Do Pianos Appreciate In Value?

When searching for a piano to purchase, one important thing to consider is how well a piano will retain it’s value or if it even has the potential to appreciate in value.

Over the years I have purchased hundreds of pianos (maybe even thousands at this point?).

Many times sellers will provide me with their original purchase paperwork they got with their pianos when they purchased it new, so I have gotten a bit of a glimpse in piano pricing history.

In short…. Do pianos appreciate in value? Some do…kinda.

Not ALL pianos appreciate in value.

In general the pianos that hold their value well and eventually increase in value are higher end pianos. A Yamaha or Schimmel have great potential to hold and appreciate in value, but an “in house brand’ of a piano store or a lower cost piano with a lesser known name is likely not to hold value well and likely will not appreciate.

Condition is important.

Like anything, the resale value of something is going to depend greatly on the current condition of the item. An all original late 1960s Porsche that has been garage kept and pampered throughout its life is going to sell for more than a Porsche of the same model and year that was parked on the side of a barn decades ago. Keep your piano in good shape and it will pay off later when it is time for the piano to move onto its next life.

Timing

This is probably the most important thing to keep in mind when considering pianos appreciating in value. There is a particular piano manufacturer out there that guarantees that their pianos appreciate in value with age. While this is factually true, it’s a little deceiving. Pianos take a LONG time to appreciate. Purchasing a new piano is very similar to purchasing a new car. Once you drive it off the lot, the resale value instantly takes a dive.

From my experience it seems like pianos start to appreciate right around the 20-30 year mark.
I’ve purchased a lot of pianos right at or just above what people have paid for them brand new, but this is generally only true when the original purchase was made 20 -30 years prior.

There’s nothing that age does to a piano that makes it any better than new necessarily, it’s just that with gradual inflation of currency new pianos will always increase in cost each year. This weighs in the favor of the “well, what would a new one cost?” thought exercise.

Again, the pianos aren’t getting better, the new ones are just getting more expensive causing the older models to appreciate a bit in value at the same pace.

The company mentioned earlier that guarantees their pianos appreciate in value is right, but if you purchase one of their grands today for $90k, you’re going to be reselling it 3 years for now for well under $70k. It takes a few decades for the “appreciation” to take place.

Do Pianos Appreciate In Value With Age?