Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
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Here goes, it depends. I gave up trying to define "degrees of hinging" - it is either hinged or not. If removing from an album it is usually far safer to slit the hinge than to try to pull it off unless it is an old Dennison mounted properly. In a lot of cases the slit remnant follows the natural curvature of the stamp and looks better (in my opinion) than many stamps where the hinge has been pulled off.
Pricing - let's say nice classic British Colonies early to mid 20th century cataloging $1.00 and up. I usually price MNH at around 60 per cent of catalog and up. True MLH or a properly slit hinge (sometimes hard to tell form MLH) at 40 per cent. These are prices for nice, fresh copies.
Mint hinged depends on what hinge removal did to the gum. I generally price them at 25 to 33 per cent of catalog. Stamps where the hinge created a "bulge" by sight or feel are soaked and sold as no gum at 10 to 20 per cent of catalog. If they are cheap stamps they are usually still soaked and placed in the donation box......
Hope that helps.
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For my stamp collection inventory and when selling stamps online, I always value the mint-hinged stamp at 50% of the Scott-listed value for a never-hinged version. When listing stamps for sale online, I always list the given catalogue value but state that Scott does not list that stamp's value in mint-hinged condition, only in never-hinged condition. For my selling price online, I usually discount to somewhere between 30% and 50% from Scott-listed catalogue value. So the mint-hinged versions of stamps I am selling where Scott only gives the never-hinged price will have a listed price of 15% to 25% of the Scott value.
I realize that the 50% value is totally arbitrary, but if trying to assign a value I need to use some percentage. If you look at the pricing that Scott gives for sets prior to where they only list never-hinged prices, there is sometimes pricing given for both never-hinged and mint-hinged conditions. The discount that they assign for the mint-hinged sets can vary from a minor percentage drop from the never-hinged pricing, to significant percentage drops for the mint-hinged sets.
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12:41:04am
Start with the catalog's listing for MNH fine condition,
and discount that for what ever you think being MLH
will decrease it, then consider a further discount
if the stamp s not otherwise perfect. (ie. centering, etc.)
Next, discount that to get actual dealer retail price,
and split that further to discern what you can sell it
to a dealer or collector for, in a one to one sale.
Or alternatively ask your six year old son, daughter,
niece or nephew to pick a number between one and a hundred
and use that as the discount percentage that a willing buyer
would offer a willing seller on a fine balmy day
on the beach in southern Spain.
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Ah more "Charlie-isms"! I love them 
If Charlie's method fails, ask yourself, and be honest with yourself, What would you be willing to pay for a stamp based on what you have already paid for stamps in similar condition.
Scott does itself a disservice by not noting what happens to the values of unused (hinged) stamps past the point of valuation where all stamps are considered to be mint, never hinged in the catalog introduction. However, Scott does make at least one comment regarding this in the United States section of the Standard Catalog following US Scott #771. I think that it is sufficient to say that under normal circumstances that it would apply to similar stamps from any country.
"Value for Hinged Stamps After No. 771
This catalog does not value unused stamps after No. 771 in hinged condition. Hinged unused stamps from No. 772 to the present are worth considerably less than the values given for unused stamps, which are for never-hinged examples."
The advice given by others in previous responses is sound. 50% is a good starting point, if the only "problem" with the stamp is that it is hinged. If there are other issues with the stamp, then of course the value would be diminished even further.
Personally with my stamps, I price all unused (hinged) stamps starting at 55% off catalog value. If such a discount would take a stamp, as in the case of USA stamps, below face value, I don't sell it, and rather use it for postage. In fact, for most modern unused (hinged) USA stamps that I get out of collections, I simply use them for postage as they are very difficult to sell.
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Here's my experience in disposing of unused, previously or still hinged pre-1920 US stamps ... from my own personal albums (2 blue books).
Starting with only the stamps with a catalog value of $500 or more (using the prices for unused stamps from dealer catalogs), I offered individual stamps on EBay. As my inventory declined, I eventually listed all stamps with a minimum retail price of $200.
I felt that a decent (but unrealistic) price for my collection would be 20% of dealer catalog, and that's how I listed the individual stamps. Lo and behold ... I've sold slightly over 100 stamps at my store for an average percentage of 19.7%!
The rest of my collection?
1. Sold my entire Airmail collection (complete thru 1999) to one buyer.
2. Sold my entire 1920-1999 unused and mint collection to one buyer.
3. Sold (pending) the remainder collection of unused pre-1920 to one buyer.
Remaining at the store are a bit over 30 stamps, 4 sets, and a few items I'm selling for my son-in-law. May have to have a 50% off fire-sale so that I can retire again and take up mountain climbing! 
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How do you value a MLH stamp in the following situation- while dealing with a specific country you're beyond the point in the Scott Catalog where the yellow box tells you that values for mint stamps are for MNH items. You have a MLH stamp- the used value is more than the MNH value. How do you value the MLH stamp? If the used value was lower than the MNH value I use the used value because it is not MNH. But when the used value is more than the MNH value I can't use the used value but it also isn't MNH. I've been using the lesser value (MNH) but is this right? It seems better than creating an arbitrary value.
