Definitely more, even some of the nicer pieces are not getting the attention they deserve. It's the global economic climate in general I think. And not just for watches in particular. I think that there is less being sold too, especially compared to when I was collecting last year. I had a handful of watches on my hit list at any one time, now maybe one or two at best.

 

Perhaps prices have crept too high? I've had a casual eye out for pre-moon Speedies and the prices seem to be declining, if only a little. The BIN on a VERY nice Ed White Speedy on eBay right now is a fair amount below the handful I have seen in the recent months.

 

I think it's a seasonal thing and agreed generally the prices are a bit higher than normal.

 

It's off season. Been saying it for years guys. Things slow down in late April / early May. There might be a little "Christmas in July" spurt, then late September into December we're into a decent fall run. The January - March winter season seems to be the best.

 

it is a price decline, no doubt. for a dealer it does not matter, because if i buy cheaper, i can sell cheaper. for a collector of very rare pieces it will not matter either, because there is nothing to buy, if prices decline. collecting vintage watches always requirred spare cash for a hobby. and the guys, who could afford that, can still afford that. therefore the cheap speedies will vanish soon, if prices fall. the owners do not HAVE TO SELL under pressure.....that will come later in the economic cycle ; which is proped up by fearful , money printing governments. nothing new; happens all the time over and over again. that`s why it`s called a cycle. so, nothing to worry about ; just be careful what you buy, if you start collecting now. only very good original pieces at a lower end price range will hold the value..... kind regards. achim

 

Respectable Member watchyouwant

Compared to stocks and shares, as well as, the price of gold, the decline in vintage-watch value is akin to a mosquito-bite.

Thank-you.

 

Interesting phenomenon. I am relatively new so haven't seen the cycle yet.
My local friend collector always mentioned that current vintage omega price is very high.
10 years ago they could trade Seiko 5 with decent 60's Omega Seamaster AND still get cash. Now Omega is at least 4 times the value of vintage Seiko 5.
5 years ago local price for an average 861 Speedy moonwatch is around USD 1000 - 1200. Now it is difficult to find below USD 2000.

So yes vintage Omega price is going stronger, and Swatch Omega marketing machine has a lot to do with that. As the new pieces prices increase at Rolex speed, the used and vintage price get 'halo' effect. For '50-'60 vintage that price increase is very well deserved since it was undervalued so long for a very high quality watch at their period.

What I believe, despite seasonal and economic cycle, Omega vintage value will steadily increase as long as Swatch Omega push the marketing and launch interesting products to the new market (Speedy Dark Side of the Moon is an excellent example) and maintain new watch price increase healthily.
Rolex has done it for 40 years now successfully. When I see what Swatch group done to Omega in the past few years, they will follow the path at least for the next 10 years.

Just my 2 cents.

btw my hypothesis for Jan-March seasonal increase of vintage Omega offerings and transactions: it is end of year bonus paycheck time !!!! liquidity among the aspiring collectors (which dominantly male) is at its highest.

 

It is hard to say how many real Omega vintage collectors are out there. Sometimes it seems like you meet the same freaks again and again.

Beside that internet and ebay based community there are the high end watch collectors purchasing at big auctions or from their dealers. For them, the prices for Omegas might be too low and not exclusiv enough

 

Yea, quite a few. I'd guess that even if you added all the forumers together it wouldn't be half of the number of collectors though.

 

do not forget the role, that swiss auction houses play in cleaning a certain type of money. and for these purposes the price does not play a role......the more expensive, the better ! kind regards. achim

 

My intest is vintage Speedmasters. These have become less available recently, especialy from private sources. There are plenty of watches on the market from "dealers" that are not attractive to collectors, and they have remained on the market for some time, stagnant.

On eBay, the illusion is important. An open auction starting at a low price will sometimes sell a watch for more than a similar BIN that has been sat on the site for months. Not many collectors want to buy an overexposed watch from a dealer. They will over pay for what they perceive as a new (to the market) watch from a private source. It is these watches I don't see at the moment.

If it is not exactly right, a watch is very hard to sell.

Dealers often make this mistake, not just watch dealers. They lose sight of the fact the end user has to look at something, and feel, I can't live without that! Often dealers look at something and think, well its 85% right, so its worth 85% of the price. Except for me if it isn't right, it doesn't have value. (Except for parts - which it is true can be surprisingly high)

The vintage omega market is thin, though populated by well funded discerning collectors. So far, there are not the clients to sell the second rate watches to.

i know the OP was talking about all vintage Omegas, not just speedmasters, but that's the market from my point of view.

I also think there is a different dynamic for watches over $2000.

 

I don't know if I'd say "thin", but it isn't as flush as it was last year, nor was 2012 as good as 2011. There are still good watches to be had, just not as plentiful.

Agree BIG TIME. It seems that all Omega collectors, whether n00bs, fairly knowledgeable, or very experienced, will think nothing of dropping $500 - $1300 on a watch that meets their criteria and pops up at an opportune time.

However, the above $2000 market means there are more critical eyes looking at the watch. In a recession, the people with the real money are looking to capitalize by getting high end items at bargain prices. There aren't as many potential buyers because the middle range customers aren't as free with their cash. Less competition = lower purchase price.

 

Spacefruit, I agree with your point. BTW, your avatar Speedy looks like having a beautiful 2915 dial! Can we see pics from the beauty?

Concerning the highly collectible Omegas from end 50ies beginning 60ies my theory is, that people might have been around 30 to 40 when they purchased those watches just as daily runners. Since then 50 to 60 years have passed and the owners are approaching the age of 100 . In case their successors are not crazy about this old stuff, those wathces show up to the market now. In fact this does not really happen as I expected, so my conclusion is, that those watches are simply rare and will get even rare when they have finally disappeared in those "collectors holes" where they do not reappear for decades. Just look, how rarely a pretty 2998 or 2915 shows up at the big auction houses. Almost nothing since long.

In 6 years there is 50th anniversary of the moon landing. I think, this will give an extra kick to the Speedmaster market.

 

I would add that there are new vintage collectors raising in the new middle class developing countries, especially in Asia. China, India, Indonesia, Korea, Singapore, Thailand, Phillipine, Vietnam, MIddles east , etc. (well I am included).
Rolex, Omega and Breitling probably a no brainer choice for them because of the current marketing sexiness. It is also relatively affordable and available, unlike Patek or Breguet world. Sooner or later these new collectors are looking for similar highly collectible item from 50's and 60's.

Availability of vintage Omega in this market is miniscule, because during 50's and 60's, Omega is only for royalties and riches. With the advent of internet trading, the Asian collectors and traders are scouring Europe, US and probably Latin America to feed their highly collectible demand.

So the developed world 'collector holes' + new developing countries 'collector holes' + no more supply of this vintage watch = meaning it would be only one direction = scarcer and pricier. Of course there would be some bubbles (like Omegamania) here and there.