So what to do? When do you sell your collection? Do you sell the entire collection? Do you only sell the key books or the stuff that doesn't really move raw non-key comics? As an investor or speculator in collectibles like comic books when do you sell your collection or issue?
The Bronze and Copper Age
The Bronze Age started in the '70s and ended in '84. The Copper Age coincides with the beginning of the Secret Wars and the creation of Image Comics in the early '90s. This is my primary specialization in comics because this is the period I was reading comic books and have a great deal of experience with this era. Further, my focus from this era is mainly poor to mid-grade comics, not the high flyers that get all the hype.
Now, this era's lower-grade books don't leave large amounts of money on the vine of profit. The big amounts for this era/condition are usually under $1000 and quite often under $100. Further, these books have to be cleaned and pressed to be sent to the grader.
The primary rule of thumb is to know your market. Mine is Bronze and early Copper Age; perhaps yours is Modern Age - it doesn't matter. Whatever age or category of comics; you have to know the market to extract value. This will give you insight on when to pull the trigger and sell a book.
Captain America #100
By way of example, if I have Moon Knight #1 (clearly a Bronze Age book) and Captain America #100 (clearly a late Silver Age book), which is the best bet? My suggestion narrows your focus to a specific area - say, Silver Age books. That way, you play to your strength.
In the example above, I would obviously sell Captain America because he has had a decade-long run in the theaters and hold my Moon Knight #1. Moonie is just getting started with a new TV series.
Basically, what does the Marvel/Disney team have in store for the character's future? Moon Knight has a way to go to develop as a Marvel character and we haven't even seen a movie yet, let alone his upcoming TV series.
Criteria for When to Sell?
There are probably only three things to really look at when selling a comic book:
- First, has the character topped out in popularity? In other words, has the studio moved on from this character after devoting a decade of movies around the character?
- Second, sell secondary keys first; I tend to move villain keys, origin stories, and second appearances and move them out of inventory first. These are background minor or major keys around the character’s identity. This way I can benefit from price uptick and current desirability while the character is still popular.
- Finally, I look for an anti-catalyst; what does this mean? Essentially, what else is popular and going to grab up media attention? If the Avengers has a new movie out; then more than likely The Defenders will be forgotten. Ultimately it comes down to what is the next “hot topic?” Yep. It is that simple. Who is going to take up media space this year? Not Black Widow, and not Captain America, so these books will probably flatline and can be sold if necessary.
Let's look at it a couple of books previously mentioned: Captain America #100 and Moon Knight #1:
| Comic | Grade | Price Current Sale | FMV Current |
| Captain America #100 | 8.0 | $1025 | $1000 |
| Moon Knight #1 | 8.0 | $150 | $140 |
Marvel Mania
The numbers speak for themselves and Captain America #100 will probably not go up in value substantially over the next couple of years. To put it bluntly, there are better places to park your cash. Now we are getting into the age of alternative lifestyle characters and various new demographics represented. Therefore, the old Heroes like Captain America will be put aside for a substantial amount of time to come. Cap has had a good run and will be back, but not anytime soon.
Marvel mania drives the next ten years, and Marvel fans want to see every gosh-darned superhero represented on the big screen from the comics, variety baby! 
Conclusion
Financially, Cap has done well and you might as well "Cap-italize" on his success. In regards to Moon Knight, we have the beginning of the franchise, not the end. Who is Moon Knight? No one outside of comic books knows. And that, my friends, is exactly the point.
The larger audience is going to go nuts over all the superheroes and villains over the next decade or two, Moon Knight among them. This will drive the price on his collectibles much higher, so hold onto that Moonie! Finally, when making a decision to sell a book, remember this old axiom, “What goes up, must eventually come down.” This is especially true in the speculation arena. Good Hunting!
