Another tip is try not to feel obligated to collect an entire set or collection

Don't treat figures as an investment - it should be a hobby first and foremost. Don't buy them only because you think they're going to go up in aftermarket prices. They're not your retirement savings.

So in short:
- Don't overdo it straight form the start.
- Only buy, what YOU really want. (+ don't be jealous of Battletides room) 😁
- Don't scam yourself with bad preorders or bootlegs.
- Think about room for display.
- Clean your treasures!

PS: "Shelves are't going anywhere." is kind of a crazy thing to say, when the video contains Ikea Detolfs 😅

If you really want to stay in this hobby for a long time, don't try to buy only expensive figure, instead try to mix your collection between scale and prizes figures ( there quality become much better today ). It will make your collection more lively and cost-effective.

I think one mistake people do when starting is not realizing that collecting is about curating. Collecting without curating is just hoarding. You should have a vision what you want your collection to be and how you want it to look like. This is true for any collection. Doesn't matter if you are more aesthetic driven collector or more nostalgic one or even hybrid of the two.

Do you what to collect figures from your favorite artist only? or specific style like yukata figures? Are you into games? Do you want your collection to have a certain vibe like horror/eldritch or cute/cozy, what about display are you more into minimalist look you want maximalist one? Do you want to collect figures only from early 2000s  etc... there are so many ways how to curate potential collection. Curating is what will make your collection unique and truly you. It also makes easier to limit spending and import rules which actually work with you and not against you.

I know this can be hard at the beginning, as most people don't know where to start. I was that person too.  But it's always better to start with some kind of rough idea. Also curating never ends, it's fine if your tastes change overtime  and you will need to sell some figures. It's natural process of collecting so don't take it as some kind of personal failure if you need to sell something.

As someone with over 1k figures and decades of collecting. Consider shopping for cases from retail fit out companies. I mean shop front style large display cases. This gives you access to very large units that come flat packed and are straight forward to build. This opens up nice features like built in locks, led lighting and mirror backs etc.. you may even be able to track down second hand refurbished units.

don't let fomo drive your collecting there will be a chance to get it later once the hype dies down for usually less, you'll still enjoy it or not like it afterwards, use the hype to inform yourself on the flaws and things to be worried about it.

A true professional speaking for the sake of people's love.

A mistake I often see is that people don't want to buy used figures. You can save so much money and do way less harm to the planet if you also check for used figures and a lot of them look like new (check pictures long and hard).
Be careful when buying used articulated figures tho, because the state the joints are in doesn't show on pictures most of the time: When the figures pose got changed a lot, they might be loose or if the pose was never changed, the plasticiser makes the joints sticky on the inside of the figure and make them prone to breaking while attempting to change the pose. You can look up ways to fix every one of these issues, but do so BEFORE you buy, because they can be quite time consuming to fix and in some cases expensive.

A mistake that I personally made: If you buy a used figure from someone that claims to be a beginner collector but the figure looks like it has the condition you want, the seller most likely wants to clean the figure up all nicely for you but has likely next to no experience while doing so. Even if they don't say anything about that, make sure you tell them to NOT clean the figure for you, especially if the base is glossy. My poor made in abyss Reg (the one floating over the abyss) got cleaned by what I assume is a sponge that was used so clean something else before and had scratchy particles left in its pores, so on the pictures he looked perfect, but whe he arrived the base had scratches from cleaning all over.

This video really hit the nail on it's head with how I've been feeling. After an initial buying spree I now have to think twice before I get anything because I'm starting to lack space.
I guess another thing you could add is: ''THINK HARD BEFORE YOU BUY SALE FIGURES''
I have like 7 figures I have 0 connection with just because they looked nice and were on sale lmao

I'm guilty of a few of these... Especially the cleaning haha, haven't cleaned the figure room since moving in... 😆

I made the mistake of waaay overbuying when I started to get more into the hobby and now I'm in debt. I don't recommend doing what I did, lol.

A tip for identifying bootlegs is to check for markings.

Authentic figures have their markings engraved/embossed/printed on the figures themselves or on their bases.

Re point #1: Your tastes change over time too. When I started I was more into "realistic" designs and comics and games but my taste in figures has shifted to more stylized and anime and games over time. The stuff that were my favorites at the start I still love, but the ones that were more middling (and mainly were what I could afford and available) I actually just pulled off the shelf earlier this week. Even as a lower end collector, I would have rather gotten less figures of better quality, or that I wanted even more, instead of more figures for sure. Also don't be afraid to let stuff go if it no longer makes you happy to have it. Even if it's at a loss let it find a new home and inform your future buying.

Kind of similar to number 2 but another random tip is to only really buy figures that you really want. A lot people tend to buy figures of characters they don't really like that much because they liked the design and while it can work after a while if you have no love for the character you might get tired of just having something for the design and fall out of love with the impulse purchase. Worse case scenario is you P.O the figure then come to regret it later down the line before you pay and now you're just dreading the purchase and if your ordered with a store with a "no cancellation" policy you're up shit creek without a paddle.

Before even watching this video...  Over the years I've started to be a lot more picky.  Larger scales are better,  smaller ones aren't my thing and tend not to be worth it because of how small they are,  get that magnifying lens out!  Maybe it is okay to buy a specific game/anime/etc you like a lot that is smaller.  1/6+ scale is good, but some scales of 1/7 or 1/8 size have absolutely massive footprints and look very good also.  ( of course that all depends on your space lol )

Look for highly stylized and interesting looking figures that are aesthetically pleasing.  Bland single outfit figures with nothing else going on... tend to get left in the dust when you start leveling up your sense of good aesthetics.  Don't get too carried away with the ecchi figures.  Don't keep buying the same character/animal girl type over and over again.... add some variety in your life!  As for original character figures,  get the really good ones if you like them, but be extra picky about it, because you may not feel very attached to it later on.  

In general though... I can only think of one figure I ended up disliking that I bought in the last 5 years.

In terms of Mistake #2, a general additional rule is if a figure you're interested in is something that fans are rating negatively or is a re-release Nendoroid.
There is a very strong chance it's gonna be heavily discounted in a few months if you can wait long enough.

Stuff like the SHFigure arts 2B that fans didn't like her Butt, ended up briefly discounted by $20 less on Amazon last November.
Or the SHFigure arts Momo that fans hated her stiff barely useful possibility, ended up going from $60 down to $38 for 3 days on Amazon just last weekend.

And then re-release Nendoroids like the Konosuba ones can be easily bought cheap from Goodsmile during sale events like Black Friday.
It's worth waiting if it's a re-release, but always double check if they're about to sell out.
The re-release Ainz Nendoroid for example sold out pretty fast from Goodsmile and will likely not get discounted on 3rd party sites.

One of my tips I always tell new collectors is embrace at first prize figures , then gradually buy the expensive ones you really like later if you're really in the hobby

one thing id like to add onto his first point is it is completely ok and actually normal to fall out of love with something. this wont happen for every figure but you might buy one, love it for a few months to years and then just not feel that love for it after buying others that you absolutely adore and that is perfectly fine! its happening to me with a few of my miku figures, i loved them when i bought them and now i just dont find the same joy for them when i still love and cherish my first rem figure and a miku figure that was bought around the same time. thats normal, that happens with every hobby ever

Using one of those lens dusters for anime figures is one of the greatest blessings to the anime figure collecting hobby. I never thought of it myself as it was family who recommended it to me (they collect too), and it's made cleaning 200% easier and more consistent.