30 April 2020
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Now’s the time to dust off those neglected albums, and join Stamp Collector as we share five home-based projects to help you get the most from self-isolation stamping. By Paula Hammond
Assess your stamp collection
In 2005, an 1868 Benjamin Franklin ‘Z-Grill’, bought in 1998 for $935,000, was traded for $3 million worth of Inverted Jennies. Making that one gramme piece of blue paper worth more than a flat in Chelsea or a Constable painting.
The GB250 Index, which tracks the value of 250 rare, British stamps has had a compound annual growth of 13.4% since 1991, and has not dipped in that time. Not even when the stock-market reacts to global events like the current pandemic.
By weight, stamps are the most valuable commodities on Earth.
At least the ‘right’ stamps are, and lockdown is the perfect time to assess your collection, determine its worth, and what you want to do with it. Arguably, to make big money from stamps, you have to have big money to spend. However it’s still possible to finesse a modest collection into a nice retirement nest-egg.
Start by logging your collection, noting the following:
- Country
- Year
- Denomination
- Condition
- Date of purchase
- Purchase price
Specialist catalogues, online forums, and groups like the Philatelic Traders Society (PTS) can help. Once you know what you have, then the fun of determining what to buy next, and whether to pursue profit or pleasure, begins.
Next project… coming soon!
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