you should take the related advice provided by companies trying to sell you their products with a pinch of salt. After a $7,500 Lorraine Schwartz Barbie sale was witnessed in 2010, a desperate struggle to sell dolls for high amounts began. Franklin Mint was one business that led many of its customers to believe that their dolls were a worthy investment, which turned out to be false, given that their current resale value sits between $20 to $50
Franklin Mint Collectibles
Film Cameras
There are many vintage collectors out there that will skip on the modern trends in digital and smartphone photography to acquire as many historical cameras as possible. Lincoln Square Pawnbrokers’ star employee, Daniel Kalter, had this revelation to share. He stated that many sellers will enter his shop with cameras that were manufactured in the 70s and 80s believing that they will walk out with bags of money. Sadly, buyers like Kalter as so well-stocked with peoples’ dusty old cameras that he struggles to resell them for much. What does go for a high price is the included ancient film.
Film Cameras
VHS And DVD Collections
Some people are under the impression that old DVDs and VHS tapes will be in high demand by the few people that still possess DVD players and even VHS tape players. As you can imagine, few people will want to take a dusty case of ancient films off your hands and watch them in a quality that is decades behind HD and Blu-Ray. The only people that will be willing to pay more than $5.00 for a few dozen VHS tapes are collectors that work in incredibly niche circles.
VHS And DVD Collections
Hummel Figurines
The Hummel figurine craze was borne during one of humanity’s most turbulent periods: World War II. American infantrymen that were deployed to West Germany following Hitler’s defeat would send these adorable traditional figures back to their families in America. While these figurines might have had high financial and sentimental value during the middle of the 20th century, their worth hit a peak when the 1970s came around. Today, their value is almost worthless, as put by the Antique Galleries of Palm Springs owner, Mike Rivkin, “Traditional collectibles like Hummel sites are virtually unsellable today. We direct people looking to sell such items to nearby thrift shops. There’s simply no market.”
Hummel Figurines
Morgan Dollars
Next up we have one of the most historical pieces in our collection, the Morgan dollars, which came into circulation towards the end of the 19th century. They were highly valuable pieces during this time, and came back into demand during the 1920s as a superbly desirable silver dollar. The supply eventually overtook the demand, however, and these once lucrative coins were reduced to a highly available status. Their worth now comes down to their silver mass.
Morgan Dollars
Indian Head Pennies
The United States Bureau of the mint commenced circulating these one-cent coins, called Indian Head pennies, between 1859 and 1909. The Chief Engraver at the Philadelphia Mint, called James Barton Longacre, designed the pennies. When the war came to an end, the reign of the Indian Head penny began. While these coins fared incredibly well for collectors, they became far less in demand when more than 100 million were in circulation by the time 1907 came about. 1901 saw the penny enjoying an aesthetic redesign, where Victor D. Brenner replaced the Indian Head design with a Lincoln likeness in 1901.
Indian Head Pennies
Happy Meal Toys
Kids have been celebrating Happy Meals since McDonald’s was instated all the way back in the 1970s. These red boxes with the iconic Golden Arches handles contained a yummy meal, but the real draw was the toy. There are select Happy Meal editions that have sold for about $500, but given how often people bought Happy Meals throughout the years, they are not that hard to find. To maintain the worth of a Happy Meal box, one would need to have kept their toy in the box itself, and in top condition.
Happy Meal Toys
“Brown” Furniture
The term “Brown Furniture” pertains to antique pieces that have a distinctly sturdy and dark appearance, including dining room tables, cabinets, bed frames, chairs, and so on. The true value of these pieces generally lies in the fact that they once belonged to notable historical figures like George Washington, rather than the fact that they were designed in such a fashion. Most pieces in this style originating in the 19th and 20th centuries will not elicit much excitement or interest from investors.
Brown Furniture
Children’s Books
You probably are not old enough to be in possession of children’s books that are so rare that they have gone beyond the capabilities of modern publishing houses. Even if you would like to acquire some of your 20th-century classics for your kids to enjoy, you should still be able to find them in modern bookstores. The only time that a book will fetch a high sum of money will be if it is a notable title, and further, if it happens to be a member of its first edition.
Childrens Books
Cabbage Patch Kids
You might find it hard to believe that towards the end of the 1970s, parents were wrestling with one another to get their hands on the most desirable Cabbage Patch Kids dolls available. These dolls continued with their successful place during the 80s when they would sell for $30 apiece. You can bet that today, these comparatively unremarkable-looking dolls will not be very interesting to modern children, and nor will they have stayed in a shape acceptable for collectors to justify forking out huge amounts of cash.
