[humfrz]

Originally Posted by extrashaky

Inflation usually averages around 2% per year. That means if you walk out the door having paid $30K for a BRZ and keep it for 30 years, you'll have to get $54K at auction just to pay for the inflation.

But that's not the only cost of owning the car. There's insurance, registration, maintenance and carrying costs like the cost of the space it takes up. For example, it might cost you more to own a house with a garage to protect it than it would to rent some place that doesn't even have a carport. You have to consider it all.

Let's be conservative and say you just put it in storage for 30 years and took it out periodically for the basic maintenance necessary to keep it from rotting, and somehow that only cost you $1000 per year. (It would cost you more than that, but let's say you're a wizard who can do magic.)

Now you're up to $84K that you'd have to get at auction just to break even.

This is why people who understand finance generally don't buy cars expecting a capital gain. The people who make money at Barrett Jackson are not the people who held the cars for all those years. If you store your car and sell it at auction, you'll lose money. The only people who make money at Barrett Jackson are the ones who can spot a deal that someone else paid the carrying costs on, pick it up at a discount and resell it at auction.

In addition, count the money that your $30,000 could have made over 30 years, if it had been invested in another venture.


humfrz