Lego set prices rising faster than houses

Wednesday, 18 November 2015

Could you have a goldmine in the bottom of your toybox?

There has been much discussion over recent years about the strength of growth in house prices and share markets. But could the real investment all this time have been Lego?

There has been a resurgence in interest in the small plastic blocks - much cursed by parents who find them underfoot - and some collectors are getting megabucks for their pieces.

While Auckland house prices are up 68 per cent on their 2007 peak and the NZX50 has grown more than 130 per cent since 2009, some canny Lego buyers have seen their collections increase in value by more than 500 per cent over that time.

Trade Me spokesman Logan Mudge said: 'Lego has done a magnificent job of reigniting its relevance and extended its plastic tentacles not only from offline into online but collaborating with a vast array of brands to ensure it is embedded in a huge range of popular culture. it is an extraordinary example of a brand that is loved across generations.'

There are more than 1000 Lego items sold on Trade Me each week and last year there were more than a million searches for the blocks.

The three most expensive Lego listings sold in the past six weeks were all Star Wars-related: A Lego Death Star, which sold for $1499, a Lego motorised walking AT-AT for $1199 and a Lego Imperial Star Destroyer, which went for $1004.

Some of the priciest Lego listings on the site at the moment are a Taj Mahal replica for $3199, a Cafe Corner set for $4300, a modular building collection for $3995 and a Star Wars rebel blockade runner for $33000. 

The Lego Cafe Corner set was US$139.99 when it was first released in 2007.

Michelle Smith runs Trade Me Lego business John3.16.

She said it was optimistic but possible the Cafe Corner set could sell for $4300, which would represent a price increase of almost 1500 per cent. She said similar sets were selling for about $2000 plus shipping and customs overseas, a value lift of about 640 per cent. 

She developed an interest in Lego after listing a piece for $1 on Trade Me, which 'went crazy'. 

She had noticed people taking an investment approach to their Lego, buying key pieces and putting them aside. 

'A little while ago, people started realising if you saved sets and did not open them, certain sets would go up in value. People see it like stocks and shares.'

Collectible Minifigures were particularly sought-after, she said, and could sell for hundreds of dollars.

Smith recommended anyone who wondered about the value of their Lego collection check sites such as eBay and Lego collector websites to judge the prices their pieces might command.