REX'S EMAIL about BEANIE "WORTH" |
In a message dated 29/6/98 14:11:19, you wrote: <<Dear Rex, My name is Nan and I wanted to ask you why bears are more expensive than other animals? The others are very cute too!!! I really want princess and Erin (Who doesen't?) but there price 40-100$ each!Ty priced them to be $5 so why are they so expensive? Your fan, Nan Ni Lexington KY>>
Hello Nan,
It seems that people have liked bears ever since the first "Teddy" came out many years ago to honor one of the Presidents of the United States, Theodore (Teddy) Roosevelt.
Some people only collect bears, and many different companies make ONLY bears. Of course the older ones are now VERY expensive, and by "old" I do not mean as NEW as the Beanie bears!!
IF people would not pay such high prices for Princess and Erin and some of the other "current" bears, then the prices would get to be where they are supposed to be. After all, they are just toys!!
REX
In a message dated 31/5/98 23:55:43, you wrote: <<How come beanies with mistakes on them cost more. I would rather have a beanie thats made right then have a beanie with a mistake that makes the beanie look ugly. Sly with a brown belly is an example. It makes it look ugly. Anothers are Maple, Liberty, Lefty, Righty and Britannia with upside down flags look so incorrect.And if a beanie is missing somthing, wouldn't it be cost LESS. I want to know why!!!!!>>
Hello Taylor,
It seems that "collectors", NOT kids, like these mistakes simply because they are supposed to be "rarer" than the normal Beanies. Since these people, many of whom are grownups, collect and see dollar signs at the same time, they assume that they can sell these mistakes at a higher price than the regular Beanies.
REX
In a message dated 24/5/98 02:17:36, you wrote: <<Dear Rex, Hi, it's me your 14 year old friend Anka from N.J. again. Ok here's the thing, my friend got a Valentino from the perfect Yankee game. His Valentino is MWMT w/ the mint cards of course,but he got it autographed that same day by David Wells, the Yankee pitcher, on its belly. Does this increase his beanie's value? If so what is it worth? Thanks Rex, you're the best!>>
Hello again Anka,
What a place to autograph poor Valentino, on his belly!
People do collect signatures of sports figures so I guess he would be "worth" more, plus he is already special because of the mint card that came with him.
REX
In a message dated 8/5/98 07:44:15, you wrote:<<Hello again Rex, First I would like to say thank you for letting people read my question about dinosaurs. My new question I would like to ask you is about Beanies. So many people (moms & dads) are collecting Beanie right now and reselling them at such high prices to make a profet for themselves. I have been trying to complete my own collection and it is so hard when people are asking $20 + for a beanie that cost them $5 to $6. You are a very popular one too Rex, they are asking over $1000.00 for you and I have yet to find one that my allowance can afford. I don't think I ever will. Anyway, My question is: Will moms and dads ever get tired of Beanie Babies (grow up) and let us kids have a chance to buy Beanies at the price that Mr. Ty originally set for us when he started beanies, or should we kids just give up on the chance to own one of the older beanies and just live with the fact that we can never complete our own collection that we don't want to sell? I have even had my mommy ask me if I wanted to sell some of my beanies. I really think that all parents are thinking of themselves and not really about us kids. Princess says hello and she thinks you are a cutie and wants to know if you will give her a piggy back ride so she can see for miles and miles. Thanks Rex and I hope you have a great day. Kody Koelling Washington State.>>
Hello Kody,
Well, that's a complicated question.
You can still get most of the current Beanies at the "normal" adoption fees. Nobody can have everything they might want! My older retired Beanie pals, such as Web and Trap, are VERY difficult to find because there are not that many of them anywhere.
Some grown ups assume that they are "investing" their money when they get the poor critters. That means that they expect to be able to sell them, preferably sooner than later, and be able to make a profit. This does not always work that way, especially if they only have retireds from the last 3 retirements. There were SO MANY cloned and adopted that people are not really looking for those that much.
