I am just wandering if the equipment that goes up for auction at auctions like RBs and other auctions is primarly repos or if it is stuff dealerships cant sell, or otherwise cdoes it come from somewhere else. Also is it advisable to purchase equipment at such auctions?
I have had good luck at RB, buying and selling. Alot of their stuff is from rental yards and large contractors.
It comes from almost everywhere. Repo's, rental companies, fleets that are upgrading, dealers trade in's, contractors getting rid of problem machines, companies going out of business, either by going broke or retiring. If you know what to look for, you can get some good deals, but it is definatley "buyer beware". Some things sold there have problems that you have no way of finding till it goes to work, and others have blatant problems. I have gotten some really great deals, and have been burned a few times as well.
Auctions ? Just went to a Ritchie Bros Auction last Saturday, Nov. 8 here in Alaska. Contractors equipment came from outfits, liquidating their business. Some just getting rid of surplus, or unneeded equipment. Jobs are done, and they do not expect to use it again, or have a need for future ones. Sellers just getting rid of inventory for the year, not wanting to carry it all winter. Buyers looking for equipment for future work . Presale inspection ,is done by serious bidders, they come and look, do research, on ownership,maintenance records, look at condition of equipment, start and run it,etc. Everything sold, some good deals and some hotly contested ones, which drove the final bid up. Internet buyers from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, British Columbia, and USA. Anyway a good place for some socializing at the same time. Meeting friends and aquaintances from the industry. :usa
Most of the time in the fliers Ritchie Brothers send out, it gives some description of where the equipment is coming from, plus if the company is doing a complete dispersal or if it is surplus.
I'm on my first RB piece of equipment a 623F, it came from a large rental fleet out of Arizona when they went out of biz. It seems to be very sound and has a service chart on the door that is up to date with oil changes etc. I feel good about it, what scares me is the contractor that watches his oil samples to know when to send it to an RB auction. A guy can really get burned or get a really good deal.
That list in the brochure is just for large packages of equipment, but there is almost always a lot of other equipment added from others. They brag on the good fleets, not so much on the poor ones. Those are the ones to watch for.
I have seen some amazing deals on IronPlanet. You can check out completed auctions and they also go through a detailed inspection on most of the equipment. Just an option. I have purchased from them and you do have a pretty nice fee attached so you gotta check the details beforehand.
Some manufacturers for the last few years have placed a ton of brand new equipment with RB so as to gain market recognition and market share. The list includes generators, light plants, tools, small compaction equipment, and many a trailer. A lot of the smaller stuff is of Chinese brand. I have little to no experience with their stuff, other than what I've bought at wally world. That tells me their equipment probably isn't much better. So far this year, over 3200 Chinese manufacturers have gone out of business and the world recession is just getting started there. Might make getting spare parts difficult you know. I never trusted someone else's word on a piece of equipment, always looking it over myself. I learned that from my earliest days in the industry. Since the flooding in many places last year from natural disasters, a close look-see and oil sample reports have become even more vital. There is a lot of flooded construction and automotive equipment on the market. I learned the hard way about used gray-market iron, especially from the middle east and Africa. Even the stuff from well recognized dealers and contractors in those regions is suspect. Always try to learn as much as possible about items you might wish to bid on. Get the former owners maintenance logs and records, oil sample reports if available, or do your own. Get SIMMS reports from Cat if you can. Anything that will help you identify a problem piece of machinery. The market is flooded with iron right now as our economy goes down the toilet. Some pretty good buys if you have work and need a machine. Repo's are a big item and there will be much more soon I'm sure.
You got that right. You start seeing all these great deals but it's hard to justify a purchase if know one is calling you for work.