Should FMV stand for Fake Market Value?

When I joined the industry 20 years ago, most remarketing happened on a consignment basis. Revenue share arrangements took the guesswork out of getting a fair deal. Reports showed the actual sale price of equipment. There was perfect transparency. Incentives were aligned. You got shortchanged only if your service provider took excessive deductions (remember when they charged $25 for no power cord?).

Fast forward to today. Most remarketing happens on a Fair Market Value basis. FMV is supposed to be an accurate assessment of what a piece of equipment would sell for if sold today. Service providers have ultimate control as they set the value for the equipment they buy from you. Unfortunately, FMV is it is anything but fair and you are likely leaving a lot of money on the table.

The main problem with FMV is that it is a completely made-up number. FMV is the lowest price a service provider thinks you’ll accept before you will look elsewhere. In other words, fair market value is the lowest price an ITAD thinks they can get away with. It is no wonder why some refer to FMV as Fake Market Value or Fools Market Value.

It is time to drop the “fair” from FMV. Take a moment to get “market value” instead.

Nobody would sell a car without doing a little comparison shopping. Instead of FMV, get bids. You will be surprised to learn the real value of your equipment. RFQs are quick and easy when you leverage purpose-built tools like the ITADCentral marketplace.

Put “fair” back in your ITAD process. Eliminate FMV and you will see a big payoff.

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Author: ITAD Central