The Heirloom Index
The Field Guide
Plain-English guides, written for anyone who owns, has inherited, or is caring for valuable sports cards — what to do first, how to document what you have, where to sell and what it costs, and how grading works. Nothing here is advice to buy or sell.
Start where you are
If a collection has just come to you
What to do before you sell any of itThe first week, the first month, what you probably have, and the four different prices people will quote you. 15 min
If you're thinking of selling
Where to sell — what it costs, when you're paid, who to callEvery serious house side by side, what each charges a seller, and a calculator for what you would take home. 10 min
If you're buying at this level
What a winning bid actually costsEvery house's buyer's premium, sourced and dated, with a calculator for the total you would pay. 4 min
If you're keeping it for the next generation
How to document a collection, properlyWhat a real record contains, the four things almost everyone leaves out, and where doing it yourself stops making sense. 7 min
The tools
The auction houses17 places to sell · premiums 18–28%The auction calendarNext deadline Oct 16 · Heritage AuctionsWhat a bid really costsType a hammer price, see the total at every houseWhat you'd take homeThe seller's side of the same arithmeticThe RadarFollow any card across every house · free, no account
Every guide
If a collection has just come to youWhat to do with an inherited card collection — before you sell any of itThe first week, the first month, what you probably have, and the four different prices people will quote you. · 15 min readWhere to sell — fees, timing, and who to callEvery serious house side by side: what it costs to sell, when you get paid, and the named person who answers the phone. · 10 min readWhat Happens to the Tax Bill When Sports Cards Are InheritedThe one rule most families never hear about, why it changes what to do first, and what the record has to show. · 5 min readEvery way to sell a sports card collection, and what each one costsAuction house, online marketplace, eBay, a dealer, a card show or a private sale — what each costs, how long it takes, and what kind of collection it suits. · 5 min readKeeping what you haveHow to document a collection — properly, and while you still canWhat a real record contains, the four things almost everyone leaves out, and where doing it yourself stops making sense. · 7 min readHow the market worksThe auction houses — every place to sell, side by sideWhat each handles, its premium, its next sale and deadline, and which of them are the same company. · 4 min readWhat a winning bid actually costs — buyer's premium at every houseAll seventeen side by side, read from each house's own published terms and dated. Put your own number in and see the total. · 4 min readThe auction calendar — every major sale, with its consignment deadlineWhen each house closes, when it stops taking consignments, and what it adds to the hammer. Checked at the house every week. · 3 min readHow PSA Grading Works: What the Slab MeansAuthentication, the 1–10 scale, three graders that are really three markets, the grades that are not numbers, population reports, a second opinion on the first — and when the grade is not the story. · 9 min readThe houses
Every house side by side — premium, next sale, deadline, and who owns whom →