How do I price my tractor or farm equipment for sale?

So you’re ready to let go of the tractor sitting in your shed, you’ve read our handy guide on how to prepare your tractor for sale and have snapped the right pics for the ad, but one final question remains – how do you accurately price it?

List it too high, and all you’ll hear are crickets. Price it too low, and you’re not getting what you rightfully deserve for a machine that has hopefully served you well over the years.

Instead, you want to hit that sweet spot – right where your ad attracts plenty of interest, and eventually lands you a sale for a satisfactory price.

Here are some hints and tips to help you on your selling journey when determining the best price for your used tractor or equipment.

One of the easiest ways to get an idea of current pricing is to see what other people have listed for the same or similar items for sale on farmmachinerysales.com.au. There are plenty of ways to search and filter our classifieds, so you can drill down to a list of only the most relevant items. See what sort of asking prices these items are commanding to give yourself a ballpark idea of what your own bit of gear might be worth.

Start your search by selecting broad themes, like the make, model, and year, before drilling down into more specific criteria. Prices can vary by location, so you can hone in on a particular part of the country, and you can even put parameters around things like engine output, transmission type, and mileage (or engine hours).

Once you have a list of search results, you can change the order of the results by pricing from lowest to highest, and vice versa, to give you an idea of the range of pricing on offer. And remember that ‘Featured Ads’ can figure at the top of searches – that doesn’t mean they are the cheapest, or the most expensive, or the best...

Also look at searching by tractor or equipment type or category, as this will allow you to compare prices across different brands for similar equipment.

Tractors, like cars, are depreciating assets, so you have to factor in depreciation when you figure out a price. Obviously, the older the tractor, the less you can sell it for.

There are a couple of ways you can figure out an approximate depreciation rate, like the Australian Taxation Office’s diminishing value method or prime cost method.

For example, ATO uses the following formula to calculate depreciation using the prime cost method:

Asset’s cost x (days held ÷ 365) x (100% ÷ asset’s effective life)

A tractor’s effective life is approximately 12 years, according to the ATO.

So say you purchased a tractor for $50,000 this day last year and decided to sell it today, the calculation will be as follows:

50,000 x (365 ÷ 365) x (100% ÷ 12) = $4167

This means your tractor has declined by $4167 in one year and is worth about $45,833 today. Head to the ATO’s page about depreciation for more information.

In addition to your machine’s age, a range of other factors also affect the price, such as the condition it is in, what brand it is, and whether it has additional options or accessories.

Obviously, if your machine has been cleaned regularly and kept in pristine condition, then there’s every chance it will fetch a better price.

Where brands are concerned, the more well-known makes such as John Deere or Case IH will have a higher resale value compared to lesser-known ones. In addition to having a solid reputation within the industry, these brands also tend to have better service and parts support around the country.

Other factors such as location and demand can also affect the price of your equipment. Right now, demand remains fairly high for certain types of tractors.

A great service history and proof of regular maintenance and/or upgrades will also play a role. It may not necessarily seal the deal, but having receipts and related paperwork for servicing will allay buyers’ fears, and will certainly attract added interest.

Are you offering any additional equipment as part of your sale? Are you selling a loader and bucket in good condition to go with the tractor? Will it come with the GPS system you installed on it last year? All this should also be factored into the final price and can serve as an added incentive to get a close but hesitant buyer across the line.

If all this is too much for you, or you’d like to seek a second opinion, don’t be afraid to approach the dealership you bought your machine from and ask for advice.

Dealers are well equipped to give you an idea of market conditions and the resale value of certain brands, and can guide you on the best price for which you can sell your equipment.

Finally, once you’ve established the range of prices for similar equipment, consider where you want to position your tractor. The sweet spot is usually a little above the mid-point of cheapest to most expensive – provided your machine’s true condition warrants the asking price.

Set the price, hit go on your ad listing, and then sit back and monitor the interest it attracts using farmmachinerysales’ handy seller tools.

If you’re not getting views, make sure you’ve uploaded enough quality images (check out our handy guide to taking great photos to help sell your equipment) and check that you haven’t accidently listed your item under the wrong category.

If you’re getting views but no enquiries, chances are your pricing is off the mark. If so, approach our customer service team for further assistance or advice.

And on a final note, be flexible with your pricing and be prepared to negotiate. Set an absolute minimum for which you are willing to sell the machine and stick to it, but on the flipside remember that a little ‘give and take’ can work wonders to secure that sale too.

Be realistic and honest and you’ll be making that sale in no time. Good luck!

For more helpful buying and selling tips, visit the Help Centre.

Ready to sell your item? Go to the farmmachinerysales Sell page to get started.