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I bought a second hand electrical bike for a very reasonable price (600 euro) more than a year ago. Since then i changed jobs and i now commute by car and the bike just sits in the shed.

If I sell it now I can probably still get a nice price for it. I have kept it out of lazyness and also because i would like a job at cycling distance. However I also like my current job and while i look at vacancy postings I have not yet applied anywhere else.

If I sell, it will be time-consuming (and time I dont have) to find another good bike at a good price. My bike was cheap because the store I bought it from does not specialize in electric bikes. Such bike are usually sold for 900 euro by the stores that do specialize and offer a limited warrenty.

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  • I’ve added the “depreciation” tag for you.
    – Mike Scott
    Aug 7, 2018 at 9:58
  • 1
    You are actively looking for a job closer to home, right? Why do you think you should sell the bike? Do you think you could sell it for more than you paid for it?
    – Ben Miller
    Aug 7, 2018 at 10:02
  • @Ben Miller - I could maybe even sell it for more, but I worry the deal would bust when i show the buyer the receipt and they see how much I paid. Right now the bike is not used, it is losing value and taking up space. 3-4 more years and the battery will be dead.
    – Ivana
    Aug 7, 2018 at 10:24
  • Do you think you are 3-4 years away from a new job?
    – Ben Miller
    Aug 7, 2018 at 10:50
  • @Ivana While it’s a common mistake even among native English speakers, you should take care not to confuse “depreciate” and “deprecate”, which are two different words with different meanings.
    – Mike Scott
    Aug 7, 2018 at 11:07

2 Answers 2

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Electric bikes are a newish thing, and with it you can expect technology to improve. Considering that, the tech in your current bike, even if new might be considered antiquated in 3 to 5 years.

Also you might consider the weather. Bikes need maintenance, and are sensitive to the elements. Without riding it, and being outside in a shed, the machinery will deteriorate quickly.

Given the facts that you cite, I would sell it. You may be at this job a long time. You may move. Your next job might be withing walking distance or it may be better to take public transportation. Heck the next job might supply bicycles, or you could negotiate one as part of a sign on bonus.

There are many unknowns, and only one known. If you let this bike sit for three years it will be nearly worthless. So yea, this is pretty clear: Sell it!

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    Agreed - even if the bike itself stays in perfect current condition, its value will likely decrease relative to other new models [likely selling for similar to today's new models] in a few years. Aug 7, 2018 at 13:59
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What you paid for it isn't relevant. All that matters is what you can get for it if you sell now, and how much it will cost you to purchase a similar bike in the future. For this item, it is almost guaranteed that you can get more for the bike today than it will cost you to purchase the same bike in the future, so selling now is the right choice. It's likely in the future you can buy even a better one for the same price as you sell it for today.

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  • While it is true that i cannot change sunken costs, i think that i got very lucky with my current bike is relevant in the decision. If i were to buy another, it would very likely cost me a lot of time to search again, and i would either have to take chances and buy one without any warrenty hoping it's battery would be good or i would have to spend a lot of money.
    – Ivana
    Aug 10, 2018 at 11:36
  • @Ivana - If you paid 600 and it's worth 900 right now, then you should be able to sell it for 900 right now. Then in the future if you want to buy it again you could pay 900, or likely less. Even if you paid only 100 or got it for free you'd still be able to sell it for 900 today. (This is why the price you paid doesn't matter.)
    – TTT
    Aug 10, 2018 at 14:33

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