Cabbage Patch Kids
Vintage College Pennants
If you are sick of having your friends (and family members) flaunting their Yale or Harvard pennants in your face, you can be satisfied to learn that said individuals might be the only ones that hold value in them. You are not the only one who does not want to see them, as collectors will rarely want to come into possession of college pennants that they did not themselves attend. These items are simply for bragging rights.
Vintage College Pennants
Hot Wheels
Mattel took the miniature model car market by storm towards the end of the 1960s when unveiled its initial Hot Wheels lines. These little die-cast speeders might have been in hot demand many decades ago, but given how many tons of the toy cars are manufactured to this day, their worth has been diluted significantly. That being said, there are several unique Hot Wheels models that will earn a seller a fair amount of money, but these are few and very far between.
Hot Wheels
Autographed Sports Memorabilia
Sports memorabilia that have been signed by legends of their respective history are objectively worth a lot of money. The problem comes in during the sourcing process, as collectors will need to spend a lot of time and money trying to get their hands on select pieces. Even when one manages to get something as hallowed as a Babe Ruth-signed baseball, they may struggle to pin down an interested buyer. This is thanks to the incredible amount of counterfeit sports relics floating around.
Autographed Sports Memorabilia
Cookie Jars
Vintage cookie jars might be a more sensible investment for collectors if they did not take up so much space. While an iconic artist such as Andy Warhol might have managed to sell his cookie container collection for around $250,000, he is one of the lucky few. Most collectors will prefer more exciting items than the modest and chunky cookie jar, with even fewer people being willing to cram their homes with the large cases. You can expect to sell the rarest of cookie jars for around $50.
Cookie Jars
Souvenir Bells
Who knew that people were once crazy about miniature bells? These tinkling trinkets were generally made from metal and porcelain, and were made to commemorate incredible points in history, such as the FIFA World Cup. These bells are often retained as mementos of travel. If you had to do a quick Google search for souvenir bells, you would see that there were hundreds available, listed with incredibly low prices. You also might struggle to find people that are interested in small bells…
Souvenir Bells
Salt And Pepper Shakers
Like ornamental bells, salt and pepper shakers are other types of items that you might struggle to understand the worth of beyond seasoning your food. While there are plenty of ornamental salt and pepper shakers that are objectively valuable, few collectors care for them. These culinary items fall into the niche category, with only highly specialized buyers showing interest in them. If you had to browse through eBay for them, you would see that they do not go for much, with $40 being the average peak.
Salt And Pepper Shakers
Old Playbills
Theatre fans will often keep the playbills of the many incredible shows and productions that they attended as fond mementos. Your memorabilia from that time you sent to a Broadway show might only hold worth in your memory, sadly. The internet managed to devalue many former collector treasures, with playbills now being freely available on their respective productions’ websites. There was a Barbara Streisand production playbill from 1964, called “Funny Girl”, which apparently could be sold for more than $350. Today, such an item will go for a maximum of $10.
Old Playbills
Thomas Kinkade Collectibles
The sad plight of famous artists is that their works will often only become truly recognized as treasures sometimes long after they died. In the case of the “Painter of Light”, Thomas Kinkade, this trend was reversed. The tireless artist went to such lengths to keep his personal painting stocks abundant that people soon stopped going out of their way to acquire them at an expense. By the time of the artist’s 2012 passing, nearly 5% of American houses had a Kinkade, as revealed by The Guardian.
Thomas Kinkade Collectibles
Hess Trucks
The lion’s share of toys that were manufactured in the 1960s will have been played with until they fell apart or were too damaged to still hold any value, with Hess trucks not having been spared such rough play. That being said, if you managed to keep your Hess truck that was manufactured in 1964 with a mint condition, you could sell it for around $2,500, as stated by Antiques Almanac. Anything less than a perfect state will only fetch about $40.
Hess Trucks
License Plates
Those Americans that adore traveling across the great nations’ states will often make a point of collecting as many respective license plates as possible, specifically those that have a story to tell or are no longer manufactured. You can be sure that a beefy license plate collection will be valued in the same underwhelming way that a stamp collection would be, no matter how many fascinating pieces are included. With 50 states’ worth of license plates to collect, you might be disappointed to learn that a full set will only go for $30 a pop.
