Collecting's cool for today's hotshots

Forget fast cars and swanky bars, today’s young professionals are starting to put their cash into collecting valuables according to research from home insurance company Zurich.

The most popular collectibles are first edition books and comics (12 per cent), paintings and prints (11 per cent), stamps and medals (11 per cent) and vinyl records (10 per cent). Others are investing in items like cigarette cards (such as the 1909 one just sold in the US for £1.2m), exclusive glassware and pre-1950 football programmes.

Of the 50 per cent of people who do collect, one in six do so purely for an increase in value. Of those eyeing up classic collectors’ items, one in ten (11 per cent) put collections on a par with traditional investments such as stocks and shares.

In the past five years they have spent an average of more than £2,000 each on classic collectibles such as paintings, sculpture, furniture, books and coins. The perception of these collectors is that they will also bank a hefty 190 per cent profit each, forecasting their collections’ value to have rocketed to £6,123 over the same period.

Men in particular are more lured by investment opportunities rather than aesthetics. One in four (24 per cent) scour antique markets for pure value-add potential compared to one in six women (17 per cent). But female collectors are much more likely to buy second-hand classics because of their unique status – 17 per cent like the fact that they’ve got something different to their friends, compared to only nine per cent of men.

Meanwhile, highlighting an interesting North/South divide – it’s Northerners who are hoping to cash in the most on collectibles, with an average £3,790.89 per buyer invested over the past five years.

Worryingly, however, 40 per cent haven’t told their insurance company about their collection’s worth. Surprisingly, even though they’re spending an average of £1,020 on their most valued item, one in four don’t think home contents insurance is necessary. A further 28 per cent are putting their valuables at risk because they just “haven’t got round to getting them covered.”

Martin Hall, head of personal lines underwriting at Zurich said, “It seems that old valuables are the new investments for modern professionals these days. Our research shows they’re more interested in, and profiting more from, antiques and collectibles than any other generation before them. However, we would advise anyone with a collection of valuable items in their home to keep their insurance company or broker up to speed to make sure they’re covered in the event of accident, loss of theft.”