| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? 11:49 - Jul 20 with 7629 views | Illinoisblue |
I can hardly believe this but my sister-in-law may just have lost tens of thousands of dollars. Quite likely more. Allow me to explain….
Her son, my nephew (age 10) has a ton of baseball and basketball trading cards. Most of them he’s bought or received as birthday presents. No real value. However he has a couple binders full of cards from the early to mid 80s that were passed down to him from an uncle (not me). So he’s recently been sorting through those binders and came across a 1986 Michael Jordan rookie card. Produced by a company called Fleer.
Nephew twigged this might have some value, told my sister-in-law he wanted to sell it. He claimed to have seen it online for $1000. He’s all excited. My sister-in-law does not do any research of her own, takes nephew and card to a collectibles store where the owner quizzes her on where the card is from, how long she’s had it etc. And then (Red flag warning) says the words “this could be worth a lot of money”. Yes, a man who’s job it is to deal and trade such collectibles is telling you your card is very valuable. The next words out of his mouth were “I’ll give you $400 for it” which my nephew hears and is all excited about. They sell a Michael Jordan 1986 card in excellent condition for $400.
At this point, if this post was a Tik Tok this is when that voiceover would be playing “it was at this moment they knew they had fked up”.
A very quick search would reveal the same card selling for $96,000
https://www.nbcsports.com/chicago/bulls/michael-jordans-1986-87-fleer-rookie-car
And one that sold at auction for over $1milion
https://bleacherreport.com/articles/10038698-michael-jordans-fleer-bulls-rookie-
Best case scenario they’ve lost thousands. Worst case, hundreds of thousands. My sister in law has left the family group chat although my wife did speak to her briefly last night and she is distraught and in no mood to talk about it. The crazy thing is, another family member had last week told her about the process of grading trading cards and how you can pay $50 to get cards assessed to get an idea of value. This Jordan card even in bad condition is a $5k card.
Lesson of the story: do your damn research!
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| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 11:52 - Jul 20 with 4344 views | J2BLUE |
Incredibly unethical and I hope karma evens the score. |  |
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| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 11:52 - Jul 20 with 4342 views | GeoffSentence |
lesson number two is that capitalist dogs will fleece you if they can. |  |
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| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 11:55 - Jul 20 with 4312 views | Illinoisblue |
| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 11:52 - Jul 20 by J2BLUE |
Incredibly unethical and I hope karma evens the score. |
No doubt dealer guy knew exactly what he was getting and I bet couldn’t believe his luck. | |
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| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 11:59 - Jul 20 with 4265 views | unbelievablue |
Blimey.
I got out of the baseball card collecting (new cards*) last year after getting a little too invested/excited by it. It was becoming a form of pseudo-gambling, and I’m a problem gambler (eg buying a pack in the hope of hitting a rare card.
*I still look out for older cards of specific players that I like to collect. One day I’m convinced I’ll find a Babe Ruth card left behind by a US airman in a Suffolk antiques shop. |  |
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| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:03 - Jul 20 with 4222 views | PrideOfTheEast |
Wow. Has she gone back to the store? Worth a go isn't it. |  | | |
| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:03 - Jul 20 with 4220 views | J2BLUE |
| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 11:55 - Jul 20 by Illinoisblue |
No doubt dealer guy knew exactly what he was getting and I bet couldn’t believe his luck. |
I would go and confront him.
Not suggesting violence and doubt it would do any good but I would go and tell him your entire family and friends network are going to put this story all over the local media and every review site.
It's disgusting behaviour and it will damage trust in his business. Everyone knows he needs to make a profit but this is just immoral and almost theft in my eyes. | |
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| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:13 - Jul 20 with 4120 views | RobTheMonk |
Playing online slots. Being young, free and single meant I had loads of dispoable income. Never more than I could afford to lose, but could have made a much prettier penny if I had invested it all. My gateway into them was matched betting where I made quite a nice sum, but then found the slots too tempting.
