Depreciation of Gens

[phaedo]

I have quite a broad question, what is the depreciation like on gens as a rule? Is it the same roughly for all brands, or do some lose money faster than others? Looking at what people want for their used Pams over on panaristi, it looks like they hold their value well.

I like reps for the low cost relative to gens, it gives a chance to sample a variety of different watches for a small fraction of what the real ones cost - if you decide you don't like it after a while, there is not much of a loss, especially if another forum member is willing to buy it. But for me, although it is still going to be a year or so before I think of getting a gen, it would be nice to figure out which ones are worth buying new versus second hand relative to depreciation in the event I decide 6 months down the track I don't want that one after all.

[Stephane]

I have 2 second hands shop selling gens around here and I asked to check for Rolex and JLC only.

Both comments were: buying these two brands is a good investment as they will never loose their second hand original value.

I'm not sure buying any Pam would be the same, unless what you buy is a vintage or a limited. Others might suffer from the hype around the brand maybe.

I guess any top brand's vintage or limited models keep their value for ever anyway.

[Watchmeister]

You have to look carefully at what you are thinking about buying. It does vary dramatically. I never buy a watch brand new unless it is 35% or more off retail.

[cornerstone]

You might be interested in this recent Wall St Journal article on MSN:

"What your time could be worth"

[phaedo]

For myself at least, Rolex is not a brand I am at all interested in, so it is other brands I am more interested in. But let me make this straight right off, it is not that I would be looking to buy something to sell, rather if I decide a few months after I buy it I no longer want it, which models as a general rule do better or worse? And again, it is just a query at the moment, I am still a year away from even thinking gen. Ideally my first gen will be my daily beater until I die, of course picking up others along the way as I make my fortune

[Watchmeister]

My suggestion would be that as you get closer to buying that gen post what brands and models you are contemplating. Between all the forum members here you will likely get some useful input.

[swdivad]

It's a good idea if your interested in buying a gen, see what the second hand market is doing with that model/brand over on the Purists or Timezone forums... You can the guage the depreciation pretty well.

Buying a mid range brand like Tag or Omega 'typically' (surely not always) will drop 30-40% off retail right out of the door, but you should at least get 30% off retail when you buy the watch.

Panerai just don't discount at the AD anywhere, although you can sometimes find some backdoor/grey market ADs that you can get a little off the retail price. Check out the collectors area on Paneristi for prices... they vary greatly from one model to the next... the vintage, Pre-As, and Pre-Vs just keep going up by leaps and bounds.... It's just insane what the hype around this brand has done!

[sssurfer]

It also depends on what country you buy and sell.

In this [censored] of country where I live the buyer of a first-hand item pays 20% more in taxes than a second-hand one.

[Watchmeister]

[kingkitesurf]

Ahhhhh Nanuq me want me want....