Adopt as many different Beanies as you can and SAVE them for a couple years. AND PLAY WITH YOUR EXTRAS-- that is why Father Ty said they were made, although I sometimes wonder!!
Magic often takes Princess and me on trips to the other planets-- WOW, that is fun! Your Princess is welcome to come along.
REX
In a message dated 28/4/98 19:20:07, you wrote: <<My name is Sarah Randall and I am from Georgia. I love Beanie Babies and you are my favorite!! I have a question for you: My friend has a Teddy the brown bear and one of the arms are shorter then the other one. Does that make him worth more? Also I love Erin and I really want her but none of the stores near me have gotten her in. And everyone sells them for so much money! Why do all the people have to sell them for so much?I am just a kid and I think I will probably never have her! :( Oh well!! I love your web site! You are the greatest Beanie Baby!! I think you are the best! Your friend, Sarah :o) >>
Hello Sarah,
The shorter arm of your friend's Teddy does not make him any more valuable. It would simply mean that he has a handicap and you friend would have to take extra good care of him.
Erin is NOT common anywhere. YES, they are VERY expensive simply because they are so hard to find.
IF someone adopted theirs for $200 they would have to ask more just to cover expenses.
Unfortunately a lot of official adoption centers are the ones making most of the $$ because they sell them at auctions, beanie shows and online, or charge $5 for a "raffle" that over a hundred people buy!!
REX
In a message dated 16/4/98 16:16:31, you wrote: <<My question was: Do you think that in the future, say 8 years, that beanies will be worth a lot of money. Will they be big collectors items and sell for more money then they are now. Or is it possible that in the future Beanie Babies will not be worth anymore then they are today because there are such large quantities of them and because they are not made of real expensive materials. Perhaps the only reason that they are selling for increasing prices right now is because there are so many people who want them. Kate NY>>
Hello Kate,
No one can really predict what my Beanie pals might be "worth" in 8 years, or even 1 month, from now.
People don't seem to understand that the newer Beanies are cloned in MUCH higher numbers than some of the older ones were, meaning that there are MANY more in existance.
Squealer tells me that it all will depend on whether the WEB hype and the erratic shipments continue. People say that "supply and demand" determine what "worth" is placed on anything. Since the supply is sporadic at best, and the demand is fueled by all the websites dedicated to my Beanie pals, unless the WEB becomes so clogged by excessive usage (which I think is already happening!) that it will become next to impossible to log onto anything, the interest will continue for years. The release of new critters and the retirement of others also creates a continued "market".
REX
In a message dated 12/4/98 03:48:02, you wrote: <<Hi Rex! I am twelve and live in Lousianna. I Have a general beanie question: I want to know why I can't get Libearty. I have been trying for months to get him. Everyone I e-mail says that what I have to offer is not enough but they will sell him to me for ex-amount of money. I am only twelve and do not have hundreds of dollars. I offered two Lizzys and one Hoot do you think this is fair? Thank you very much Rex. Chrissy>>
Hello Chrissy,
Libearty is one of the older retired Beanies. Once one of my pals retires, for some reason his price goes up, probably because you can't find them anymore for the "normal" adoption fee.
Unfortunately your offer might have been a good one, BUT if the person already has a Libearty, he has been collecting for much longer than you probably have and already has the ones you wanted to trade.
With luck you just might find a good trade. What you should do is always get an extra current, if you can, then when the next retirement comes around, you would have a couple more to trade with.
REX
In a message dated 11/4/98 21:26:12, you wrote: <<Dear Rex, I'm Chelsea Bartholomew. I'm 7 years old, and I'm from Columbus, NE. I was on ebay and I noticed that Radars without tags were going for more than mint Radars. Do you know why? Love, Chelsea>>
Hello Chelsea,
Valentino said that he can see no reason for a tagless Radar bringing a high adoption fee on eBay-- although he thinks that the prices they get are sometimes totally unreasonable.
I was web surfing once and saw a Roary on eBay. It had been chewed up by its owner's cats and the head was hanging off. It was advertised as a "jewelry box", since you could open the head and put a ring or whatever inside! There was even a photo of the poor cat!!
