Also amazing how the value of our possessions is plummeting. There is very little one can buy which will hold value to any meaningful degree, much less appreciate in value.
Most consumer items are not investment, they are expenses. So one shouldn't have any hopes of holding or appreciating in value. Why you expect your TV be an investment that raises in value? Do you expect the same from your shoes?
This has almost always been true; the few consumerish things that sometimes (but not very often) hold value or appreciate include:
- Artwork, folk art, decorative items
- Handmade furniture
- Musical instruments
- Firearms
- Limited-production autos
Really? Outside of tech, I don't see items dropping in value any more than they would have a hundred years ago. Sure, used silverware commands a very low price, but I'm pretty sure that has been the case ever since we stopped making it out of silver.
Have the things people buy most ever been the things that appreciate in value? Antiques derive their value from rarity, implying that most examples weren't good enough to survive. It's the "Old buildings were all well-made" fallacy.
That's part of it, but people also used to make a lot less stuff. The half life of a dresser made in 1850 might be ~50 years, but they did not make a lot of them.
PS: It's hard to know, but I have heard it suggested that something like 10% of all dressers made in 1850 are probably still around somewhere.
