Collecting old postcards is a very popular hobby so there is a very strong market for old postcards. Postcards are worth something because collectors of vintage postcards will search high and low for new additions and will normally search online auction websites, land based auctions, collectors shops, antique centers, antique markets and the specialist postcard fairs.
You will be amazed what people collect. From the standard local history enthusiasts to dentist chairs, gypsies and midgets. You name it and you will normally find it on a picture postcard. If you are considering starting to collect old postcards you will need to find a subject, something you are passionate about.
You need to bear in mind your budget. If you have a very low budget then it would not be a good idea to collect original Titanic postcards because these normally start at around £15.00 and can move up to many hundreds of pounds. If you choose something so obscure you will have trouble finding postcards to add to your collection and will probably lose interest.
Apert from collecting Manchester Suburbs I also collect vintage postcards of a Barnsley photographer. The only ones I am missing are the rare examples and on average I would find one per year so collecting these is not for the fainthearted. But when I visit postcard fairs I know I will take home some good Manchester so I am happy with that.
The market for old postcards remains very buoyant. Although the number of postcard fairs has dwindled over the years the collector can still find new additions online via specialist websites and auctions. Collectors just need to feed their habit on a regular basis. They are satisfied that their collection not only grows but increases in quality and sometimes value.
The value of postcards vary and no two old albums of postcards will bring the same valuation. The vast majority of postcards sent in the golden age were the ones that collectors ignore because they are so common and can be worth a couple of pence each.
These would include views of landscapes, seascapes, churches, general greetings, studio photographs, promenade views, castles and every tourist area you can think of. These postcards were produced in their tens of millions and many survive today. These were cheap to buy and post and their value has never really increased over the last 50-years.
All the money in postcards are with the scarce examples, the one-off images that would have been produced in very small numbers. When you try to value a postcard, consider the scarcity first. A lot of this is common sense.
A back street scene of a popular seaside resort will always be worth a lot more than a view of the promenade because they would be produced in far less numbers. Consider postcards from major cities. Views of the city center would be more common than views of a suburb so they are less valuable as a general rule. There are some exceptions to this but this is a general guide. Collectors want postcards of the back streets, the suburbs and anything that was produced in far less numbers.
These types of postcards are scarce and only a few would have survived. This is why dealers can charge a premium and why you sometimes see an auction frenzy online. The collector knows this is their only chance to purchase this postcard and who knows if it will surface again in their collecting lifetime.
This has happened to me many times in the past. Even someone who has been collecting a local area for 50-years will not have every postcard that was produced. You can buy a local history book with views taken from old postcards and there will always be some you have never seen in those 50-years.
That is the fascination of the hobby. How high prices can be realized and the fun of the chase. The anticipation of not knowing what you will find as you turn the next postcard over at a fair. The marketplace of collecting old postcards continues and will carry on regardless of recessions, pandemics and wars. It’s a bulletproof business fueled by enthusiastic collectors looking for that next elusive postcard to add to their collection.
If you have postcards that you would like valued then please get in touch. Your postcards will be worth something, the question is how much? Use the Contact Us page and send some photos taken on your mobile using the free image sharing Whatsapp. We can normally give you an honest appraisal with no obligation to sell.
