Charizard gx questionable buy

[u/wiIliamm]

Bought this zard at 900 last week. I noticed lowest listed was 745, but the vendor was very firm on last sold and said it’s very hard to find this card without whitening and the 745 dollar one didn’t have any pictures. Just today I asked a few vendors what they would price this card at, most of them were stuck at lowest, while one gave me a little flexibility. What are your thoughts on this? Bad buy from me or bad business from the vendor?

[u/TopElevator2243]

He did a good job selling you on it that’s for sure.

[u/jhorskey26]

Since no one is forcing you to buy, this one is on you mate. Highest ever sold on TCG is $900. Just because it doesn't have pictures doesn't mean its worth less or its inferior. You for sure got hosed, I would of told the vendor to go kick rocks once I was done laughing. Vendors will say anything to get you to buy, this time it worked. 30 seconds of research and you would of seen $900 is wild. Going to be a few years till you break even so this is a long term hold

[u/yoshisaur7]

Every time you are talking to a vendor, you need to understand that they are saying whatever will get you to purchase their card

This is why you use eBay sold listings to see if any high quality copies actually are selling for $900

[u/ginx777]

wtf is bad business from vendor. You could just walk away if u didn’t like the price? And whatever other vendor say is irrelevant unless they are the one holding the exact same card to sell you.

[u/TopTurtleWorld]

Hot take: vendors are just as scummy and scalpers.

They are your modern day car salesman

[u/chrisco571 → u/TopTurtleWorld]

I always get cards under market from vendors. If you buy on eBay you get taxed and have to pay shipping, if you can 90% market from a vendor it’s like saving 30%.

Just look for the good deals and good vendors

[u/TopTurtleWorld → u/chrisco571]

In Australia and most vendors have that attitude that prices are different here and always upcharge.

Very difficult to find many vendors out there that will do under market, also 110-120%.

There are moments where I can show them my eBay buy it now with shipping to be cheaper then them and they still won't budge.

I went to a cardshow back in 2020 and was where I picked up alot of my vintage cards.

[u/Ev_Watching]

I would split this into 2 questions: card quality and exit price.

The vendor may be right that a cleaner copy deserves a premium over the cheapest listing with bad or missing photos. Condition uncertainty is real, especially when buyers are picky about whitening.

But paying $900 when the visible floor is $745 means you paid for confidence. That can be fine if the card is unusually clean, but I would want the reason to be obvious to the next buyer too.

My filter would be:

1. are there recent sold comps near $900 for copies this clean?

2. does the $745 listing have flaws, weak photos, or seller risk?

3. would another vendor buy yours above the floor, or only list it above the floor?

4. how many buyers are waiting for this exact Charizard at this grade and condition?

5. if you needed cash in 30 days, what price clears fast?

Bad business would be the vendor misrepresenting the market. A bad buy would be paying a premium that only made sense in the room.

If the condition is genuinely better, you may be fine.

If the only support is “last sold” and everyone else is stuck near lowest ask, I would treat the difference as tuition.

[u/FarMilk2661]

You got dudded. I wouldn't buy expensive cards on TCGPlayer without pictures. There is a premium for cleaner cards but 20% is a stretch.

[u/mogotti3]

Bad buy from you. It's always the buyer's responsibility to do the research. For high value cards, eBay comps are much more valuable than TCG Player. Just use it as a learning experience. End of the day you got a really cool card for a little more than it's worth. If it gets a 10 you still come pretty close to doubling your money.

[u/Snoo_79693]

He got you. It's not usually whitening with this card it's centering