Should You Collect Rare Books as an Investment?

That's the question pondered by Rare Book Digest.

From the piece...

Rare books, like other collectibles such as art, fine wine, coins, gemstones and baseball cards, belong in the class of investments called hard assets.  These tangible assets are considered by many to provide a safe haven from the stock and bond market and more recently the real estate market downturns (real estate is also considered a hard asset.)  The advantage of including hard assets into your investment portfolio is diversification, as its performance is typically less correlated to the price of stocks and bonds. Among the disadvantages is that such assets lack liquidity and may remain unsold for a prolonged period of time.  Additional drawbacks include special storage requirements, handling, insurance and security concerns.

During recent years when yields remained low and markets have become more volatile, the traditional investment advice of a mix consisting strictly of stocks and bonds proved inadequate at times. The ground has shifted; the international markets that are now inter-connected are more efficient and also more volatile.  Rare books are normally included to supplement an investor’s portfolio only when retirement savings are secure and the investor enjoys collecting them. Below are some general strategies to use when looking to include rare books in your investment portfolio.