[AT] Antique tractors that are too expensive

[Bill Brueck]

While I didn’t have a name for this, either, I have wondered about my own sense of the value of something at auctions.  I found myself willing to buy something at a price and then being aware that I wouldn’t part with it for that price, or sometime quite a bit more, even factoring in when I was maxed out on the bidding price.  Having become aware of this, I am more inclined than I used to be to accept offers at the auction for part of a lot that I just bought.

Indeed, “know thyself” is good and reading about endowment effect helps with that!

Bill Brueck
   Pine Island, MN  USA



From: AT <at-bounces at lists.antique-tractor.com> On Behalf Of Spencer Yost
Sent: Saturday, December 21, 2019 11:13 PM
To: at at lists.antique-tractor.com
Subject: [AT] Antique tractors that are too expensive


We have all seen it:  the tractor the seller is asking way too much for.  Or conversely; why buyers don’t show up for our obviously wonderful tractor that we post in EBay/Craigslist/whatever.

So listening to podcasts tonight, I ran across a podcast that was discussing many things, including a discussion with a psychologist from Berkeley who was explaining the “endowment effect”. I was unaware of this. Though I had intuited it many times I did not know it was a “thing”.


Long story short it explains why people often seem to ask way more for a tractor that I’m willing to pay.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Endowment_effect

https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C34&q=endowment+effect&oq=endowment+


Interestingly, this is true regardless of how long they owned it or whether it had any other type (e.g. nostalgia) of value.

Unfortunately, the podcast did not describe how I, the buyer, could negotiate my way around this.

PS:   I will be that seller if I ever sell the Pacer. (-;

Spencer

Sent from my iPhone
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