License Plates
Vintage Pins
Vintage pins are a fashionable extension of your personality and taste, with vintage ones being a seriously cool way to stand out amongst the crowd. You probably will not collect pins with financial ambitions in mind. These accessories are sourced from all manner of sports teams, military regalia, bands, and so on, and the more prized items will generally fetch around $5 to $12 on eBay. There are, however, some incredibly rare pins that will be acquired for thousands of dollars, such as certain Disney pins, which go for about $4,000.
Vintage Pins
Vintage College Clothing
Coming back now to college paraphernalia we have college-themed clothing, such as tracksuits and sweatshirts. As with the related pennants, college-themed clothing holds little value to anyone but alumni. $30 is the price that you can hope to secure for an eBay sale of a historical Princeton shirt. This isn’t exactly a trendy fashion style, and no one will think much of a mid-20th century college shirt. At least old boys and girls will be impressed!
Vintage College Clothing
Wheat Pennies
There are some minting errors that will win the sellers an incredible fortune, as with the case of misprints, but wheat pennies are not part of this happy mistake selection. The pennies are so-called due to their wheat imagery, and despite being rare, they are not particularly valuable. You can expect to swap your historical wheat penny for a few modern ones, meaning that you would best be off hanging onto them until the trends change.
Wheat Pennies
Costume Jewelry
While costume jewelry might have once been a highly prized set of pieces that would make anyone stand out at a luxurious affair, the trends of modern times resulted in a huge boost in their production, turning them from rare and novel items to common sights on the red carpet and at dinner parties alike. This ready availability makes costume jewelry a dull investment, unless one manages to get their hands on a luxury designer piece, of course.
Costume Jewelry
Farm Tools
From the glitz and glam of the red carpet to the dusty corners of old barnyards. Old farm tools are an invaluable part of historical understanding, allowing us to gain a clearer picture of centuries’ old agricultural practices. Despite their invaluable place in understanding the past, vintage farm tools became a décor craze in the 2010s when hipsters began filling their homes with mass-produced imitations. Sadly, this means that the legitimate pieces will only be bought for around $50.
Farm Tools
Unremarkable Vintage Clothing
Many ambitious individuals have rifled through their grandparents’ wardrobes in search of clothing items that could sell for small fortunes. You might be wondering why we included the word “unremarkable” for this title, but given how little interest (or profit) old-school clothing is given in modern times, this is the only suitable adjective. The top buyers in the vintage clothing game will only look for specific items that they deem to hold value. This is a difficult market to get into, one that will greatly be aided by having wealthy grandparents.
Unremarkable Vintage Clothing
Disney VHS Tapes
Coming back now to VHS tapes, some people are under the impression that their chest filled with fuzzy Disney VHS tapes will one day be acquired by Mickey Mouse maniacs for a huge amount. There is the “Black Diamond Collection” which many people believe is worth thousands of dollars, but a quick search on eBay for the famous set will prove otherwise. You can expect to gain $5 per sale of these now historical tapes.
Disney VHS Tapes
Pokémon Cards
Pokémon cards are mostly devalued these days due to their long-standing availability on the trading card market. With dozens of editions across decades, there are only a few cards in the ocean of Pokémon cards floating around today, mostly within the first edition. This includes an original, mint condition, holographic Charizard, which will go for around $2,500 on eBay. Beyond the giant red dragon, there are only a few other cards that are worth anywhere near this much.
Pokemon Cards
Old Newspapers
In terms of first-hand historical sources, old newspapers provide incredible amounts of detail when one is trying to better understand something like the Second World War. Even before modern times, newspapers were mass-produced, meaning that they can still be easily acquired, even when they are decades old. Then there is the fact that old newspapers will often be reproduced in massive amounts, meaning that sifting through original issues and reprints is a laborious process. Only significant releases, in their first edition form, will hold much sway over collectors.
Old Newspapers
iPods And Other MP3 Players
Experts in the vintage electronics market are still unsure whether iPods and the MP3 players of the early 2000s will be as valued as collectors believe they will be. iPods were manufactured and released across the world at a titanic level, and can still be easily found. It might not be until many years into the future that an iPod will be considered a desirable relic of the advent of modern music technology. You can hope to earn around $69 for an iPod Nano off an online auction site.
IPods And Other MP3 Players
Patchwork Quilts
Nothing says rustic comfort like a patchwork quilt. They take a long time to create, are generally made of high-quality materials, and the best ones require a trained and delicate hand to produce. Sadly, so much work, time, and cost will not hold an extraordinary value unless it was made during the 19th century, and somehow managed to be kept in impressive condition for more than a century. The common patchwork quilt will still sell for a fair penny, however.
Patchwork Quilts