<start rant> Rolex is not an investment

[envuks]

With so many posts about Rolex as investments I wanted to share a good rule of thumb that I use myself. I feel this applies to 99% of situations

It’s a mass produced watch. It will go down in value as soon as you buy it. Give or take a little, estimate 25%-30% drop in value from msrp depending on the watch.

The great part about a Rolex is that you can cash out of your “investment” easier than with other watch brands. However, YOU still need to sell it. Remember, on the forums you’re competing with trusted sellers, etc so you’ll have to price below them to compete and you’ll likely have a bit more wear on your piece then they normally do on theirs. Over the long-term, used watch prices will follow the current msrp trends so maybe in about 10 years your watch may actually be selling in the used market for around your original purchase price (msrp). In addition, you’d have to factor in insurance costs which for my 116710 is $68 per year. At 10 years of ownership I’ve paid $680 in additional cost, factor that in.

For the other 1% of watches that do increase in value, much of these are bubbles, timing related, or model series ends. Don’t focus on this group, just consider yourself lucky if a watch you purchase ends up here.

Compare this to any other true investment and the returns are laughable. Rolex are NOT investments. They are a luxury asset that so happens to retain a high % of purchase price in a resale situation. Expect to lose money when you buy one. If you break even over the life of owning the watch that’s a win. You’re paying for the enjoyment of the watch and it’s worth the price of admission.

<end rant>