I DO NOT WANT THE PURPOSE OF THIS GUIDE TO BE MISUNDERSTOOD.  CHARITY SALES ARE A GOOD WAY TO GET AN ITEM YOU WANT AND HELP A GOOD CAUSE.  I AM SIMPLY ADVISING TO DO THE SAME AUTHENTICY CHECKING JUST LIKE YOU WOULD FROM ANY OTHER SELLER.

This guide is to help correct a common mistake in the collector's mind.  Just because you purchased a piece from a charity, it does not mean it is a good autograph.  Many collectors assume the charity would get the autographs directly from the athletes.  This is simply not true most of the time.  Most charities if they are selling an autograph, it came from a donated piece.  You still need to do all the checking as if you purchased it from a store or online.

Most charities have little or no knowledge of the autograph industry.  They are happy to take donations of something and then use that donation to raise money for their cause.  The problem does not lie with the charity, but with the person making the donation.

There are dealers out there that will  forge an autograph.  Then they will donate it to a charity to get the tax write off.  They have come off looking like a good guy to the charity and then get to write off the retail value of the piece.  Yes, there are plenty of people this questionable in the world.... just look at the number of forged autographs on the market.

Think about it his way.  A dealer can purchase an unsigned 8x10 for about $2.  They can donate it to a charity with a bad autograph and get a tax write off for $100-$200.  At a 30% tax bracket, they are reducing thier tax to the government by $30-$60 for each picture. 

For example, Derek Jeter (Yankees) has an exclusive autograph contract with Steiner.  That means he will not sign autographs for other companies.  I know of one charity that has received several pieces of donated Jeter autographs, all with the same "JOE BLOW" COA.  I seriously doubt that Joe Blow would have been able to offer Derek Jeter enough money to break his contract with Steiner and sign multiple pieces.

DO NOT MISUNDERSTAND... I know of SEVERAL CHARITIES THAT ACTUALLY HAVE SIGNINGS AND SELL THE PIECES.  This guide is to help dispel the notion that just because a charity sells it, that the autograph has to be legit.  You still need to ask the important questions.

Prior to purchasing any piece, you need to ask the same questions that are listed in our AVOID FRAUD guides.  If the piece comes with a COA from the charity, make sure they saw it signed.  If it comes with a COA from an outside source, make sure you treat it just like if you were purchasing it from a local store or on Ebay.

Please click on the below link for our most poplular "AVOID FRAUD" guide:  Avoid Fraud Link

I am writing this guide because of the numerous inquiries I get from my AVOID FRAUD GUIDES.  A majority of the questions concern pieces that were purchased from charities and the consumer is therefore assuming that it has to be real.

Did you find this guide helpful? The more people that select the "yes" button for this guide being helpful, the higher up on the 'Guide List' it gets, thus getting more exposure for eBayers to read and learn. It is our goal to significantly reduce the amount of forged autographs sold in the industry.  Is this possible?  Perhaps not, but the more people we educate about this scam, the more money they save, and the less forgeries are apt to be on the market.