I don't have the time nor the inclination to play now. |  | | |
| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:25 - Jul 20 with 4019 views | Guthrum |
| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:13 - Jul 20 by RobTheMonk |
Playing online slots. Being young, free and single meant I had loads of dispoable income. Never more than I could afford to lose, but could have made a much prettier penny if I had invested it all. My gateway into them was matched betting where I made quite a nice sum, but then found the slots too tempting.
I don't have the time nor the inclination to play now. |
Trying to run a business during a recession using credit cards. Car kept breaking down, too. Ended up very in debt. |  |
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| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:25 - Jul 20 with 4014 views | SuperKieranMcKenna |
Not being single… | | | |
| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:26 - Jul 20 with 3991 views | J2BLUE |
| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:13 - Jul 20 by RobTheMonk |
Playing online slots. Being young, free and single meant I had loads of dispoable income. Never more than I could afford to lose, but could have made a much prettier penny if I had invested it all. My gateway into them was matched betting where I made quite a nice sum, but then found the slots too tempting.
I don't have the time nor the inclination to play now. |
Sorry to hear matched betting was not good for you. | |
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| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:33 - Jul 20 with 3921 views | Sikamikanico |
Payday loans
Needed £500 at short notice and my parents were away (I never borrow or lend to friends).
The next month I realised I couldn't afford to lose the £500 + interest. So I extended them until they eventually had to be repaid.... and I took out more.
Took me years and cost me thousands by the end of it all as I needed consolidation loans and I then developed mental health issues which stupidly contributed to me making worse decisions.
All because I wanted 7 days in the sun and couldn't wait 4 days | | | |
| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:34 - Jul 20 with 3911 views | Fixed_It |
Back in the late 80s I had a terraced house that needed to go on the market as I was changing jobs. The market was booming and prices were going up by the day before a change in stamp duty (or some such - I was young a naive back then). I put off putting it up for sale until I had a week's holiday as I wanted to repair a windowsill which had rotted.
By the time I put the house on the market of course the market had crashed. Sold the house several months later for about three quarters of the price. Bloody expensive windowsill... |  |
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| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:36 - Jul 20 with 3897 views | RobTheMonk |
| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:26 - Jul 20 by J2BLUE |
Sorry to hear matched betting was not good for you. |
Matched betting itself was great to be fair. Paid for a holiday to Indonesia, Czech Republic, plus other things.
I just loved an online slot when the offers dried up. | | | |
| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:38 - Jul 20 with 3864 views | textbackup |
Sounds like that bloke from toy story 2 that tried to nick woody and sell him to japan |  |
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| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:38 - Jul 20 with 3853 views | Joey_Joe_Joe_Junior |
Moving to California. |  | | |
| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:41 - Jul 20 with 3838 views | gordon |
| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:03 - Jul 20 by J2BLUE |
I would go and confront him.
Not suggesting violence and doubt it would do any good but I would go and tell him your entire family and friends network are going to put this story all over the local media and every review site.
It's disgusting behaviour and it will damage trust in his business. Everyone knows he needs to make a profit but this is just immoral and almost theft in my eyes. |
Think if you walk into a shop intending to sell something, it's up to you to have your wits about you and know what it is you're selling etc., and if someone offers $400 off the bat for a collectible, it's obviously going to be worth way, way more than that. |  | | |
| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:45 - Jul 20 with 3815 views | bluelagos |
So back in the day, living on sunny Lagos, I sold my house and needed to move my stuff into storage. Facing the expense of a flight home, I twisted my brother's arm to hire a van, load my bits and even found a garage to store it all.
At my house, under lock and key was a Peugeot scooter. Brother loaded the van but couldn't find room for the scooter, so he opted to leave it in the street and return later to pick it up.
Scooter (Value around £1600) gets knicked.
BL: You lost my scooter ffs
BL Brother: Is alwight - it'll be insured.
