Some rare Lego sets are now selling for literally thousands of pounds online, as enthusiasts snap up the popular toys. But it's not just rare pieces that are selling well, with standard sets now frequently worth more than when they were new and even old bags of unsorted bricks in demand. “With the soar in popularity of Lego with both adults and children, the effect on the values of both rare, hard to find sets and new releases has been incredible," said Bev Channell, event director for Lego event BRICK 2015, running at Birmingham's NEC this week. “It’s well worth searching through your old sets to see what treasures are hiding there.” The bigger, rarer sets tend to be worth the most - but with Lego frequently refreshing its range that means any old set that's large enough could be worth upwards of £1,000. Currently, these are the most valuable sets: Sadly, to get the best prices for your Lego, it needs to be “mint in box” - which means not opened since it was bought and still factory sealed.
The good news for people who want to play with their toys is that you can still get good returns for assembled models – as long as there are no pieces missing. The easiest Lego sets to sell are Star Wars themed, with Millennium Falcons, Death Stars and X-Wings all selling well – and some prices in the thousands. But there's much more than just Star Wars selling. A look at the best-selling kits on BrickPicker shows trains, play houses, dinosaurs, Harry Potter sets, Back to the Future Deloreans and Pirate sets all featuring. Most of the sales take place on eBay, with BrickPicker providing lists of the top selling and biggest rising prices – as well as a tool letting you compare the price of sets. You can also search on eBay for sold prices of similar sets. If you've got a box of Lego, rather than a specific set, you can bulk-sell as well – although prices for these are a lot lower. That said, if you have the time and can split the box out by category (be it Star Wars, pirates, Medieval, Technic or whatever) these smaller – more specific - bundles will frequently sell for more than a job-lot of unsorted bricks.
To get the most value, you need to be selling pristine-condition Lego toys. “As with any sort of collectible, the safe storage of the collectible is very important,” Ed Mack explains in a piece on How to make money from Lego . “Although the actual Lego brick is pretty much indestructible under normal conditions, the Lego boxes and instructions need special care.” That means quite a lot of space to store them all if you're trying to make money from them, and possibly adding the cost to your insurance. Then there are the seller fees on eBay. And the shipping costs – remember, Lego is bulky and could cost quite a bit to ship. And if you're selling to a collector, they'll expect it to arrive in good condition, so packing costs go up again. Oh, and don't count your profits before you sell – the price of a set can drop fast if Lego re-introduces it while prices can rise as well as fall in line with demand too. Is Lego better than gold? 500+ VOTES SO FAR The market for old toys on eBay is much bigger than just Lego.
If you've got some old childhood clutter just gathering dust, here are 8 ways to tell if your old toys could be worth more then just memories while our guide to getting the most cash when selling old toys on eBay can be found here.RARE Lego sets are selling for as much as £3,800 – over TEN times their original price. Star Wars-themed set are among the most popular with a replica of the Taj Mahal and a cafe from ten years ago also much sought after. Some rare Lego sets are now going for TEN times their original asking price To attract the huge sums the sets must be boxed and in mint condition – so it’s well worth having a look in the loft and rifling round the garage just in case one might be lurking there. The current highest-priced set on Amazon is the Ultimate Collector’s Millennium Falcon which is selling for £3,800. It would have cost you just £342.49 to buy in 2007. A Cafe Corner set from the same year which was originally £89.99 is the next highest-priced at £2,128.
While a 2005 Death Star II that was originally £249.99 is going for £1,917. JAMIE EAST AT THE MOVIES THEME PARK POT ARRESTS I WON'T LEGO OF DREAM According to Jeff Maciorowski, founder of Lego investing guide large sets and ones that have film tie-ins tend to give the best returns He explained: “Sets with 1,000 pieces or more, seem to exhibit strong returns on investment. “Licensed sets like Star Wars, Harry Potter and the DC Comics and Marvel Superheroes can appreciate very well after retirement and many contain valuable and highly collectible minifigures. “Minifigures are often called the currency of the LEGO world and are highly collectible and popular. Some individual minifigures can sell for tens, if not hundreds of pounds.” But for those on a more limited budget profits can still be made. Jeff added: “Small sets and polybags can also show strong returns. Rare minifigures or small seasonal or holiday sets are solid choices.”
The boom in Lego re-sale value comes as the toymaker hiked its prices at the beginning of the year because of the Brexit vote. From January 1 the firm upped prices by five percent. A letter from a top boss at the firm stated that the hike is “a direct result of the continued devaluing of the UK pound” and went on to say that the company may be forced to put up prices again in the “event of a further negative trend”. It means that a Star Wars Lego Death star set that previously went for £399 has gone up by £20. While a Doctor Who set went up by £2.49 from £49.99 to £52.48. The value of the pound has plummeted since the vote to leave the European Union last June. At its worst point it was down 20 per cent against the Euro and the Dollar. This had made it more expensive for manufacturers to import raw materials and goods, with many now passing the increase in costs on to customers. We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online news team?