rolex resale value myths

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Phillyfan

O.G.
Nov 25, 2007
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303
#1
My friend was told her resale trade-in value is only 25% of what she purchased original watch for in 2009! She paid just under $8,000 and it is in absolute mint condition. Jeweler and authorized rolex dealer offered her $2,000 store credit. I thought that rolexes would be worth half of original purchase price if in mint condition. The particular style now lists for over $10,000. So she decided to keep it :smile: Are others on this forum under false impressions that rolexes hold their value? Maybe it is just the submariners or certain men's styles....
 
#5
A jeweler buying an 8k watch from someone to resell needs to make a profit, so can't pay 2k. If they were confident in reselling, they might pay higher--but 75% mark-up (from 2k to 8k) is actually really low for jewelry.

Edited to add: on EBay she might actually get 8k or even more, B/c all it takes is one person who really really wants *that* watch. Jewelry's basically worth what we're willing to pay for it--hence, Tiffany's can charge hundreds of dollars for silver that's only "worth" $20 an ounce.
 
#6
kath2 - I'm having trouble understanding your post. Are you saying 2k is good and a jeweler can't pay more to make a profit? If the watch lists for well over 10k, then jeweler could probably sell it for 6 or 7k. So I'd think would pay 3 or 4k for it. That would still yield a hefty profit. It is in mint condition!
 
#7
Phillyfan said:
I thought that rolexes would be worth half of original purchase price if in mint condition.
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Dealers buy brand new Rolex watches at about 60% off the current retail price. You can be sure they aren't going to be generous on a 2009 used watch. Your friend's "mint condition" still equals used, and who knows how close it is to needing a full service (which itself retails for $500+).
 
#8
jellyv said:
Dealers buy brand new Rolex watches at about 60% off the current retail price. (snip)
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^I misstated it: Dealers buy new watches for about 40% off the retail (10K$ retail watch costs them $6000, possibly even less depending on size of order). Point still stands: they aren't going to pay someone 50% of retail or anything close to that five years after purchase.
 
#10
jellyv said:
Dealers buy brand new Rolex watches at about 60% off the current retail price. You can be sure they aren't going to be generous on a 2009 used watch. Your friend's "mint condition" still equals used, and who knows how close it is to needing a full service (which itself retails for $500+).
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This is an excellent point about service. My husband's massage therapist's father is one of the best Rolex repairmen in the country and other members of his family are involved in the Rolex resale market. In order to sell a pre-owned Rolex, the majority of people want to know that a full service was performed as they are so pricey. They keep us apprised of interesting pieces that they happen to come across.

I purchased my husband a new Rolex in 2012 for our 10 year anniversary. I am glad I did, but when I see how much I could have paid for a pre-owned, I cringe. I'm not a Rolex person per se, but I would not mind one for fun as I already own the watch I always wanted. But with people I trust in the business, I could be swayed. I love watches. However, my future Rolex would be pre-owned.
 
#11
Do authorized dealers get more for rolexes than other brands? When I bought my Cartier last month they kept pushing lookig at the new and estate rolexes? I got a decent discount off my watch which is what prompted me to choose the size I did.
 
#12
LVoeletters said:
Do authorized dealers get more for rolexes than other brands? When I bought my Cartier last month they kept pushing lookig at the new and estate rolexes? I got a decent discount off my watch which is what prompted me to choose the size I did.
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I'd love to know the answer to this too. Whenever I look at watches, the SA's are always pushing Rolex (sometimes subtly, other times not) and I've wondered if it's because they get a larger percentage?

Resale value doesn't concern me too much. I own two and love them and plan to keep them forever or give them to my kids eventually. Rolex (or any watch brand for that matter) is not a scarce commodity. They can always make more Rolexes, there will always be another hot model, so that's always going to depress resale value for older models.
 
#14
If you want to sell it, just go on the many watch boards like watchuseek or the rolex forums. That will give you an idea of what your watch is worth and can be sold for. Watchrecon is also another good site.

In general Women's Rolex watches do not hold their value as much as the men's because their is a very good secondary market for men's rolex watches, especially for the stainless models.
 
#15
Sadly this is why it's better to buy in the secondary market. But you have to be absolutely sure of your dealer before buying estate. My DH is a serious Rolex collector and has yet to buy retail. We have a few dealers with excellent reputations who will always take the pieces back at full purchase price on an exchange.
 
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