For many, the daily onslaught of distressing news and economic troubles have been balanced out by a desire to find “social distancing” compliant activities to occupy their time. Powersports is starting to look like one of the “winners” in this category. ATVs, motorcycles and watercraft appeal to people wanting to have some fun, but in a safe way. This increased demand for powersports is helping values bounce back from historic lows.
“After the first month of the COVID-19 shutdowns put a freeze on powersports values during the beginning of the spring selling season, and the second month saw dramatic declines, this month values are up across the board, some by the largest amounts we have ever seen in a monthly update. A combination of surprisingly strong demand, coupled with drops in availability of units, has led to this resurgence in values,” said Scott Yarbrough, senior analyst – motorcycle and powersports at Black Book.
Another major factor keeping prices up is a limited supply of new and used inventory. Both dealer consignments and repos from finance companies are in short supply at the auctions right now. This, combined with plant shutdowns which have slowed or stopped new unit shipments, has led to significant supply constraints.
The stronger than expected retail demand, coupled with these supply reductions, have led to a new pricing equilibrium, oddly enough, near what would be considered “normal” levels for this time of year.
The biggest gainer this month is the utility vehicle segment, which is up an unprecedented 10.5%. This is the biggest month over month gain we have ever seen for any segment. Just as noteworthy are the ATVs, up nearly 4.6% and the dirt bikes, which have seen three straight months of increases.
Link: Black Book
