Seriousness about getting into debt with this stuff!

[uscmhicks]

Okay so today i realised i owe out a crap load of money to ebay neary 600 dolllars , of money i shouldn't be spending , although i will most likely get hold of it somehow , i would like to point out how serious this collecting can be.
Especially to the noobs around here , there just statues and figures there are more important things , please don't out do yourself as i have , it has actually worried me.
As if it is some sort of illness my father sort had a serious problem with gambling which im grateful he managed to escape but this actually reminded me of that. Has anyone else ever gone overboard with this stuff.

Its quite scary.
So sideshow stop bringing out more kick arse stuff or at least send me a few thousand pieces so i can stop buying for a ........ few ... hours.... minutes.. seconds.. millis , you get the idea , basically its addictive so be careful.

 

[Darth Caedus]

I don't buy what I can't afford on the stop without putting it on credit, but I could SOOOO see myself just maxing out my credit on this stuff. Luckily I have a lot of self control, unlike my buddy who is $5000 in debt from SS/Bowen/etc.

I think a lot of people get into debt because they are completist and have to have everything from every single line. I believe in "just getting what you love and you should be fine"

 

[Eli26]

Yes, I am teetering into "overboard" territory. I have way too much stuff on order... I need to regain the self control I use to have. I am so bad right now. I hope I can sail through these rocky waves and make it safe home... but I think I'll have to drop some orders.

Besides, it's not like I need everything I ordered.

 

[Jamal]

I was in that situation and then i woke up, i sold old stuff for the new stuff. ill never let that happen again man

 

[p!tu]

Thats why i canceled everything i had in preorder and it fills great!

 

[Mudshark]

I've been on a roll for a couple of years running, but I know it can't continue like this forever, in any case. I have way more stuff than I ever really needed and spent loads more money than I ever imagined a couple of years ago... in other words, reality check time! There doesn't seem to be any end in sight as far as the amount of collectibles that continue to be produced, but I'm already nearly out of space to keep any more, anyway. I haven't gotten to the point of cancelling any preorders yet, but I definitely have things that I'll be liquidating this year, and I plan to be painfully selective from now on!

 

[Eli26]

Our problem is too many companies are pulling out all of the stops like SideShow, Hot Toys, and Medicom... making exuberant looking pieces that weren't even realistic 7 years ago. I remember when I got back into collecting toys and statues in 1998. Collectibles were crap compared to what these companies put out today, which are mostly homeruns.

It was so easy to say "PASS", but nowadays, especially with companies like SideShow and HotToys it's becoming extremely difficult to do that.

 

[Jen]

It's so easy to get sucked in......earlier last year I think I spent around $6000 in one month (granted a few of those items were high priced like the Grey Hulk and Doom Exc.) but I let it get way out of control. Now I'm paying for it....but have gotten my debt in control and I'm really selective about what I purchase now....plus I'm selling off a few things to help pay and make room for newer things. Still is hard though when several awesome pieces come out around the same time. Not only do I have to think about the $$, but also space which is very, very limited right now....So pretty much if I buy anything, I have to get rid of something else....I'm not going to buy new pieces and keep them in box.....I don't want to rotate my collection....so having those restrictions is helping me keep things somewhat under control.
It's good that you see early on how this can become a serious problem....take action now before it gets worse.

 

[Bardoon]

It was easier when I was just collecting G.I. Joe figures. I would scoff at a old 80's RAH MOC figure costing $150.

Now I'm getting figures that cost $150 on a daily basis practically.

 

[IrishJedi]

I paid off all of my debt (home mortgage aside) a couple of years ago and will NEVER go down that road again.

I now use cash or check card for all of my purchases, including collectibles. NO MORE DEBT. I want to be able to enjoy what I own without the weight of what I owe constantly on my shoulders.

In a lot of ways, I feel like an ex drug addict who has been clean & sober for 2+ years and feels better than ever.

 

[JABBATHERIDGE]

I have a savings account set up, which I avoid dipping into at all costs, just to hold money for the items I've got preordered. I find this works for me since I know exactly how much money I have in the account and how much I'll need to pay for the stuff I ordered. When the stuff I've ordered is getting closer to being released I check how much is in the account and make sure I can pay it off, if not I cancel my preorder.

I wouldn't get into debt for these things, but I can see how some collectors get carried away with all the neat stuff out there.

 

[Agent0028]

That's similar to what I do. I pre-order an item, figure up how much I need to save a month to afford it when it comes and put that much each month in to savings. I've had a few times when I was having too much a month to set aside so I had to cancel a couple of items.

For things that will ship immediately I don't order it unless I can afford it. I have made a few exceptions on that one in cases where I can't order it later because it probably won't be there, so I project how I should be doing when the bill comes and if I can afford it then (with a reasonable margin of error) then I'll let myself order it.

 

[Buttmunch]

I only have a credit card with a $500 limit, so even if I maxed it out, I wouldn't be in overwhelming debt. I never buy anything if I don't have the cash to pay of the credit card each month though. Right now I only have about $600 on Pre-order so I don't feel quite so overboard as some others here. Plus I only collect the 1:6 figures, so that saves me $$$.

 

[El Roranous]

Trust me this thread is all to real for me. I, like P!tu have decided to cancel almost everything because this hobby is financially impossible for me right now. Once I get out I won't look back because I do feel that this is an addiction that should definitely be controlled.

I came to this realization just a little while ago but I already feel like I am making exceptional progress. Remember guys, it isn't a good deal if you are paying interest.

 

[p!tu]

Trust me this thread is all to real for me. I, like P!tu have decided to cancel almost everything because this hobby is financially impossible for me right now. Once I get out I won't look back because I do feel that this is an addiction that should definitely be controlled.

I came to this realization just a little while ago but I already feel like I am making exceptional progress. Remember guys, it isn't a good deal if you are paying interest.

 

[The Craw]

i only buy what i can afford. i set aside some of my paycheck for collectibles. if i got too much stuff coming i just cancel. but i mostly collect 12in figs not alot of expensive statues or PFs. but the way 12in fig prices are rising i can see some cutbacks in the future.

 

[Jen]

Trust me this thread is all to real for me. I, like P!tu have decided to cancel almost everything because this hobby is financially impossible for me right now. Once I get out I won't look back because I do feel that this is an addiction that should definitely be controlled.

I came to this realization just a little while ago but I already feel like I am making exceptional progress. Remember guys, it isn't a good deal if you are paying interest.

You, me, Ill Jedi and Ed all went crazy together.....bad, bad enablers we were!! What ever happened to customizerwannabe? I never see him around anymore.

 

[p!tu]

You, me, Ill Jedi and Ed all went crazy together.....bad, bad enablers we were!! What ever happened to customizerwannabe? I never see him around anymore.

I know! Dad!! Where are you!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[El Roranous]

You, me, Ill Jedi and Ed all went crazy together.....bad, bad enablers we were!! What ever happened to customizerwannabe? I never see him around anymore.

Isn't this the truth.


I think Ed has moved on to a new expensive hobby. He seems like the type- wait he even said he was the type to get bored of things easily. Either way, we were all bad enablers together and now the time has come to pay the real price.

 

[Agent0028]

I think this whole board is a bunch of enablers. Had I not joined here I would not have anything more than the James Bond figures and some Star Wars figures. No Marvel, PF's, no Gentle Giant, no DC Direct. Golly my collection would be boring if I had never joined here...