Here is a mountain bike rule of thumb: if you have had your bike for over a year, it will have depreciated by fifty-five percent of its original value. That includes high-end brands like Giant, Specialized, or Santa Cruz.
Also, think about this, within two years, a mountain bike will depreciate to forty-eight percent of its original worth, and by the year there, it will have reached forty-one percent of the bike’s initial value.
As for which bike has the best resale value, it’s hard to go against any of the major brands in this instance.
What Gives a Bike a Bigger Resale Value?
The best way to maintain the value of a mountain bike is to keep it in the best condition possible. Even after a year of use, excellent-conditioned bikes can retain upwards of ninety percent of their MSRP.
As for that, what gives the biggest resale bang for the buck maintenance of the bike? Another way to up the value of your bike would be to purchase and install upgraded parts and replace any old or failing sections of the bike.
There are plenty of high-end parts on the market to add to the value of your bike.
How do you Depreciate a Bike?
There are many ways to decrease the value of a bike; the easiest way is to own it for a certain amount of time. Unfortunately, most bikes will be worth only fifty-five percent of their original MSRP after a year.
Another easy way is to use the bike, to ride hard and often. Unfortunately, the bike crashed once or twice when falling, putting some dents and scratches in the finish and some wear and tear.
Doing all these things and nothing but time will depreciate the value of the mountain bike. It is effortless to find ways to devalue your ride.
How Much Do Average Bikes Devalue?
As mentioned before, there is about a three-year period when a bike will, on average, depreciate. Most statistics agree that after just one year of being purchased, most mountain bikes will lose about forty-five percent of their value.
To follow that up, by year two, that bike will have dropped to about forty-eight percent of the original MSRP. Also, by the third year, the mountain bicycle will only be about forty-one percent of the initial asking price.
In reality, the devaluation process of mountain bikes will follow this general pattern, depending on the level of TLC shown to the two-wheeler over that time.
Top 5 Best Resale Brands
There are about a dozen high-end retail bicycle companies out there that produce professional-level mountain bikes.
As for resale value, you will see that the quality provided by these companies will keep those bikes from depreciating as fast as some lower-quality brands. Provided is a list of the top five resale brands of Mountain bikes:
- Specialized – Quality bikes for every level
- Trek Bikes – No-nonsense approach when producing professional-level bicycles
- Santa Cruz – Top quality frames and standout attention to style
- Yeti Cycles – Highly desirable and designed to climb better than the rest
- Mongoose – A BMX products, Inc producer of legend
What is the Best Place to Sell Your Bicycle?
This question can be answered in a few ways; first, let us start with physical locations. Second Hand sports stores and bicycle shops will buy your bike from you at a fairly negotiated price.
That will be the most immediate form of sale, along the same lines as that the seller could post an advertisement online on social media or other marketing forums.
Like stores, a seller could meet a potential buyer quickly depending on the speed at which they communicate online. The last would be to try an auction site, like eBay, which will take the most time and yield the best resale dollar amount.
Final Thoughts on Which Bike has the Best Resale Value
There are many ways to depreciate and devalue the Mountain bike you’re riding, such as letting it get dirty and rusty. The real trick is to find a way to maintain the resale value and to keep up with the daily maintenance.
There are always new bikes with the latest and greatest gadgets and technology, one of which might be the upgrade you are looking for. Having a well-kept bicycle with a high resale value will only help your cause in purchasing the upgraded ride.
Remember, doing your research is essential and being sure of a big purchase begins with being well-informed.