LEGO sets have increased in value by 12 percent every year since 2012, a higher return than gold, the stock market or bank accounts, according to The Telegraph. Looks like my extensive collection has me all set for retirement, bitches!

LEGO releases and retires sets routinely, skyrocketing the value of retired sets to thousands of dollars, something I learned first-hand by trying to get my hands on the Cafe Corner set, which originally sold for $133 and finding it priced at more than $3,000.

The Cafe Corner isn't the only set that's worth an excessive amount more than when it was first released. The Star Wars sets (which, sadly I don't have too many of) have actually shown the greatest return. The 2007 Millennium Falcon set, which originally sold for about $510, is now re-selling for more than $4,000. Daaaaamn, son.

Like with all collectables, financial experts say the LEGO sets are worth more if left unopened in their original packaging, but c'mon, what's the point of that? I have seen retired sets selling for significantly more than their original prices despite being opened and built, as long as they have all the pieces and instructions book. I've also tried using sites like Bricklink to try and buy all the individual pieces of retired sets I want (specifically, the Green Grocer set from 2008), but it's somewhat of a hefty task for my somewhat limited attention span.

While financial experts don't necessarily recommend running out and investing your entire retirement in LEGO, they do say the re-sale value is holding steady for those who already are AFOLs (adult fans of of LEGO — it's a thing, trust me). Personally, I'm thinking the news that LEGO has a better return than gold is just the excuse I needed to rationalize dropping the $349 on the set I've been lusting after lately — The sweet, sweet Ghostbusters firehouse headquarters. The price seemed a little steep for me to justify, but not so terrible if I think about it not as splurging on a super awesome LEGO set that I want because it's badass and more of an investment in my children's future. See? See?

While I think about splurging on the firehouse, check out some pics of my current LEGO collection above.

Stephanie getting her LEGO on
In my element
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