And guess what? It sold for over $20!! eBay is not the cheapest place to adopt Beanies.
REX
In a message dated 4/4/98 14:37:08, you wrote: <<HELLO REX MY NAME IS STEPHANIE AND I LIVE IN KENTUCKY AND I WAS JUST WONDERING IF IT WAS TRUE THAT BEANIES ARE WORTH MORE, DEPENDING ON HOW MANY OF THAT PARTICULAR ONE WAS MADE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!>>
Hello Stephanie,
WOW, that is how I think it is supposed to be. Valentino tells me that it does not always work that way, though.
First of all, Father Ty NEVER tells anybody how many of my Beanie pals were made. The numbers you might find somewhere are only guesses!
Second, IF only about 2000 Royal Blue Peanuts were made, why is her price SO much higher than Maple PRIDE when there are only about 3000 of him??
Collectors are sometimes strange and due to hype and the so called "Price Guides", the prices change all the time, usually upward. Since a lot of "collectors" are not kids, rather they are "investors" who think that some retired Beanies are worth their weight in gold! Unfortunately even the price of gold varies a lot-- a couple years ago that precious metal was above $800 and now it is about $300!!
So love your Beanies as friends because a good friend is worth zillions of dollars!!
REX
In a message dated 22/3/98 01:58:22, you wrote: <<Hi Rex! For some time now I have watched the beanie prices on pages, bulletin boards, and stuff. I think it's amazing at some of the prices people will pay. I saw someone offer over $5,000 for a princess without a rose; a Ty mistake of course. Seeing all of this made me actually wonder what it costs to make a beanie. I suppose you'd have to consider all the material, beans, stuffing, and all the other things they are made out of. My mom said that you also have to add things like labor, electricity, and any type of equipment used. Do you know the actual cost to make one beanie? I'm dying of curiosity. Shari Ohio>>
Hello Shari,
Princess told me that if the Official Adoption Centers can get their Beanies for around $2.50, that would normally mean, thinking in terms of any "business", that the Cloning Labs produce them at LESS than half that amount. The labor costs are not that much because the countries where the cloning labs are located have VERY low wages and often employ young people who should really be in school.
REX
In a message dated 17/3/98 00:11:20, you wrote: <<hi rex, what is the diference in the pellets used in the beanie babies. Does one kind make them more valuble then the other kind. Lori in Michigan>>
Hello Lori,
If you check out the Princess FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions about Princess) that my friend Sonny has in the Beanie section of his web site, he describes the difference between the pellets.
NO, the type of pellets does not make a Beanie more valuable than another having different pellets-- unless one of them was older than the other.
REX
In a message dated 15/3/98 20:53:55, you wrote: <<Dear Rex, I have all the bunnies, Floppity, Hoppity, and Hippity. How much are they worth? My Hoppity is very fat. How much is she worth? Jenny Seto @ California >>
Hello Jenny,
WOW, the three of them are hopping up and down because their sisters are with you in California! I bet they love it there with you.
ANY Beanie is worth all the love that you can give them, nothing more nor less! It doesn't matter how "fat" they are or how scrawny. And, as you probably already know, they love you right back and try to make you happy.
REX
In a message dated 24/2/98 22:33:51, you wrote: <<Hi Rex! I have Quakers without the wings, Spot without the spot on his back and Tobasco with the red paws....but I've lost the hang tags. Can you tell me how I might be able to get them? Is there a way you can buy them or will they still carry value without the tags? Thanks! Natalie>>angele017
Hi Natalie,
WOW, you have some of my older Beanie friends!
If you check the various trading boards, such as K&K, they often have ads for just hang tags. Or even better, why not place your own "want" ads on a couple sites?
All of my Beanie pals are valued at zillions in Love even without ANY of their tags. But when it comes down to a human $$ "worth", without the hang tag they might be only 75% of their usual adoption fee.
