Investing in Pokemon Cards: Five Things You Should Consider Before Spending Your Money

Logan Paul was trending, not only because of his fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr. but because of what he wore on his chest – a Pokemon card. He proudly entered the arena wearing the first-edition Charizard which he bought for $150,000.00 last year. 

 

Logan Paul wearing his Pokemon Card during his match with Floyd Mayweather Jr.

© Jasen Vinlove – USA TODAY Sports

 

Including the Charizard card, the famous Youtuber spent $2,000,000.00 on what he claims to be ‘First-edition Pokemon Boxes’, which he later posted on his Instagram account.

Logan Paul’s ‘First-edition Pokemon Boxes’

© Logan Paul – Instagram Account

 

Was he just flexin’ or did he feel that the card gave him the ability to burn Mayweather to ashes? 

Either way, this surely got the attention of Pokemon card collectors and it might have also inspired others to invest in the said collectible. You might have checked your inventory of Pokemon cards and wondered “How much would these cost in 10 years?” or, “Should I buy more Pokemon cards?”.

Before you click that add to cart button, here are five factors you should consider in investing in Pokemon cards. Be sure to carefully go through each before making your decision.

 

Why Are We Seeing An Increase in Price Of Pokemon Cards?

Since the pandemic started, there have been a lot of things that have gone viral. There was the dalgona coffee craze, baking (I can’t count how much banana loaf I have baked… and eaten), Tiktok, and Tiger King.

So, it came as no surprise when Pokemon Cards took over the internet. Hell, Pokemon was never gone in the first place, but the pandemic surely made its popularity experience resurgence. 

Deborah Norvilla said in a segment of Inside Edition that “The pandemic is partly being credited for making Pokemon cards popular again because, during the lockdown, a lot of people became nostalgic for simpler times.”. That explains why people belonging to Gen X and Millennials are going crazy about this trend.

For the younger generation (Gen Z), Pokemon cards have become a trend that they feel they should hop in, primarily because of the hype that Youtubers and other Influencers make. Lucky enough, Pokemon cards are still in the system. With the latest generation named Battle Styles being released just this March, kids and teens have a good chance of getting their hands on a deck.

That being said, collectors and owners of old and rare Pokemon cards will naturally take advantage of the hype and increase their selling price. The rarer and older your card is, the more people would want to have it. That’s how collectibles work. 

 

Five Things to Consider Before Investing in Pokemon Cards

We know what you’re thinking, you’re already looking for the best Pokemon card your money can buy. Oh, you need to buy it now before anyone else can! If you don’t, you’ll lose the opportunity to make yourself a millionaire!

Wait! Stop what you’re doing, take a few deep breaths, and think: Is this hype worth investing in?

First off, this part of the blog is not meant to discourage you from investing – it’s meant to protect you from losing your money. Reasonable people like your friends will not let you waste your savings on something that you just saw trending, right? Like in any other investments, there are things that you should take into account. 

 

The Value of the Card

According to BlueShoreFinancial.com, the problem with investing in collectibles is determining their value, which is mandatory, but not easy. What’s an item really worth?

Let’s say, you want to sell an old painting in your apartment which to you looked like a dark image of yellow and red poppy flowers being held by a vase. Someone on eBay offered $300 which you took happily, not knowing it’s the 50 million-dollar stolen Van Gogh painting.

Okay, maybe this won’t happen to you when you invest in Pokemon cards. Luckily for us, Pokemon cards can be graded by professionals. They would look into your card’s rarity, age, condition, and other factors too. This makes it easy for investors like you since you’ll have an idea if you’re being overpriced or not.

Just be sure that the cards are graded by official card grading companies that card collectors trust. You can also read our blog entitled

Pokemon Card Grading Explained  to know more about the Whats, Whys, Hows, etc. of Pokemon card grading.

 

The Counterfeit

Pokemon cards are made up of layers of paper called pasteboards. If bills themselves can be counterfeited, what more these pieces of cards? How sure are you that the card you’re planning to buy is made in 1998 and not last week? 

We all can be victims of counterfeiting criminals, and they can take our hard-earned money in an instant. That being said, we can go back to the importance of buying cards that are graded by official companies. 

 

The Change in Trend

The sad thing is, we cannot be sure that Pokemon cards will still be this big in 10 years. Maybe cards that were made in the ’90s will still sell well, but average, more common cards may not. So, you should think of all the options you can invest in aside from Pokemon cards. 

Who knows, maybe after 10 years we’ll be going crazy about Funko Pop figures.

 

Lack of Liquidity

Since not everyone is willing to spend on Pokemon cards, it may be hard to liquidate the cards you bought when the time comes that you need the money. This is a problem with most collectible items. Unlike stocks, Pokemon cards have only a specific, much smaller market which you need to please. 

 

The Maintenance

Like any other collectible items, Pokemon cards should be treated with care, especially if you are planning to sell them in the future. So, before you invest in them, ask yourself if you can devote time and effort to make sure their condition will be preserved.

Material-wise, safety packaging, and binders are cheap. But again, it will require your time and attention to keep these bad boys solid by the time you’re ready to sell. This can be a challenge for those who are not Pokemon lovers by heart.

Serious collectors also opt to get their gems insured which costs money and paperwork.

 

Takeaway

With all these being said, you still have the last say on how you should spend your money. While there are risks like we mentioned, there are also a lot of great opportunities in investing in Pokemon cards (for some, just being able to complete their collection is an ROI itself), and it’s always best to weigh all the factors. You can also check out our article entitled Valuing Collectibles: Master the Trade for tips on how to value your collectibles, so you’ll know how much you can sell them for.