News

Lack of New Equipment Production Drives Declines in Late-Model Used Equipment

According to the newest Sandhills Global Market Report, protracted supply chain issues in used equipment markets have impacted inventory levels across all equipment age groups within Sandhills Global marketplaces. Without a steady supply of new equipment to replace aging machines, the pace at which used equipment enters the marketplace has continued to slow. This effect has been most pronounced in the 0- to 5-year age group.

Sandhills’ latest Market Report details how average inventory levels in 2021 stack up against historical trends in Sandhills’ used heavy-duty truck, construction equipment, and agricultural machinery markets. 

The key metric used in all of Sandhills’ market reports is the Sandhills Equipment Value Index (EVI). Buyers and sellers can use the information in the Sandhills EVI to monitor equipment markets and maximize returns on acquisition, liquidation, and related business decisions. For 2022, Sandhills has enhanced its EVI with new metrics. The data now includes model year equipment actively in use, which grows the used equipment population beyond that available in auction and retail markets. New EVI data, already available for the United States, is also now available for Canada to better reflect machine values by location. The enhanced version of Sandhills EVI requires Sandhills to restate the values starting in January 2022, so prior numbers will not be comparable to the new, more insightful values.

Chart Takeaways

Sandhills Market Reports highlight the most significant changes in Sandhills’ used heavy-duty truck, construction equipment, and farm machinery markets. Each report includes detailed analysis and charts that help readers visualize the data. The industry-specific inventory statistics in this report are supplemented with historic inventory levels for the late-model (0- to 5-year) age group, helping quantify how the lower production of new equipment has impacted the number of late-model machines reaching the used market.

U.S. Used Heavy-Duty Trucks

• The Sandhills EVI finds inventory levels of used heavy-duty trucks across all age groups down 58.5% year-over-year between January 2021 and January 2022.
• From 2017 to 2020, inventory levels for late-model used heavy-duty trucks averaged between 10,000 and 12,000 annually.
• During 2021, inventory levels of used late-model trucks averaged under 5,000 units; this serves as an example of how sluggish new truck production has had a major impact on the used truck market.

U.S. Used Heavy-Duty Construction Equipment

• Inventory levels of used heavy-duty construction equipment are down 42.5% YOY. This figure includes crawler excavators, dozers, and wheel loaders within all age groups.
• From 2017 to 2020, inventory levels for late-model construction equipment averaged between 8,000 and 9,000 machines annually.
• With inventory levels averaging around 7,000 across 2021, late-model construction equipment trended considerably down from previous years.

U.S. Used Farm Equipment

• Used farm equipment inventory levels are down 37.4% YOY from January 2021 to January 2022. This figure includes 100-plus-horsepower tractors and combines within all age groups.
• From 2017 to 2020, average inventory levels for late-model agriculture equipment hovered between 7,000 and 10,000 machines annually. 
• In 2021, inventory levels for the same age group averaged around 4,000 machines.

Obtain the Full Report

For more information, or to receive detailed analysis from Sandhills Global, contact us at [email protected].

About the Sandhills Equipment Value Index

The Sandhills Equipment Value Index (EVI) is a principal gauge of the estimated market values of used assets—both currently and over time—across the construction, agricultural, and commercial trucking industries represented by Sandhills Global marketplaces, including AuctionTime.com, TractorHouse.com, MachineryTrader.com, TruckPaper.com, and other industry-specific equipment platforms. Powered by FleetEvaluator, Sandhills’ proprietary asset valuation tool, Sandhills EVI provides useful insights into the ever-changing supply-and-demand conditions for each industry.