BE careful if you’re planning to beat lockdown boredom by having a big clearout.
What you consider tat could be a collectors’ item, and experts believe the average attic contains unrecognised valuables worth £1,922.
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Kate Bliss, of TV’s Flog It! and Bargain Hunt, says: “People often think only old items are valuable, but even 1990s stuff can fetch a lot.”
Toy auctioneer Tim Weeks, also seen on Bargain Hunt, adds: Things from the Eighties or Nineties are top of the charts. People often don’t recognise this and throw them out.”
Kate and Tim tell how to find cash in your attic.
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BRITPOP VINYL – £65
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EVERYONE knows old Beatles vinyl is valuable . . . but records from the Britpop era aren’t exactly going for a song either.
Tim says: “Vinyl is unbelievable. Most people might know there is a vinyl revival going on but think it has to be Bowie or the Rolling Stones to make money. But if you’ve got Nineties Britpop vinyl, you could be sitting on a goldmine.
“Anything made from about 1993 to 1999 would be great, as not a lot was made in that time and it wasn’t used, so it tends to be in good condition.
“Vinyl from bands like Mansun might sell for £80 or Kula Shaker for £65.”
TRADING CARDS – £100s
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ARE your desk drawers stuffed with these cards that kids loved to swap and collect? Don’t chuck them out before checking them out.
Kate says: “Kids’ trading cards could be worth more than you might think, especially Pokemon.
“They cost around £1 a pack in the 1990s and kids nationwide would have them in their coat pockets, but some of the rare cards could be worth thousands.
“One very rare Japanese version of a Pokemon card sold in America for over £40,000.
“The thing to look out for is the first edition stamp, which is usually just under the picture of the character, and the older holographic versions which are not as shiny as the new cards.
“Some released in 1999 and 2000 are called ‘shadowless’ cards as they were printed before a redesign which added a shadow on the right-hand side of the card. These can fetch great prices.”
TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES – £500
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COLLECTORS are willing to, er, shell out for these turtle figures from the Nineties.
Tim says: “If you have a set of four turtles in good condition with their accessories, that is going to be worth maybe £80 to £100.
“But it’s not just about the four turtles – the accessories, the little weapons they hold, are sometimes worth more than the figures themselves, as everybody loses them.
“There was also a large range of villains and sidekicks. Most collectors will already have the turtles, but be after the random ones which there weren’t many of. If you’ve got Scratch The Cat, it could be worth between £300 and £500.”
FIRST EDITION BOOKS – UP TO £50K
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FIRST editions of cult books can be extremely valuable.
Kate says: “Harry Potter is a classic example. The first print run was quite small, with a couple of mistakes in it too. A couple of Harry Potter first editions have now sold for over £50,000 and they wouldn’t have cost more than £10 new.
“Some children’s books, such as Winnie The Pooh, may be valuable too. Good condition is vital with a book, and if it has a dust cover, keep it on.”
RETRO GAMING – OVER £100
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THINKING of throwing out that old console? Think again.
Tim says: “Retro gaming has definitely been the biggest growth market over the past ten years.
“Nintendo or Sega consoles often sell for silly money, especially if they are boxed.
“Think Super Nintendo or the Sega Mega Drive, and even the games can sell for four figures if you happen to have the right ones in good condition.
“Often collectors won’t even play them. They just want that perfect box on their shelf.”
MY LITTLE PONY – OVER £100
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VINTAGE girls’ toys don’t sell as well as the boys’ stuff, but My Little Pony is an exception.
Tim says: “It’s all about the accessories, so if you happen to stumble across some old hair brushes or saddles, don’t throw them out, as they can be worth hundreds and hundreds of pounds.
“The condition is key – the ponies did tend to get quite dirty, but if they are clean and the hair is in good condition, they are worth quite a bit.
“A collection of 30 recently sold for £800.”
WWE FIGURES – £1,000
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GET your finances fighting fit by finding one of these characters.
“The most popular toys at the moment are WWF (now WWE) wrestling figures by Hasbro, which were made around 1990,” Tim explains.
“Naturally, when you were buying these in the Nineties, kids would rip them off the card and bash them around. A lot would get damaged.
“If you have some that are not necessarily perfect but are in near-mint condition, they could be valuable. Some individual figures could be worth in excess of £1,000, even with a bit of wear.
“You might look at it and think it’s not worth £2. Others could be worth a few hundred pounds.
“If you happen to have them on their card in their bubble, you are on to an absolute winner.”
STAR WARS FIGURES – UP TO £1,500
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THE value of Star Wars memorabilia is going intergalactic.
Kate says: “Carded figures sell really well. These are little plastic figures sold on a piece of cardboard.
“One auction recently sold Yak Face – who was in the background in Return Of The Jedi for less than ten seconds – for over £1,500.
“In most cases, the figures making the big bucks are the rarer ones which weren’t in the films for very long. A rare prototype of Boba Fett sold in America for over $185,000 (£135,000). Somebody could have one of these in their homes.”
VINTAGE TERRARIUMS – £100s
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THESE have become increasingly popular in the past year and vintage examples could help you reel in some readies.
Kate says: “Vintage or Victorian terrariums are worth big bucks. Being in lockdown, particularly back in the summer, people turned to their gardens and these items became very popular.
“Many people might be tempted to dump them if they were handed down from a relative.
“But they are doing really well at auction houses at the moment.”
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