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How Do I Break It To Her Lightly?2296

COLLECTOR JLS_Comics private msg quote post Address this user
I have a very sweet older lady that is a coworker of mine. Her husband recently passed. when i say recently I mean like in the past month recent.

She had a stack of comic books from her husband and asked if I'd take a look at them, knowing of my interest and knowledge in to such things. She said they are "older books"

Now, to me, "older books" means Silver Age or Golden Age goodness but I guess 1997 - being 20 years ago, is now considered "older".

The entire stack is 90s drek, 50 cent mid-grade books.

Normally, I would have no problem telling someone the value of the books but I feel like telling her that her husband that she just lost's books are worthless is ... i dunno .... I'm having a hard time finding a way to break it to her.

Any advice or ideas would be welcome
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If I could, I would. I swear. DrWatson private msg quote post Address this user
Tell her that they aren't worth a lot, but you're sure her husband must have enjoyed them. Plus, she might think $20 for the stack is a lot of money for comic books.
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COLLECTOR JLS_Comics private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by DrWatson
Tell her that they aren't worth a lot, but you're sure her husband must have enjoyed them. Plus, she might think $20 for the stack is a lot of money for comic books.


That's a good idea. I suppose I'm operating under the assumption that she's expecting $100+ for the lot which is very likely untrue
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Collector Deadpoolica private msg quote post Address this user
No real easy way to say it right, maybe just say not many books from the 90's are worth anything...advice above is pretty good too
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Collector Rafel private msg quote post Address this user
The best thing to do is tell her the truth. Show her the price guide so she knows you're not out to take advantage of her.

A good rule of thumb: "Treat people the way you want them to treat you."

And you can't go wrong.
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COLLECTOR shrewbeer private msg quote post Address this user
Just tell her she's best served giving them to someone who will read them (the grandkids??), then there's no suspicion possible that you tried to pork her.

As a co-worker, its just not worth the risk of buying them. Gossip sucks.
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Collector Mio private msg quote post Address this user
Tell her that comics from that era were generally well preserved by readers and thus are not worth much. On that basis, they can be read by whomever wants them without fear or ruining the value.
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Collector FootNote private msg quote post Address this user
I would advise buying them from her unless she asks if you want them. It could come off sketchy saying they are worthless and then you immediately try and buy them from her. Offer her what ever help she needs, ask if she wants to sell them to a shop or put them online, then offer to take them off her hands if she likes.
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Collector OrbitCityComics private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by shrewbeer
Just tell her she's best served giving them to someone who will read them (the grandkids??), then there's no suspicion possible that you tried to pork her.

As a co-worker, its just not worth the risk of buying them. Gossip sucks.


I'd go with this. Considering they're all $1 bin books, their value will be in keepsakes from an older generation. Who knows, it might lead to new enthusiasts.
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Collector VaComicsGuy private msg quote post Address this user
I just went through something similar with a co-worker. Books were basically worthless. Since it wasn't a massive amount of books, I sat down with her and pulled up some on line prices guides and sales reports to show her what they were worth. While it didn't soften the blow to her financial expectations, she believed me and I showed her how to sell them to get the most $ she could. In the end, she was disappointed but I wasn't the bad guy. Since they were her son's, I showed her how to frame one to keep for sentimental purposes.
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Collector BrianGreensnips private msg quote post Address this user
I like @shrewbeer advise. I would also maybe tell her that you already have a lot of these books and that you are not interested. Then give her a high and low ballpark value.
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COLLECTOR JLS_Comics private msg quote post Address this user
Thanks everyone, lots of good advice here. Much appreciated
Post 12 IP   flag post
Collector jrs private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by OrbitCityComics
Quote:
Originally Posted by shrewbeer
Just tell her she's best served giving them to someone who will read them (the grandkids??), then there's no suspicion possible that you tried to pork her.

As a co-worker, its just not worth the risk of buying them. Gossip sucks.


I'd go with this. Considering they're all $1 bin books, their value will be in keepsakes from an older generation. Who knows, it might lead to new enthusiasts.


I agree with these guys.
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Collector Watcher private msg quote post Address this user
I would also make sure he didn't have another box somewhere in the attic . My good ones are in an entirely different room from my main collection and if I didn't talk about them so much my wife would have no idea where they were.
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COLLECTOR JLS_Comics private msg quote post Address this user
Here is what i said via email:

Hey (redacted)-

I took a cursory look through the two stacks of comic books you brought in and there are some fun books! Spider-man is one of my favorites and I see some books in there 😊

Most of them were printed in the 1990s and this was a time when the "print run" (the number of copies that came of the print press) on books at the time was massive, some times in the millions. Unfortunately, that half of the supply/demand equation affects the value and books from this time do not hold a lot of value because there are so many copies out there.

I think the best bet would be to sell them as a "lot" (all together) instead of individually, and I think it might be better to sell them via craigslist instead of bringing them to a comic book shop. A comic shop would probably offer $5 for everything (I know, its not a lot) but you might be able to get $20 or so from Craigslist. There are a couple that I would be interested in and can give you a few dollars for them if you want.

If you don't want to sell them for that low, it might be fun to give them to the grand kids to read and enjoy. 😊
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Collector BrianGreensnips private msg quote post Address this user
@JLS_Comics I think you explained it well to her.
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COLLECTOR JLS_Comics private msg quote post Address this user
@BrianGreensnips Thanks Brian!
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Collector BrianGreensnips private msg quote post Address this user
@JLS_Comics Your welcome.
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