The 25 most valuable Lego sets of all time, from the Millennium Falcon to the Statue of Liberty Lego bricks aren't just for stepping on and screaming in horror. They're also quite the commodity. The beloved building toy has spawned a secondary market where rare sets can be worth thousands. With the help of Jeff Maciorowski from the Lego investing site Brickpicker, we present to you the 25 most valuable Lego sets in history. Ultimate Collector's Millennium Falcon: $3,987.40 Statue of Liberty: $1,998.87. Imperial Star Destroyer: $1,744. Death Star II: $1,656.87. Rebel Blockade Runner: $1,199.20. Castle Giant Chess Set: $1,128.20. Y-wing Attack Starfighter: $1,067.60 Super Star Destroyer: $881.33. Vader's TIE Advanced: $673.20. Marina Bay Sands: $657.40. Get the Slide Deck from Henry Blodget's IGNITION Presentation on the Future of Digital Read Business Insider On The Go Available on iOS or Android See All Jobs »
Thanks to our partnersInvestors say returns from gold, bank accounts, and the stock market over the last 15 years are no match for LEGO sets.According to a Telegraph analysis last month, LEGO sets kept in pristine condition have increased in value from 12 to 36 percent per year since 2000, whereas investments in gold and savings accounts saw annual returns of 9.6 and 2.8 percent, respectively. And returns from stock market investments also underperformed: The S&P 500 has returned 4.2 percent annually and the UK’s FTSE 100 has returned 4.1 percent, the value no higher than it was in 2000. “Personally, I have seen my own collection double in value over the last 3-4 years and that coincided with one of the worst economies of the last century,” LEGO investor Edward Mack writes in a blog post on the website BrickPicker, an online guide to Lego pricing and investing. “LEGO investing is something that has gone under the radar for years now, with only a few smart people tapping into the market,” Mack adds.
“I’m here to say that everybody can get involved, even to a small degree, and make money from LEGOs and have fun doing it.” There are several explanations for the investment value of Legos. US retail toy sales generated $18.08 billion in 2014, a 4 percent increase from $17.46 billion in 2013, reports industry tracker The NPD Group. And building sets like LEGO did especially well, accounting for the largest super-category of toy sales in 2014 at 13 percent. The building blocks appeal to an expansive market. Along with the obvious child consumer, LEGO also has a segment of older consumers who have their own money to spend on sets whenever they please. And even as pop culture trends change, the LEGO market will adapt. “The neat thing is that all sets are retired at some point, and several hundred are retired each year a movie run ends, a licence expires, or the LEGO company wants to refresh its range,” Ed Maciorowski, the founder of BrickPicker, tells The Telegraph.And because consumer habits coincide with pop culture, Maciorowski says the December premiere of the movie "Star Wars – The Force Awakens
," which broke box office records, will also awaken the demand for old Star Wars LEGO sets. The Ultimate Collector’s Millennium Falcon LEGOs set, which cost $500 at its release in 2007, now sells new for almost $4,000 according to BrickPicker. “It keeps ticking up. I wonder where it will stop,” Maciorowski, referring to the Millennium Falcon, told USA Today in 2012 when the set was valued at $2,165. But expert LEGO collectors say it’s not as easy as buying a popular set and stashing it away for a few years. Because the LEGO Group controls the supply of building sets, consumers don't know when a set will be discontinued. And just as the Millennium Falcon is a Star Wars-themed example of LEGO investment success, the Death Star LEGO set serves as a cautionary tale for investors.After stockpiling the Death Star box set when it was released in 2008 for $400, investors assumed they would see a sizable return in a few years when LEGO discontinued the set. But almost eight years later, LEGO is still making the Death Star and collectors' past investments are thus far worthless.
