US stamps

Ebay is a wonderful avenue to find stamps. It is also the home of the hopeful and the optimistic. In an effort to
make ebay dealers a little more accountable we are higlighting the track record of some of the largest ebay dealers.
See our dealer scorecard for details. Each week we will add a couple of dealers to the list and review the
previous standing of a couple of reviewed dealers.

Below is an illustration of how things stand today. On a bi-annual basis we will review ebay standards.
For their part ebay does a fairly good job of trying to maintain standards. It is worth noting that before a seller posts
his listing one ebay he agrees to these conditions.

" By clicking the submit button, you are
confirming that the item you are about to list is
properly described and genuine "

How much does a dealers description effect the value?

These all sold at auction during January/February 2005. They are all NH.
The left copy is XF, the seller described it as Superb
The center copy is also XF-Superb and the seller described it as XF
The right copy is Superb-Gem and the seller described it as XF
Pass your mouse over the question
mark below to view the sale prices.

Trust only your eyes

In January a dealer posted the description
on the stamp shown above. The full description is
shown in italic gray text below. The stamp
sold for $73.

**#407 - MLH - SUPERB GEM very rare condition **
Stamp is sound and post office fresh. As you probably know, stamp grading is very subjective here on ebay. I attempt to come as close to PSE grading standards as is possible for me. On their website they (PSE) also list the market value in a given stamps condition. Since the rarity of a given stamp is not simply the quantity printed, but the condition of the item, these factors enable a more accurate assessment of a stamps value. The #407 is valued by PSE at $115 in XF, and $170 in XF/S hinged. Bid accordingly and beware of snipers.

So, trust your eyes first, some dealers words come a distant second.

What price guide should I use ?

A dealer will often quote the Scotts value, this is of use as many buyers value the stamps at
a percentage of Scotts. Scotts is in fact a fairly accurate guide, but only when you are looking
at the cream of the crop, the stamps that are normaly sold at leading auction houses. They are
in the top 2% of stamps out there and as often as not have a certificate. If the PSE or APS
says the stamp is VF or 80pt then it is, take it to the bank. This is not the case with the PSE
market price. At least not the case with anything less than their Gem and Superb grades.
The problem for the PSE is that there are few avenues to sell stamps that are less than
90pt. Ebay is the elephant in the room when it comes to selling less than 90 points, the stamps
that most mortals can afford. Here the PSE gets it really wrong, often overvaluing the
stamp. It is beyond the capability of anyone, including us, to give an accurate price guide.
We give you indications of the prices for material sold on ebay which we hope is close as
we can get. There are a few dealers who sell 90+ material on ebay, Gary Posner being one
of them, but they are often unsold, because the stamps command a high price.

Our advice is to go with your own experience, if all else fails, use our price guide.

The first stamp has a PSE certificate grading this as an 80, it is never hinged and could be
described as VF. According to the PSE's web site this stamp should be worth $75. The second
stamp is hinged, and like the first has no perf faults. It could be described as XF, PSE values
this at $55. The third stamp is described by the ebay dealer as VF, I
would describe it as Fine, it is also hinged. PSE gives this a value of $18. They were all sold in
December 2004.
Pass your mouse over the question
mark below to view the sale prices.

Does it help to build a relationship with a Dealer?

You know all the answer to this. If you build a
relationship with a reputable dealer you can expect the following;

you will become familiar with their quality
the return process will be easier
good dealers will offer private deals as a reward for your loyalty
you will hear about their new finds before others
prime material that most dealers will not sell by ebay will be offered to you. Don't expect a discount on this material, it is very hard to come by, having the opportunity to buy it is a bonus in itself
Some dealers will keep your want lists and advise you of opportunities. Limit your want lists to the hardest for you to obtain and be prepared to pay for these. It is good practice to put a large deposit on the more expensive items on your want list. The dealer should bare all the rish
On the better items reputable dealers will be able to give you advice on the market, scarcity and opportunities.

The stamp above was sold with the following description;
US 1873 15c Webster CBNC (#163) VFU:
A very fresh used example having good color and
Supplementary Mail Type F cancel. VF. Scott $150.
This offers several clues about the dealer. The stamp is
accurately described as VF plue the dealer has the knowledge
to correctly identify this as a Type F supplementary Mail cancel.
A combination of integrity in the description and knowledge are
good pointers towards choosing the right dealer to begin to
establish a relationship.