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Bike BB Value vs. actual sale prices?
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Hi all,

There seems to be a huge disparity between what the blue-book value for a bike is vs. the actual sale prices for the same bikes.

For a random example, a 2009 Orbea Ordu Ultegra is valued at $974-$1,003 for Very Good, $1,023-1,053 for Excellent on bicycle blue book.

Now, try to find any Orbea Ordu in any condition from any year, for sale under 2k. Good luck. It's like that for just about every tri-bike out there - from Cervelo to Felt to Specialized...

How are the folks at bicycle blue book coming up with these values when the market reflects an entirely different value for these bikes?

School me on this. Thanks.
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Re: Bike BB Value vs. actual sale prices? [Frank] [ In reply to ]
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I see some ridiculously high asking prices for used bikes. I also wonder how many of those people are actually selling them at those prices.
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Re: Bike BB Value vs. actual sale prices? [Frank] [ In reply to ]
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I wouldn’t think any bike nearly 10 years old is worth 2k. I paid 2800 for a two year old mint condition specialized tarmac s-works Dura-ace bike last summer. My 2006 specialized epic disk blue books for 300-350 which is about what I think it will sell for. The new one I’m replacing it with will be 6000. So yeah, old bikes aren’t worth much.
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Re: Bike BB Value vs. actual sale prices? [Frank] [ In reply to ]
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Asking vs Selling $ are two different beasts. Then you factor in location, supply and demand, etc...

When buying used from a shop I expect that I will probably pay a bit more than BB because the shop is storing the bike, they've cleaned it up, tuned it, put on new grips/cables, etc. When buying from a person I wouldn't pay more. When looking on craigslist in my area I see the same overpriced bikes on there 6 months later. The good priced ones sell right away. I assume as soon as I leave the bike shop, car dealership,etc that what I just bought has dropped in value by 30% and its just going down from there, probably 10%+ a year until its levels out.
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Re: Bike BB Value vs. actual sale prices? [Frank] [ In reply to ]
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I think this question will generate some interesting posts. I browse ebay and the forum and Craigslist a lot, mostly for fun just drooling and fantasizing of buying another bike (N+1!), and it does amaze and sometimes amuse me how much some sellers think their bike is worth. I haven't bought or sold a bike second hand so interested to hear from those with experience in it.

In the end, any given bike is worth only how much someone pays for it. BBB can be very weird to go by, because very small aftermarket upgrades can make a big difference in value. BBB assumes the bike has the original parts that it was spec'd with, I assume?
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Re: Bike BB Value vs. actual sale prices? [PBT_2009] [ In reply to ]
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PBT_2009 wrote:
I think this question will generate some interesting posts. I browse ebay and the forum and Craigslist a lot, mostly for fun just drooling and fantasizing of buying another bike (N+1!), and it does amaze and sometimes amuse me how much some sellers think their bike is worth. I haven't bought or sold a bike second hand so interested to hear from those with experience in it.

In the end, any given bike is worth only how much someone pays for it. BBB can be very weird to go by, because very small aftermarket upgrades can make a big difference in value. BBB assumes the bike has the original parts that it was spec'd with, I assume?

Same here - unfortunately, I'm not in a position to buy a new bike but it's fun to look around.

I hear what you're saying about upgrades affecting the price but I don't think it accounts for the vast difference in pricing I constantly see between BB and sale prices- upgrades or not. It's crazy.

I understand that price is dictated by the market. I guess my real question is how does BB arrive at their value assessments? It certainly doesn't seem to be based on the market that I'm seeing.
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Re: Bike BB Value vs. actual sale prices? [Frank] [ In reply to ]
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I'm sure there's many here with more experience, but of the two used bikes I bought and three that I sold in the last two years the exchanged cash ended up being within 10% of the bicycle blue book value. They were all within two years of the current model except one that was nine years old. Upgrades are near worthless and typically better sold on their own.

Maybe it's because it's winter in the Midwest, but my 2017 RXS has been listed for months without a decent offer though.
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Re: Bike BB Value vs. actual sale prices? [Frank] [ In reply to ]
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It can be rediculous. I've seen some try to sell used bikes above the sale price of a newer version of the same bike.

You just have to be patient. My last two purchases were a
-2015 P2 for $1000cad/~$800usd).
-1st gen Wahoo Kickr for $450/$360usd. ...In all fairness, it needed a new belt, power adapter, and axel adapter so it really cost $600cad/$475usd.

The deals are out there, but it gets a little tricky to find them if you need something specific, and now!
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Re: Bike BB Value vs. actual sale prices? [Frank] [ In reply to ]
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People think because it’s their bike it’s basically worth about what they paid for it. They think whatever they have is so special of course it’s going to be only 300 less then new.
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Re: Bike BB Value vs. actual sale prices? [Frank] [ In reply to ]
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I bought a bike on CL in January. It was a Look Aero 576 i paid $600 and the blue says $450-500. The other two of that exact model that I have seen on CL one was $1200 and another was $1450. There were a couple Fuji aloha bikes for sale at $500. I dont think a tri bike less than 10 years old will sell for much less than the $500 amount. I didnt negotiate with the seller I thought it was a good deal after scouring the listing for about a month and a half. The thing with CL is that its possible you will spend an extra $200 just to get the bike race ready due to deferred maintenance issues....thats not counting uprgrades. I had to buy pedals and the seat I have is not too comfy. Also the wheels were the stock training wheels some guys will sell there race wheels with the bike and then it can be decent deal.
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