The Value of Things

Disclaimer:  This post is very similar to another recent post, but with a slightly different twist.  I'm not recycling material (yet)


We have a used-car problem in our family, if one defines "problem" as "a repeat situation, after the family member in charge swore up and down he HAD learned his lesson."

When it came time to sell our elderly station wagon, we were all sad, as there could never be a newer replacement.  We had the most recent vintage (which wasn't terribly recent.)
The family member in charge of selling the car set a price, listed the car on the relevant websites and...

Two years later, when the car no longer would start, it was towed for scrap.

What happened?

In a nutshell, the way he valued the car determined the price set, and that price was just too high for an 16-year-old, gas guzzler.  There were no takers.
No problem, except the designated seller refused to lower the price.
"It's worth that much," he insisted.

Sentimentally, that old wagon was priceless.  Practically speaking, it was priceless too.  With the seats down, I could carry two seven-foot folding tables, two wooden children's tables, four wooden children's chairs, two folding chairs, and still get the rear gate closed.

Monetarily speaking, it wasn't worth much.  Maintenance was a killer.  Before the station-wagon, I had not known motor oil came in gallon containers.

Here's the kicker:  The exact same thing happened when it came time to re-home another car.
The price was too high, the car languished for over a year, and was sold for a small fraction of the initial asking price.

Why did this happen AGAIN?

I don't know for sure, but I believe the common denominator is two opposing measures of value, applied to the same object.  If you've ever seen a piece of furniture or a large rug at a garage/estate sale, which seems overpriced, it might be the same effect:

Sentiment versus utility.

I recently noted (and wrote about) the reverse stumbling block, when something of actual monetary value but no practical use anymore languishes, because there is too much sentiment to sell it to just anyone.

It's a balancing act, to be sure, determining the value of things when it's time to thin the herd.
Is sentiment the higher value?  If so, "free to a GOOD home" honors that.
Is monetary gain the higher value?  Determine what the market will bear...and don't look back.