REX
In a message dated 20/2/98 22:33:38, you wrote: <<Hi, I'm 7 yr old & really love my beanies! One of my favorites is Coral which i got long before I was a collector. It only has a slight crease on the tag, thanks goodness, but what i was wondering was if the fact that its tush tag says Magic would make it worth more or less. What would you think the selling value of this Beanie would be remembering that the tag does have a small crease? Thanks Rex Julie from OH>>
Hello Julie,
Your Coral with the wrong tush tag makes it somewhat more "worth" to someone who collects my Beanie pals having tush tag "mistakes".
If the "slight crease" does not make the white on the hang tag show through, then it's "value" would not be too much lower than for a "mint" tag. A crease is not an actual "fold", and a fold is not really a "bend".
Try to remember that everything is relative. Since the human dollar "worth" seems to rise every week, there is always someone who might like to have your Coral even without hang tag! Coral is sitting here with me and is glad that you have one of his sisters and said to tell you that the "worth" of any Beanie is counted by the hugs and Love you give them!
REX
In a message dated 8/2/98 00:53:27, you wrote: <<Hi Rex! I have a question. I have heard that Seamore is worth a lot. Why does he seem to be so hard to find? I assume this makes him worth more. Are any versions of Seamore worth others? I have one, and wouldn't give it up for the world, but I was just curious. Thanks!>>
Hi,
Most of the white Beanies seem to become harder to find as time goes by simply because they are white and get dirty faster-- for some reason!
The only thing that Seamore tells me might make him "worth" more is if he has an older tag generation, is Canadian or has somebody elses tush tag. That can happen. My human friend, Sonny, has a Cubbie with Quackers tush tag!
Seamore says thanks for all the love you have for his brother and says hello.
REX
In a message dated 4/2/98 23:52:13, you wrote: <<Dear Rex, I would like to ask you a question! Are beanie babies really supposed to be over $6.00?? Do you think stores and people who sell their beanies over $6.00 is a little to expensive?? Some people can't afford beanies over $50.Or even less than that!!!!So, how big is your family tree?Pretty big Huh?I am so, so, so sorry that you are extinct.Well, I will talk to you later!!!Gotta Go!!!!! Sincerely, Your # 1 Fan,>>
Hello #1 Fan,
Official Beanie Adoption Centers are supposed to charge the normal adoption fee for their Beanies, which is around $6 in the United States. Princess finds it hard to believe but she was told that a lot of stores keep a bunch of beanies, including retireds, under the counter to sell at much higher prices. And some even sell the new ones and others that are difficult to find to their friends and secondary market sellers for higher prices. That means that they make more money and the kids who look for them can never see them in stores!
Princess says it shouldn't be like that, and I have to agree.
My dinosaur family has many hundreds of members, from very small ones to the really big ones you see in museums.
REX
In a message dated 1/2/98 17:00:38, you wrote: <<Hi Rex, Is it true that a beanie is not worth a 100 dollars it is worth how much you love it? Love you alot rex Amanda >>
Hello Amanda,
VERY good! That is what I have been trying to say to a lot of my human friends who ask me about the "worth" of their Beanies.
I love you too, and so do all my Beanie pals. They really liked your question and the answer that you gave it.
REX
In a message dated 22/1/98 18:28:56, you wrote: <<Hellooooo REX your my favorite dino I want you as a beanie babby. But I need to no how much you cost. Thanks From Taylor >>
Hi Taylor,
Since I am retired, the Beanie Foster Adoprion Centers usually charge a higher adoption fee than for a current Beanie. Peace suggested that you check out Beanie Mom's price "guide" and the trading and auction pages for the latest "real" prices.
