Classic car market grows with younger audience

One big change in the markets over the past few years is the younger age of classic car buyers. You are seeing Millennials, Gen Y and Gen Xers enter the market in a big way. Baby Boomers still had a lock on the most expensive offerings, but it’s nice to see a widening in the hobby from an buyer perspective. With Gen X participants hitting their prime earning years, future car buyer demographics likely will continue to adjust.

With everyone sitting at home the last few years, the online auction market space has taken off. Online auction houses such as “Bring A Trailer” welcomed many new buyers into the auction game last year.

No question, these sites are exciting to watch as the last few minutes of an auction unfolds. Some cars never end up hitting their “minimum acceptable bid” price, while other auctions end in a frenzy of escalating bids — leaving some questioning the sanity of the winning bidder. Although these auctions are convenient and fun to watch, be aware that unlike a traditional live visit with a formal inspection of a car by your trusted mechanic, you often are making your purchase decisions by relying on videos, pictures and reports on a car sometimes situated thousands of miles away from your location.