Super High Dollar Morphs

[Monster Dodge]

Now dont get me wrong.... I completely understand how some of the higher end morph BP's have the price they do because it has taken alot of time and effort to make them. But honestly how often do you sell them for those prices? I'm talking the ones that are 10K-20K+?
I went to a local Rep. Show and I had to laugh because one of the vendors said hey I will knock $2K off this guy for you right now and sell it to you for $14K. I was like yeah sure just let me go hit up the ATM and I'll be right back

It seems as though these days "Everyone" is now selling BP Morphs! And the prices really are not coming down so I have to assume people are paying these prices! Who are these people...lol

I mean honestly how often do you sell these high dollar morphs?

[steveboos]

Well you have to consider a lot of factors when it comes to very high priced animals. Most breeders who even make the investment, have specific plans in mind and already know who their buyers would be. You don't jump in blindly and buy a $20,000 animal.

In most cases these people just a morph or genetic before anyone else, no matter the cost. But keep in mind most people only sell females if its a co dom or dominant gene and males are going to be twice the cost of a female.

They sell often, but a very limited quantity of animals are available. Let me know if you can find a male ChamPin For sale...

[MitsuMike]

Now dont get me wrong.... I completely understand how some of the higher end morph BP's have the price they do because it has taken alot of time and effort to make them.

The price tag I don't agree with and yet I do. Example for effort, time and money goes into dog breeding BUT yet dogs are a fraction of the cost of snakes.....
I can also see where people are coming from b/c the prices are set by the big breeders and the big breeders most of the time ONLY raise and sell snakes so now you have a factor of time and time = money.
Example:
(0.1 Lesser = $450) + (1.0 Pastel = $75) + ( Food for 2 years = $312) = $837
NOW 1 baby is worth $800-900 dollars (Pastel Lesser) So if you hit simple odds you have made back your investment. Soo in my eyes this is why I don't see why prices for any reptile are so high.

Then you have to factor in time....
Now for the time = money part:
(Initial Investment = $837) + {[(2 hours a week, each snake, cleaning....$7.25 x 4 = $29) + (0.5 hours a week, each snake, feeding....$7.25 x 1 = $7.25)] x (104 weeks to get to size + 26 weeks for breeding, etc = 130) = 4,712.50} = 5,549.50

That is now time plus investment plus feeding of ONLY 2 snakes and to make it pretty add some more money to housing, incubator, etc. so $6,000.00 is a round about # to see how much money really goes into it.

Just as an example. So really a double recessive animal such as a Ghost or Snow is worth about $15K to produce. Now other things take MORE time and MORE effort to produce but aren't even close to the cost but it's not really any of that, it's more what are people going to pay the price for the animal. Those morphs sell, but to who I would also like to know.

[mainbutter]

And the prices really are not coming down

Wrong-o.

For any particular morph(including combos) since I started paying attention, it seems the advertised prices gets slashed in half about every 18 months.

[Monster Dodge]

Excellent example MitsuMike. And I can totally see how some of the bigtime breeders have those prices. Its there business and livelyhood. Not to mention everytime they sell a Morph they are pottentially creating a competitor as well.
But there are so many small time breeders now the BP Morph market has become almost saturated, yet the prices still are remaining the same.

At the last Rep. show I went to it basically should have been just called a Ball Python Morph show because thats all that was there. Dont get me wrong it was awesome but it was like you had to basically be rich to buy anything. The norm price on most I saw was $2 to $4K. And honestly I saw maybe 2 or 3 people out of hundreds who actually bought anything over $600.

Thats why I was wondering who actually can drop the coin for these and how these prices are not coming down?? Just my $0.02

[Monster Dodge]

Wrong-o.

For any particular morph(including combos) since I started paying attention, it seems the advertised prices gets slashed in half about every 18 months.

Since the first show I have been to back in 2004 till present, the only morph I have seen even remotely come down in price are Pies and by 50%.... no way. Maybe 15-25% tops. Thats here in the D.C./MD/VA area.

[Emilio]

Its economics while I cannot afford said morph or combo for 10 or 12k I have bought some for 1k and 2k. My opinion on this is simple, if I were making double or triple of what I make yearly, I would have easily bought an animal in the 6 to 8k price range. Remember this is our thang so alot of us who luckily or through hard work have the resources will buy them.

This is true about many things we as people consume or buy everyday.

[PitOnTheProwl]

I know the time=money thing, as a mechanic of 15 years.
I also know I cannot afford the animals I want, so I am going to work with the ones I have and add 1 or 2 more females to either make what I want or be able to sell/trade what I make to get the ones I want. Plus I want to see what my 2 "dinkers" will do

I am just not a patient person and dont know if I can make it waiting another year on my two girls. So I am starting a hunt for a female pastel close to the 2 yr mark here in san antonio.

[MitsuMike]

Since the first show I have been to back in 2004 till present, the only morph I have seen even remotely come down in price are Pies and by 50%.... no way. Maybe 15-25% tops. Thats here in the D.C./MD/VA area.

Idk it really all depends. IMO I think this market will be done in the next 5 years. WAYYY to many wanna be's trying to make a quick buck and make a living off of breeding snakes. That is why business has been good, even in BHBs blog he said the daytona show didn't have the big guys there but he sold alot of animals. This is because all the newbies buying are the snakes, but what happens when those newbies now become breeders and so on and so forth.
Besides the top dogs, who is really selling at the price they set? How many low ball offers do you think people have to deal with? This in it self causes the market to go down (which the newbies don't realize, in trying to make a quick buck/good deal) The market is peaking out, if it hasn't already, and just like Sir Isaac Newton said "what goes up must come down"
But that is just my opinion, to each their own. I call it how I see it. All I am seeing is ALOT of animals on the market and only so many buyers.

[Clear]

The price tag I don't agree with and yet I do. Example for effort, time and money goes into dog breeding BUT yet dogs are a fraction of the cost of snakes.....
I can also see where people are coming from b/c the prices are set by the big breeders and the big breeders most of the time ONLY raise and sell snakes so now you have a factor of time and time = money.
Example:
(0.1 Lesser = $450) + (1.0 Pastel = $75) + ( Food for 2 years = $312) = $837
NOW 1 baby is worth $800-900 dollars (Pastel Lesser) So if you hit simple odds you have made back your investment. Soo in my eyes this is why I don't see why prices for any reptile are so high.

Then you have to factor in time....
Now for the time = money part:
(Initial Investment = $837) + {[(2 hours a week, each snake, cleaning....$7.25 x 4 = $29) + (0.5 hours a week, each snake, feeding....$7.25 x 1 = $7.25)] x (104 weeks to get to size + 26 weeks for breeding, etc = 130) = 4,712.50} = 5,549.50

That is now time plus investment plus feeding of ONLY 2 snakes and to make it pretty add some more money to housing, incubator, etc. so $6,000.00 is a round about # to see how much money really goes into it.

Just as an example. So really a double recessive animal such as a Ghost or Snow is worth about $15K to produce. Now other things take MORE time and MORE effort to produce but aren't even close to the cost but it's not really any of that, it's more what are people going to pay the price for the animal. Those morphs sell, but to who I would also like to know.

Sadly you can not use these methods on pricing a snake or many other items. The basics always rule down to, its only worth what someone else is willing to pay.