Model railways as a pension fund - really?!

[Buffin]

'I spent £20,000 on model trains – and they will fund my retirement' is the headline to a piece in The Telegraph

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/investing/sipps/spent-20000-model-trains-will-fund-retirement/

I'm afraid this chap is on fantasy island. The commenters below the line there are more realistic.

[GrahamB]

I can't read the full article but, for a decent pension pot to suppliment a state pension, he's missing a zero.

[Newportnobby]

What a poor deluded boy he is

[RailGooner]

'I spent £20,000 on model trains – and they will fund my retirement' is the headline to a piece in The Telegraph

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/investing/sipps/spent-20000-model-trains-will-fund-retirement/

I'm afraid this chap is on fantasy island. The commenters below the line there are more realistic.

Can't read the article - it's behind a paywall. 

[Bob G]

I can't read the full article but, for a decent pension pot to suppliment a state pension, he's missing a zero.

The thing is, you need the storage space in OO. I have £5k of OO stuff VERY focussed on a 1970s SR EMU era, and it is in about eight storage boxes under the stairs. OO needs 8 times the volume to store it than N.
I joke about my N collection being a pension pot, as it is going up in value, but as soon as I sell something, I buy a replacement!

Bob

[Madann01]

After seeing the prices for some pre-owned Lyddle End houses and buildings on Rails e-bay site, Im thinking thinking of releasing some equity release in the model property i have to fund my retirement.
   Must be one of the best investment you could make, far better than the current savings rates offered at the bank, Trouble is a what point do you capitalise on your investment?

[railsquid]

'I spent £20,000 on model trains – and they will fund my retirement' is the headline to a piece in The Telegraph

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/investing/sipps/spent-20000-model-trains-will-fund-retirement/

I think the correct headline is:

I spent £20,000 on model trains – and they will fund my retirement (that's what I told my wife anyway)

[martyn]

One of my colleagues bought a brand new 5" live steam Britannia when he retired, with the claim it would be an investment.

Martyn

[njee20]

To be fair I'd say model railways are a good short-medium term investment. 5-10 years the return is likely very good, probably not far off 100% ROI on most stuff, and more on select items. However I'd not rely on them as a pension fund, look at the value of Poole Farish stuff (for example). It's a volatile market, and it just takes a re-run, or worse a re-tool and the market can collapse.

[daffy]

Oops! I'm in real trouble!

SWMBO just picked up my iPad while I took a comfort break from reading this after it went 'ping' three times. Just emails coming in of no import, but she saw this thread title and read on.

Apparently my former reasons for buying more stock are no longer to be considered worthy of anything more than contempt, and she has withdrawn all pocket money for the foreseeable future.   :'(

[railsquid]

There is a bootleg version of the article here: https://blogh1.com/2022/01/08/i-spent-20000-on-model-trains-and-they-will-fund-my-retirement/
and is more down-to-earth than the headline leads to expect.

[railsquid]

There is a bootleg version of the article here: https://blogh1.com/2022/01/08/i-spent-20000-on-model-trains-and-they-will-fund-my-retirement/
and is more down-to-earth than the headline leads to expect.

However I suspect this:

In some cases the true value of railway sets gathering dust in garages and attics across the country will be far higher than many people realise, Mr Holder added

will lead to a flood of optimistically priced loft junk...

[Bealman]

Not if it's not in the original box 

[silly moo]

will lead to a flood of optimistically priced loft junk...

That's exactly what I thought. The flood has already begun judging by some of the eBay and Facebook prices.

I do wonder how the market will react when the pandemic is over and people go back to their offices, will there be another flood of second hand model railway bits?

I'm actually hoping there will be as I can't afford to buy new any more.

[joe cassidy]

Pete Waterman's collection may be able to fund his retirement ?