Goldin Buying Experience

[kingofsnake]

Hi all. Last night I made a purchase off of Goldin Auctions for the first time and wanted to share my experience. As full disclaimer, I have a low opinion of Ken Goldin, all that he does and all that he stands for. However, a PC 1/1 card showed up and I felt that I had no choice but to register and bid.

The auction ended last night at 7 pm after which there was a 30 minute "extended bidding" period in which anyone who bid before 7 pm can keep bidding. Each new bid however extends the auction by another 30 minutes, so theoretically each auction could last for a very, very long time. Bidder identity is hidden, sniping becomes impossible, so one is basically at the whim of whoever wants to shill this auction. This particular auction ended about forty minutes later and I had the highest bid at $2,180. This is where it becomes interesting to me:

I was given two options: I could have the card shipped to my address in California. The cost would be $2,180 plus a Buyer's Premium of $479.60, Shipping and Handlng of $19, Insurance of $23.94, Tax of $214.26, and Payment Fee of $81.08. The total cost would be $2,997.88 and if one wants to pay with credit card, Goldin charges an additional 3%. If one wants to have the card shipped to the PSA vault however, the cost becomes: $2,180 plus $479.60. plus Payment Fee of $79.79, for a total of $2,739.39. However the card would be stuck at PSA vault and, from what I gather from reading other threads on Blowout, one still needs to pay the taxes and miscellaneous fees when eventually requesting shipment.

So I decided to link my checking account to the Goldin website (in order to avoid the 3% fee) and requested the direct shipping method. The payment process is supposed to take up to 5 business days and I will update this thread when/if they ship the card. I just wanted to inform those (like me) who had never bid on Goldin auctions that a $2,180 winning bid can end up costing $2,998.88 or more. It certainly seems like a profitable racket that Ken Goldin is running.

Any thoughts or opinions are welcome.

[green_stiller]

The buyer pays the premium model is definitely something special! With Goldin and similar houses, the fact that the premium doesn't include most of the other fees is crazy. I've bought once from Goldin and once from PWCC, but really try to avoid the houses.

[kingofsnake]

Received the card today from FedEx. Here it is:

[@cp]

Received the card today from FedEx. Here it is:

My favuorite year of exquisite for card design. Love it.

[dengbang]

That's a big JJ pick up, Congrats!