BL: Wtf would I insure a scooter that's not on the road and locked up in a safe garage?
Few years later when I come home I move my stuff out of storage, aware I am a scooter down. I furnish my new home and notice as well as a scooter short, I am also missing a washing machine.
BL: So you lost my scooter, where's the washing machine gone?
BL Brother: My mate helped me do your move, I had to give him something.
BL: You buy him a curry, give him a bottle of whiskey, not a washing machine ffs.
Reckon I was around £2k down on that decision. [Post edited 20 Jul 2022 12:48]
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| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:49 - Jul 20 with 3756 views | hoppy |
So really, they've not 'lost' it, just not gained it. There's a difference.
Not to take away from the fact it was a quite major mistake, especially not to have done the research before taking it in, so they gained rather less than they would have gained, but not lost it. |  |
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| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 13:00 - Jul 20 with 3669 views | Illinoisblue |
| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:49 - Jul 20 by hoppy |
So really, they've not 'lost' it, just not gained it. There's a difference.
Not to take away from the fact it was a quite major mistake, especially not to have done the research before taking it in, so they gained rather less than they would have gained, but not lost it. |
That is one way of looking at it… haven’t spoken to my brother in law yet. I’m guessing he won’t be quite as laid back about it! | |
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| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 13:01 - Jul 20 with 3661 views | bluelagos |
| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:03 - Jul 20 by J2BLUE |
I would go and confront him.
Not suggesting violence and doubt it would do any good but I would go and tell him your entire family and friends network are going to put this story all over the local media and every review site.
It's disgusting behaviour and it will damage trust in his business. Everyone knows he needs to make a profit but this is just immoral and almost theft in my eyes. |
With you on this. The bloke thinks he's pulled it off, but if you make it clear it will be costing him a fck load in goodwill for his business - he may agree to up his offer.
Might only be by a few grand - but would be a lot better for him to keep the sellers content.
I'd also consider a visit to a laywer - so see if there is a way round it / to cancel the transaction. Know nothing about the law in America, but you never know, especially as the seller was a child. | |
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| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 13:15 - Jul 20 with 3541 views | Illinoisblue |
| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 12:03 - Jul 20 by PrideOfTheEast |
Wow. Has she gone back to the store? Worth a go isn't it. |
I would bet the dealer already has a deal lined up. And will then be paying his mortgage off! | |
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| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 13:19 - Jul 20 with 3501 views | clive_baker |
Ouch.
Mine is probably not buying a few bitcoin when my friend was pushing me to in 2014. I can reliably age the conversation as his first born was a few weeks old. He's very techy, and had just bought 5 coins for a grand. He sold them for 6 figures and could've done so for £250k if he timed it better. My consolation is that I probably would've sold all or most of them way before that, so it probably only cost me £10k. The other consolation is it's easy to say in hindsight, I could've lost a grand. Unlike your situation where the market value was reliably measurable at the time of the daylight robbery. |  |
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| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 13:22 - Jul 20 with 3495 views | unbelievablue |
| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 13:15 - Jul 20 by Illinoisblue |
I would bet the dealer already has a deal lined up. And will then be paying his mortgage off! |
He'll have immediately sent it off to PSA to be graded if it looks in good nick. There's a huge backlog after the explosion in trading card collecting during the pandemic, so it'll be quite a while before he realises any return.
No point dwelling on it I guess. | |
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| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 13:24 - Jul 20 with 3477 views | unbelievablue |
A mate of mine told me that the biggest mistake I made was dismissing the possibility of attending Oxbridge, as it would probably have set me up for life financially graduating from there. I tend to debate that, but I guess there's something in it.
Edit - I doubt I'd have got in, but he was always gutted that he didn't get a chance and was annoyed at me for not having given it a go. [Post edited 20 Jul 2022 13:24]
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| What’s the most expensive mistake you’ve ever made? on 14:09 - Jul 20 with 3272 views | BiGDonnie |
FFS, woman. |  |
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