Here on the West Coast of Florida I see the same cars for sale for years and unless the owners get tired and give in and lower the price nothing is really selling right now. I also agree with another person who said anything from around 1960 and back is the hardest market to move cars in right now. Jimbo
One other thing coming up in a few months is Turkey Run and it's always interesting to see the prices for cars in the car area. Last year if you had between 20 and 25,000 dollars with you you could buy a beautiful street rod! It is simply cheaper to buy one right now then to build one. Jimbo
I feel like buyers are still out there, a couple weeks ago i had a guy come by my shop to look at a O/T buick station wagon, While he was here we walked into the shop and he saw my 27 Ford Roadster setting there. He say's what do you want for the roadster and i said it wasn't for sale, he says the usual, everything is for sale for the right price what's yours ? Told him again it's not for sale. He says let me make you an offer, he did and we loaded it up ! So, they"buyers" are still out there but maybe not as many as in the past unless it's something that tickles someone's trigger.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Smart move, don't need to know the number, but you made the most you ever would at that time without investing more time and money. Bob
The best time to sell is when you have someone that wants to buy it now, not when you are ready to sell it!
As a seller I'm not sure if I'd want to put up with tire kickers, etc or see if I can find a local live auction to consign to.
That is the truth. Had a guy come up to me once and asked do you want to sell that car. I said no, but every thing has a price. I gave him my do not want to sell it price and he put his hand out and bought it. Same with houses, they sell the first day on the market or they sit forever. If you look on Ebay sold items, people are buying. Like they say it's all about timing. Right person, right place. There an ass for every seat!
I've been getting quite a few calls to clean out a guys collection of left over parts,cars etc. Earlier this summer I did a number of buyouts or in a few cases "just haul all this stuff for free". There is always a amount of non sellable stuff when doing a cleanout but right now I am becoming more picky as to what I'll buy or take.
A friend just dropped the price on his 40 tudor to 21K this week from 22 something I posted a link to his craigslist ad in the craigslist/ebay links in the classifieds to give him a bit more exposure. Car is a nice older build, black with flames, All Ford with a 351 in it. Dated interior that is in good shape though. He took it in trade on an RP and is trying to thin the herd. Nice traditional looking car with upgraded suspension. They have put enough miles on it in the past few months to know that it is reliable. Around here I think with a lot of people is that while they like a car that is for sale it is too connected to the owner and you still have Joe's old car when you take it to an event. My buddy had to take his 48 Pontiac Ragtop 1500 miles away a few years ago to sell it at a big NSRA event. Guy paid the original asking price as the car was nice and totally unknown in his home territory.
Add C1 and C2 Corvettes to that too, I have been hoping to see them come down from the stratosphere for a while now.
Well from a guy who got out of the car scene for a few years for some serious investing opportunities I can say now that I am back in it the cars are pricey, I think about what it cost me to build an award winning street rod in 2000 has is 3x that now. On the other hand I held out and looked at a lot of 20k $ cars with cash in hand only to walk away because they were junk Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
I listed my beater/driver quality steel five window with a Chevvie and automatic on the HAMB for 28K. Had it sold in about 15 minutes and had about 10 guys in line. -Abone.
No question, more sellers than buyers. Hot rods and cars have always been about personal taste. I'm not one who is lucky. I live in a remote area which doubles the effort to sell. I do sell some things but not with regularity. I have a friend who was a real wheeler dealer. Last month he told me that he "lost the magic" The question is: will the market rebound after the 1st of the year or is there no logic to why or what it is?
Having the 351 in it isn't helping. I know all the Ford in a Ford guys will hate that, but it's the truth. "upgraded suspension", does that mean Mustang II? Another thing that will hurt it's desirability.
"I've been watching prices go down as well. I don't look on CL for cars anymore as them charging for ads has tanked the listings" yes, the regular car section has tanked but around here the sellers been listing them under the car parts section or the barter section. Both sections are just filled with vehicles now to avoid that $5 listing fee even though they want $25000-$50,000 for their cars. But the cl buyers still seem to be cheap. I just sold a deisel skidsteer and everyone wanted to try to haggle me down to less than a gas priced machine without even looking at it over the phone even though I had the cheapest diesel one listed that we just serviced. but it just took the right first guy to look at it and try it out and brought it for the full price without hesitating. He knew a bargain when he saw it. otherwise i must admit there seems to be really good car deals coming up in my local facebook marketplace. I just watch 2 classics get sold there recently that are on cl now for more money.
"The question is: will the market rebound after the 1st of the year or is there no logic to why or what it is? " scrappers are asking the same question, they made no money this year so they have no extra money.
I have a friend in the business of buying and selling classic cars. The last time there was a thread like this I checked in with him about it and he said you're all crazy. He specializes in buying barn finds and inherited cars, etc. Has no problem moving them. You So Cal guys may have heard his ad's on the 24hr news radio station (what is that, KNX?) or on Uncle Leon's car show on KABC on Sunday mornings. Business is hot.
Let me ask all you hambers a question If someone lists a vehicle say for $12,000 , you see the ad and your first thought is that is more like an $8,500 car . Does that turn your interest off altogether , because the seller is crazy or way off the mark, do you lose interest and move on, dicker or tell he/she they are crazy.
I'm happy with the cars & projects I have, no need to add another, HOWEVER I do look through the classifieds here and other places. Cheap entertainment and maybe educational, only four listings on the first two pages of HAMB classifieds caught my eye and one was sold, looked like a good start and priced right at market value in my opinion, I think there is a lot of stuff in the 15,000 to 25,000 asking range that may be over valued, but then I'm not an active buyer. Bob
Recently a car that had been my "HOLY GRAIL CAR" & I'd thought I'd never be able to afford, came up at a price roughly half of what it "coulda/shouda" gone for, & now I have it. The deals seem to be out there if you're not "pushing" them, & we've always heard the scares : " the market's going up.... No, it's going down...." If you look back, you'll remember that we've heard these same stories FOREVER, & the market's still out there....
If you're buying the market is always too high, if you're selling it's to low. The trick is to buy when you're selling.
In my observation, quality cars always bring good money. Thrown-together cars do not. Also, 80s-90s "street rod" style cars with pastel colors and tweed interiors are hard sells because new owner will have to reupholster and repaint. And one more thing, sometimes the seller has made modifications or styling decisions that he really likes, but no one else does. That affects price as well.
If only there was someone on this board, who not only works with that technology, but could also give you the correct information, in regards to this wild speculation....
Just my opinion but if things slow up even more in 2020 it will make it harder to sell anything not just cars but homes and just about everything else. Sorry but that my opinion and the old saying "The Handwriting in on the Wall" applies here. At age 72 you don't have to have a degree in economics to realize we have had about a 10 year run in the stock market with 10 to 13% returns each year without much of any pull back and since we are all big boy's we understand what comes next. I hope I am wrong to be honest with you! Jimbo
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