Storage is another potential issue. The boxes are often large and cumbersome, so it is difficult to keep them in pristine condition. Water damage, theft, and fire are serious risks, says Maciorowski, so some investors choose to insure their collections.Of course, for a true LEGO lover, the risks involved are somewhat less. It’s not the worst thing in the world if his returns don’t pan out accordingly, Maciorowski tells USA Today, “Even if the price of the set tanks, I still have the set.”Pentagon press secretary George Little announced he will retire on Nov. 15. George Little, who came to DOD from the CIA with Leon Panetta, announced he will retire Nov. 15 to spend more time with his young family. George Little, the Pentagon press secretary and former CIA spokesman, will retire on Nov. 15, he said in a statement on Friday. Little gave perhaps the most convincing version of saying he wanted to spend more time with his family in an extensive statement. “One of my immediate goals is to have a Blackberry-free Thanksgiving dinner for the first time in several years,” he wrote.
Little was spokesman at CIA for four years, serving alongside Leon Panetta during the Osama bin Laden raid. He came over to the Pentagon when Panetta was named defense secretary, in July 2011. Little opted for soft landing at the much more public Pentagon podium, creating a short-lived “dual spokesperson” arrangement with Rear Adm. John Kirby, who was spokesman for former Joint Chiefs Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen and now runs the Navy’s public affairs operations. Little soon took the reins solo, managing the transition from Robert Gates’ mostly Republican staff with the title of assistant to the secretary of defense for public affairs. With a smooth, deep baritoned voice, Little brought a calm mouthpiece to the Pentagon briefing room. He presided over a two-year period marked by the end of the Iraq war, a rise in drone strikes on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border and special operations forces missions worldwide. Little stayed on to walk Chuck Hagel into Panetta’s office, having the job of managing another former member of Congress-turned-defense secretary with a penchant for loose talk.
For his entire term, Little had to balance the public’s right to know what goes on inside the largest federal agency with the adminisration’s desired level of national security secrecy — all while managing a sharp amount of political message control from the White House. Little has a Ph.D. from Georgetown and is a University of Virginia graduate. It’s the privilege of a lifetime to serve as Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs and Pentagon Press Secretary. I’m routinely impressed by the commitment and teamwork of the thousands of DoD public affairs professionals who serve around the world and across the many public affairs disciplines. I take pride in the incredibly positive impact of their work on our troops, military families, DoD civilians, and our nation. That work is mission-central, and is key to sharing the powerful stories of the inspiring men and women who serve in the world’s finest military. I have reached the difficult decision, after long consultation with my wonderful wife and two young sons, to step away from the podium and return to private life and the private sector.
After over two years as Pentagon Press Secretary and over four years as CIA spokesman, I simply need to turn more of my focus to weekend soccer games, helping with school homework, and building Lego sets that demand a higher level of engineering expertise than I currently possess. Secretary Hagel graciously accepted this decision after I discussed it with him last month. My last day will be Friday, November 15. One of my immediate goals is to have a Blackberry-free Thanksgiving dinner for the first time in several years. I will leave having done my best to serve two indispensable national security organizations led by three outstanding public servants: Secretary Chuck Hagel, Secretary Leon Panetta, and CIA Director Mike Hayden. I am also profoundly grateful to President Obama for the opportunity to serve in his administration. The search for my successor is underway, and I am confident that whoever comes next will help define a strong course for our leaders and the DoD public affairs community.
To my media colleagues, I’m immensely grateful for the opportunity to work with some of the finest reporters in the world. The Pentagon press corps is professional, dedicated, and thoughtful. I’ve traveled hundreds of thousands of miles with you, held what is probably a record number of on-the-road emergency gaggles, and enjoyed the occasional sparring in the Pentagon Briefing Room. That’s as it should be. As a University of Virginia alumnus, I’m almost obliged to quote Jefferson. I do so to convey my genuine sentiments about the role of the press in our society: “The only security of all is in a free press. The force of public opinion cannot be resisted when permitted freely to be expressed. The agitation it produces must be submitted to. It is necessary, to keep the waters pure.” To all of you, I look forward to your future accomplishments after I depart the five walls of this wonderful—and this essential—American institution. With great respect and gratitude,