Selling a LEGO Collection as an Executor

Acting for an estate is a different job from selling your own things, and the order of operations matters more. This is written for executors and administrators, and it is about process rather than sentiment.

Get a valuation before anything moves

This is the one that saves the most trouble later. A collection valued as a whole, while it is still intact, gives you a defensible figure and a record. Once sets have been given away, split between beneficiaries or sold piecemeal, nobody can reconstruct what was there.

• A valuation costs nothing and commits the estate to nothing.
• You can ask for it in writing, which is what you want for the file.
• You do not need authority to sell in order to ask what something is worth.
• If probate needs a figure for personal chattels, this is where it comes from.

What to protect while you decide

• Keep the boxes indoors, off the floor, and out of direct sunlight.
• Do not open anything. On a sealed set the seal is most of the value.
• Do not clean the boxes or tape any corners. Both make things worse.
• Photograph the stack before anybody moves anything. One photo is a useful record.
• If the house is being cleared, tell the clearance firm the LEGO is separate.

Working out what is there

1. Write down the set number from the front of each box, and how many of each.
2. Note anything obviously damaged: crushed corners, faded panels, damp.
3. Check lofts, garages and storage. Collections are often in more than one place.
4. Do not open anything to identify it. If a number has worn off, describe the set instead.
5. A photo of a handwritten list is perfectly acceptable to any serious buyer.

Sell as one lot or split it between beneficiaries?

The third option is the one that causes arguments, because the remainder is always worth less than people expect once the best sets have gone.

Timing

There is rarely any urgency. A sealed collection kept indoors does not deteriorate on a timescale that matters, so waiting weeks or months while the estate is sorted costs the estate very little. What does cost money is a collection sat in a damp garage through a winter, so if the storage is poor, move it somewhere dry rather than rushing to sell it.

What we can and cannot price

We buy sealed, unopened sets. We do not buy opened sets, built models, loose bricks by weight or boxes with pieces missing. Estate collections are often mixed, so send the whole list and we will tell you plainly which part we can value and which part belongs to a different market.

What you get from us

• One figure for the sealed part of the collection, priced set by set from your list.
• That figure in writing if you want it for the estate file.
• Collection arranged and paid for by us, anywhere in the UK.
• One bank transfer on the day, which is clean for estate accounting.
• No obligation at any stage, and no pressure if the estate is not ready.

What a written valuation should contain

If you are putting a figure in the estate file, it is worth having something you can hand to a solicitor without explaining it.

• The date it was prepared, because values move and a figure without a date is hard to rely on.
• What it covers: the number of sets, and clearly which parts of the collection were excluded.
• The basis, meaning whether it is what a trade buyer would pay for the lot or an estimate of individual resale value. Those are different numbers and the difference matters.
• Who prepared it and how to contact them.

Written by Peter Pilling, BuyMyBricks, 26 September 2026. LEGO® is a trademark of the LEGO Group, which does not sponsor, authorise or endorse this site. General practical guidance only. It is not legal advice and it is not guidance on probate. Speak to the solicitor handling the estate about valuation requirements.