Just curious what the state of the used market is right now. I have three components up for sale right now and have seen very little interest. I'll admit, they probably aren't the most desirable but definitely solid pieces of gear. I see speakers like Maggies, Tekton, DeVore that have been available for weeks. Seemingly fairly priced. Is it just an after the holidays down time?
It is likely due to the Christmas season, which is very brief. It usually starts to pickup in January. Unlike the summer months which are very slow.
Going forward, I expect:
With inflation, due to supply issues, some people may turn to the used market, to make their purchases. But, as far as audio is concerned, it will become a buyers market, due to more items coming on to market from retiring baby boomers, disinterest, aging equipment, and increasingly more disasters. Over the years, there has been a gradual decline, in interest, with higher end audio equipment. This is evident by the closing of audio dealerships across America. So it may remain challenging.
@pkatsuleasI dont see that you have any gear up for sale on Audiogon presently but I will offer my thoughts, irrelevant as they may be LOL.
there are certainly times of the year where certain gear moves more rapidly than other times but I have found that desirable gear priced fairly sells within a couple of days, sometimes within a couple of hours. The Devores you mention aren’t priced attractively. The 88’s have been discontinued for some time and Tektons of almost any model are nightmarish to try to ship.
There has likely never been a better time in many years to sell preowned gear. The concerns of a baby boomer induced dump of high end gear is likely a non event. I remember conversations 5-10 years ago that the suburbs were full of unsellable 4 bedroom houses.
I am finding that the used market is very good right now, put up 5 ads on another site to float before listing here and have sold 3 of the 5 within 3 to 5 days at 90% of my asking price which I had built into the price to begin with and 2 of the pieces were items that when I bought them had been for sale for months. FWIW, each of the pieces were in the $2,000.00 neighborhood. Shipping, is another story, am thinking of listing for local sales only or deliver within a certain distance.
Yeah, things are fairly robust if priced right. The hard part, is finding the right price. They do seem to be a bit all over the place. Generally, the “known” brands tend to sell pretty regularly, where the esoteric brands usually sit for a time.
During this virus scare audio has been selling very good as well as hires TVs
people are fixing up their homes and entertainment sales has not been effected
shortages and many things have gone up 15-20% . I have bought a good amount of gear as well as friends in mid to upper end audio . Audio is far from dead !!
I've been keeping an eye out for near new Vandersteen Treo CTs for over a year and haven't seen any. 2 years ago they popped up fairly often. Same with some other things I'm on the watch for.
Used market is the strongest I have ever seen it. I must have bought and sold more than a dozen items. I have 1 more item to sell in about 6 months and likely have a buyer lined up for that too.
A lot of companies raised prices on Jan 1, 2022, so used gear is even more competitive.
I have had regular sales the last 4 months or so. So I wouldn’t say things are slow. At least not yet. If you are finding things aren’t selling check your listing, photos and make sure your pricing is competitive with the usual benchmarks.
Shipping costs are pretty horrendous which doesn’t help and there’s the 2022 PayPal/Zelle sales tax fiasco. I pretty much have been looking for gear that’s within a drivable distance. Cash & carry!
I'm in the market for a used Aurender N10 and Seen two units sell within several days of listing last year of which I should've jumped on one then, now the ones I see are priced too high and have been sitting for a long time without any interest, or at least the sellers won't haggle,I've tried. Perhaps the prices are too high on most things is why it's slow.
I’d say there is a lot of mid level to junk and overpriced, forget eBay lots of 70’s junk. The baby boom and generation thing dried up ?? Might see more available when people get out more do other things, and possibly buy newer equipment.
First, if your 401k has lost money hand over fist over the past 1, 2, 5 or 10 years you are doing something very, very wrong. Second, if you are making hifi purchase decisions based on your 401k balance, then you are doing that wrong as well. Just saying.
if one’s hifi spending moves the needle on one's retirement assets, that person needs to stop buying stuff and consult a financial professional stat...
Thanks for all of the good points. Overall, I would agree that the used market seems to be doing well. I was mainly talking about right now, January. I decided on pricing as I think many probably do, by scanning Hi-Fi Shark. Good news, one piece did sell yesterday. I'm in no huge hurry so we'll see what happens.
A good quality stereo equipment will smash your foot if you drop it. With that being said, the cost of shipping heavy and large boxes is astronomical. Secondly, the new administration wants the IRS to collect taxes on the secondary market seller, this is including PayPal. I'm not going to mention about the websites that are increasing their sellers' fees as well. As a hobbyist, I have plenty to sell, but I will avoid selling them on auction or seller website who will send me 1099-K form.
@stereo_genyou only owe taxes if you sell it for more than you purchased it for. This isn’t a new tax policy, it has been in place for likely your entire working life and it is pretty simple to understand. Pay your fair share if you have taxable income.
Agree, it's not a new tax policy and sellers that operate a shop and sell often will know this. But as a hobbyist that might sell item one a month or so it is now being enforce upon. I have been selling on the other website and here for over 20 years and this year is the first time that I'm being tracked on things I've sold as a hobbyist and now I am receiving 1099 form. What's next - Craiglist, offerup and garage sale.
With that being said - I may or may not need to pay taxes on things that I sell, but I know things have changed and more money being pulled out of my pocket on items that I have already paid taxes on.
Respectfully, you aren’t being taxed where it isnt due. There is now a method in place where tax avoidance is more difficult. Its harder to cheat now. I fail to see the problem…
Local, national, or international market(s)? Temporal trend or strategic transition?
Then there is the most material oversimplification err- cæteris paribus.
There's more than just a "liquidity" test occurring nationally and internationally.
Interest rates rise and inflationary pricing have material impact to discretionary incomes. And discretionary spending.
Value propositions based largely upon boomer generation dynamics and next adjacent generation's are increasingly divergent.
The currently emerging generations have a very different expectations than the latter.
'Desirements' and 'requirements' are increasingly part of more decision making. As is total-cost-of-ownership vs initial acquisition cost.
Value propositions need to reflect increasingly future generations' lifestyle expectations. Past generations are dwindling. So is their market demand/participation.
I like to wait to around February/March to list stuff for sale. Many people have their income tax refunds, and therefore have some disposable "fun money" to spend.
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