I have appraised two excavators of the same model and year, sitting in the same yard, that sold five figures apart. Nothing about that surprised me — resale value in construction equipment is not about the badge and the birth year, it is about five factors the market prices ruthlessly. If you own machines, understanding them is worth real money twice: when you buy, and years later when you sell.
The depreciation curve — where the money goes
Heavy equipment loses value fastest in its first years, then flattens. A new machine typically sheds 20–30% of its value in the first year or two, then settles into a slower 5–10% annual decline once it is established as a "used machine." That flattening is why well-bought used equipment holds its money so well — most of the painful depreciation was paid by the first owner.
| Machine age | Typical value retained |
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