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01:58:20pm
Auctions - Approvals
re: Valuing MLH Stamps
Here goes, it depends. I gave up trying to define "degrees of hinging" - it is either hinged or not. If removing from an album it is usually far safer to slit the hinge than to try to pull it off unless it is an old Dennison mounted properly. In a lot of cases the slit remnant follows the natural curvature of the stamp and looks better (in my opinion) than many stamps where the hinge has been pulled off.
Pricing - let's say nice classic British Colonies early to mid 20th century cataloging $1.00 and up. I usually price MNH at around 60 per cent of catalog and up. True MLH or a properly slit hinge (sometimes hard to tell form MLH) at 40 per cent. These are prices for nice, fresh copies.
Mint hinged depends on what hinge removal did to the gum. I generally price them at 25 to 33 per cent of catalog. Stamps where the hinge created a "bulge" by sight or feel are soaked and sold as no gum at 10 to 20 per cent of catalog. If they are cheap stamps they are usually still soaked and placed in the donation box......
Hope that helps.
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this post
re: Valuing MLH Stamps
For my stamp collection inventory and when selling stamps online, I always value the mint-hinged stamp at 50% of the Scott-listed value for a never-hinged version. When listing stamps for sale online, I always list the given catalogue value but state that Scott does not list that stamp's value in mint-hinged condition, only in never-hinged condition. For my selling price online, I usually discount to somewhere between 30% and 50% from Scott-listed catalogue value. So the mint-hinged versions of stamps I am selling where Scott only gives the never-hinged price will have a listed price of 15% to 25% of the Scott value.
I realize that the 50% value is totally arbitrary, but if trying to assign a value I need to use some percentage. If you look at the pricing that Scott gives for sets prior to where they only list never-hinged prices, there is sometimes pricing given for both never-hinged and mint-hinged conditions. The discount that they assign for the mint-hinged sets can vary from a minor percentage drop from the never-hinged pricing, to significant percentage drops for the mint-hinged sets.
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Silence in the face of adversity is the father of complicity and collusion, the first cousins of conspiracy..
19 Jan 2017
12:41:04am
re: Valuing MLH Stamps
Start with the catalog's listing for MNH fine condition,
and discount that for what ever you think being MLH
will decrease it, then consider a further discount
if the stamp s not otherwise perfect. (ie. centering, etc.)
Next, discount that to get actual dealer retail price,
and split that further to discern what you can sell it
to a dealer or collector for, in a one to one sale.
Or alternatively ask your six year old son, daughter,
niece or nephew to pick a number between one and a hundred
and use that as the discount percentage that a willing buyer
would offer a willing seller on a fine balmy day
on the beach in southern Spain.
2 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.
04:32:01am
re: Valuing MLH Stamps
Ah more "Charlie-isms"! I love them
If Charlie's method fails, ask yourself, and be honest with yourself, What would you be willing to pay for a stamp based on what you have already paid for stamps in similar condition.
Scott does itself a disservice by not noting what happens to the values of unused (hinged) stamps past the point of valuation where all stamps are considered to be mint, never hinged in the catalog introduction. However, Scott does make at least one comment regarding this in the United States section of the Standard Catalog following US Scott #771. I think that it is sufficient to say that under normal circumstances that it would apply to similar stamps from any country.
"Value for Hinged Stamps After No. 771
This catalog does not value unused stamps after No. 771 in hinged condition. Hinged unused stamps from No. 772 to the present are worth considerably less than the values given for unused stamps, which are for never-hinged examples."
The advice given by others in previous responses is sound. 50% is a good starting point, if the only "problem" with the stamp is that it is hinged. If there are other issues with the stamp, then of course the value would be diminished even further.
Personally with my stamps, I price all unused (hinged) stamps starting at 55% off catalog value. If such a discount would take a stamp, as in the case of USA stamps, below face value, I don't sell it, and rather use it for postage. In fact, for most modern unused (hinged) USA stamps that I get out of collections, I simply use them for postage as they are very difficult to sell.
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this post
re: Valuing MLH Stamps
Here's my experience in disposing of unused, previously or still hinged pre-1920 US stamps ... from my own personal albums (2 blue books).
Starting with only the stamps with a catalog value of $500 or more (using the prices for unused stamps from dealer catalogs), I offered individual stamps on EBay. As my inventory declined, I eventually listed all stamps with a minimum retail price of $200.
I felt that a decent (but unrealistic) price for my collection would be 20% of dealer catalog, and that's how I listed the individual stamps. Lo and behold ... I've sold slightly over 100 stamps at my store for an average percentage of 19.7%!
The rest of my collection?
1. Sold my entire Airmail collection (complete thru 1999) to one buyer.
2. Sold my entire 1920-1999 unused and mint collection to one buyer.
3. Sold (pending) the remainder collection of unused pre-1920 to one buyer.
Remaining at the store are a bit over 30 stamps, 4 sets, and a few items I'm selling for my son-in-law. May have to have a 50% off fire-sale so that I can retire again and take up mountain climbing!
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