Most people who lose money flipping tickets don't lose it on a "bad event." They lose it on a good event, bought at the wrong price, with no exit plan.

Here's the pattern I keep seeing:

The mistake: Buying based on gut feeling ("this artist is popular, it'll sell") instead of running the numbers first. No floor price check. No comp against similar shows in similar venues. No cap on how much capital goes into one event.

Why it happens: Tickets feel like a hype-driven market, so people trade on hype instead of a framework. One bad read on a soft market and a few hundred dollars turns into a few thousand tied up in inventory that won't move before the event.

The fix — three rules that prevent 90% of the damage:

1. Set a floor price before you buy, not after. If you can't answer "what's the lowest I'd sell this for and still be fine" before you click purchase, you're speculating, not flipping.

1. Cap single-event exposure. Never put more than a fixed % of your working capital into one event/artist/venue combo. Diversify across multiple smaller plays instead of one "sure thing."

1. Have a dump plan for T-minus 48 hours. Decide in advance what you'll do if a ticket hasn't moved 2 days out — cut price, bundle, or eat it. Deciding in the moment is how people panic-sell at a loss or hold too long and get zero.

None of this is complicated. It's just structure most people skip because it's less exciting than "I found a hot drop." The accounts that actually compound money in this space are running a repeatable system, not chasing one-off wins.

Curious what frameworks/tools others here are using to check comps and set floor prices before buying — drop them below.