REX
In a message dated 20/1/98 22:16:54, you wrote: <<DEAR REX, MY NAME IS JESSICA AND I WAS WONDERING IF YOU AND YOUR BROTHERS WERE WORTH OVER 100 DOLLARS? I HAVE NEVER SAW YOU AND I WANT TO KNOW HOW I COULD SEE YOU? AFTER ALL YOU ARE MY FAVORITE AND ABOUT THE BEANIE CONTEST WHAT BEANIE DO YOU GET? PLEASE ANSWER MY QUESTIONS I CAN ONLY GET BACK TO YOU ON THE WEEKENDS IF YOU MAIL TO jsearch OR ON THE WEEK DAYS IF YOU SAY REPLY TO AUTHER BUT I WANT YOU TO E MAIL ME ON THE WEEKENDS P.S I REALLY WANT A BEANIE FOR MY SISTER SHE HAS A FRACTIORED EYE SOCKIT
Hello Jessica,
I have a habit of NOT talking about the money "worth" of any of my Beanie friends because, as I have said before, friends are worth zillions of any kind of money. You could check out the adoption fees that Beanie Mom gives on her site every week, BUT even those prices are not very good "guides" because if you look at the online auctions you will see my rarer Beanie pals like Peking and Slither finding foster homes for MUCH more than it says on the price guide!
You can see me right here on my homepage, in a pic Peace took on a fieldtrip with Bronty and me. Take a look.
Sorry to hear about your sister. My human friend Sonny has a bad hip from an auto accident in 1982, and sometimes he can hardly move!
REX
In a message dated 16/1/98 03:06:53, you wrote: <<hi rex? I was wondering how much tabasco is worth. I need him for my little sis' b-day>>
Hi,
About the only Tabasco you will find really cheap are those small bottles of hot sauce in your neighborhood grocery store!
My Beanie friends and I do not like to talk about our worth in dollars, Yen or whatever because we all believe that a good friend is worth zillions. Father Ty lets us be adopted for a couple dollars, which is really great for a kid with a small allowance. One adoption per week would mean a whole bunch of Beanie pals at the end of a year. And when we retire, like Tabasco did, it means that our "worth" increases to zillizillions.
Some people like to check out Beanie Mom's price "GUIDE" to see what some people pay to adopt my retired friends. You could check there.
REX
In a message dated 15/1/98 21:52:09, you wrote: <<Ok, my question is: If I got a Beanie with a 4th generation tag, and then Ty cahnged the tag in the middle of it's career, which tag would be worth more? Both of them would be easy to find. Maddie>>
Hi Maddie,
Older things are usually worth more, whether they are Beanie tags, old coins or antique dolls. But just like these other things, the "newer" they look, which they usually call "MINT", the more they are worth.
Peace said to tell you that if your older tag was all scrunched up and had writing on it, and your cat liked to throw the older Beanie around the house, than it would be worth less than a nice minty fresh newer Beanie.
REX
In a message dated 2/1/98 01:47:10, you wrote: <<Dear Rex, I have a Mystic that has a irredescent horn instead of a brown one, how much is he worth? >>
Dear Ac,
What is a good friend worth? Do you have a good friend? Would you put a value on her or him?? A really good friend is worth zillions and zillions of dollars, or Yen, or German Marks or whatever. It would never occur to me to put a value on any of my Beanie friends who I play with all day long-- except when I am answering email of course!
REX
In a message dated 7/1/98 01:33:01, you wrote: <<how mush is a new mystic with 2 swing tag attachements?>>
Hi again 2 Cool,
I think that what you mean is that there are 2 red plastic thingys on your Mystic and only 1 hang tag??
Good, then very carefully take the extra one off and save it somewhere for a Beanie that lost his red thing and tag. Then if you find another tag you can attach it and the Beanie will be good as new-- or MINT as they call it.
REX
In a message dated 6/1/98 21:44:57, you wrote: <<I have an oringinal Lizzy without ty tag.It has a first generation tush tag with my initals on the tag.it is written this big.How much do you think it is worth?>>
Hi,
WOW, it looks like you might have one of the first tie-dyed kinds if my friend Lizzy.
Some people like all of the Beanie tags to be totally perfect, and if one tag is missing and the other one has writing on it then they would probably not even want him! Or they might offer you like one forth of what he should be worth. Don't sell your friend. How would you like it if your best friend sold you to somebody strange?
To us Beanies it doesn't matter at all if we have tags or not. After a while the tags get all scratchy and all anyway. We never wear them in the nursery!
REX