• Thu. Mar 28th, 2024

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These old toys could fetch hundreds online in 2022, study reveals

Recent reports suggest that Brits will be spending less this Christmas due to rising living costs. But according to new research from money.co.uk, extra cash could be found lying in toy boxes in the form of old Beanie Babies.

To investigate which toys could bring in the most cash, money.co.uk scoured eBay to find out the Beanie Babies that have sold for the most money in the past six months.

 

The most expensive Beanie Babies 

 

Beanie Baby name 

Sold price (including postage) 

#1

Legs the Frog

£258.99

#2

Princess Diana Bear

£250.00

#3

Crunch the Shark

£190.00

#4

Bronty the Dinosaur

£145.04

#5

Happy the Hippo

£125.04

#6

Ronald McDonald

£104.15

#7

Princess Diana Bear

£94.00

#8

Splash the Whale

£85.20

#9

Princess Diana Bear

£83.97

#10

Happy the Hippo

£82.94

#11

Princess Diana Bear

£78.45

#12

AI Motomachi (Japan)

£75.14

#13

Princess Diana Bear

£75.00

#14

Princess Diana Bear

£70.00

#15

Halo the Angel Bear

£63.20

Money.co.uk can reveal that the most expensive beanie baby sold in the past six months was Legs the Frogselling for a whopping £250 plus £8.99 postage at auction. The frog was a first edition Beanie Baby, one of the original nine, with its tags still intact.

Featuring six times in the top 15 bears is the Princess Diana Bear, the most expensive of which sold for £250 with free postage. This particular bear was sold with a box and tags, but also custom-made jewellery engraved with the words ‘Princess ’97 USA’.

The third most expensive Beanie Baby sold was Crunch the Shark, who sold for £185 plus £5 postage at auction. The shark itself dates back to 1996, and had slightly wrinkled, but still intact, tags.

Fourth is Bronty the Dinosaur, who sold for £140 plus £5.04 postage. Fifth is Happy the Hippo, who sold for £120 plus £5.04 postage.

At the other end of the table, and 15th most expensive, is Halo the Angel Bear whose rare brown nose and festive feel all helped the teddy rack up a total sale price of £63.20.

Credit: TonelsonProductions / Shutterstock

Salman Haqqi from money.co.uk gives his tips on vetting collectibles online for those searching for last minute gifts:

“Research is key when looking for items that may appreciate in value. Before you start thinking about purchasing, look at the sorts of items that are selling and why. 

“Understanding the market may help you avoid purchasing something that won’t give you a return on investment in the future. 

“For example, Beanie Babies which are listed as ‘retired’ mean they are no longer in production, so there will only be a finite number available. Set up a search alert to find new listings of the Beanie Babies you are interested in purchasing so you can determine how many are selling and for what price. 

“If you are buying toys with the intention of selling them in the future, it’s probably best to buy them in excellent condition. Toys with tags and original packaging are likely to be more appealing than toys that have obvious signs of use or are incomplete. 

“With all that being said, collectibles, like any investment, don’t guarantee a return on investment and you may get back less than you originally put in. It’s important to consider the risk associated with purchasing products as an investment and weighing up whether you might be able to make more money through gaining interest on savings.”