Ferrari Market Letter... what do you guys think?

I'm looking at getting the Ferrari Market Letter... any tips?

Do you guys buy the web and letter or letter only?

How do you guys like FML ?

 

get the hard copy...nice to have avail to read at the table, in bed ...or the can.

 

I like it a lot.

I used to get the paper version, but switched to the web only version a while back. There is nothing in the paper version which isn't on the web, and in fact the web has color pictures.

 

There are benefits to having both the print and online subscriptions. With online, you can access your account from anywhere; with the print edition, you can read it in bed or on the toilet or on a plane (yes, I realize your laptop can go into places like that, but it's still easier to hold a magazine).

 

If you can afford it, get both. Otherwise I'd go for the online. You can print it out and the color photos are wonderful.

 

Gerry Rousch, owner/publisher, has been around the Ferrari worls since at least the middle '70. He is a historian by training and author of a book on Daytonas.

I subscribe to the on line version.

Jeff

 

It is good, but like everything Ferrari a little pricey. For a company to make a decent living putting this kind of info out to a small group of owners / enthusiasts they have to charge a fair amount. I got the online only subscription and am happy with that. I try to keep the clutter down at home and another newsletter / magazine would just add to the stuff piling up.
BT

 

Used to subscribe, but find that the cars are overpriced. They need follow up on the sales prices, so that you can figure out the market. Asking is one thing, but you never know what the cars sold for, making it essentially useless. And the market analysis doesn't break the cars down by year.

Art

 

I wouldn't totally disagree, but it still seems to be a decent indicator of trends.

 

This was a universally frustrating issue for Gerald when I worked for him. The difficulty in obtaining the sold price for each vehicle is a multi-dimensional one. First, not everyone wants to disclose that information. Second, obtaining that information would absorb an exorbitant amount of time. Third, the price that one person says was paid for a vehicle can sometimes differ from the price for which another person will say the car sold. Discrepancies like that can only add to the frustration and time-consuming task of composing a more accurate asking price index than already exists.

 

I just noticed in my most recent edition that F-SPA and/or F-N America required dealers to pull all advertising for any models currently in production.....I haven't had anytime to read the entire article yet, but will certainly do so this weekend.

 

It is a good read, have been doing so for the past 18 years. al ot of inside historic coverage. Online version has color photographs. Go for it..

 

I have subscribed since 1976 and always look forward to the next issue. The asking price trend is enough information for me. I don't think you need exact selling prices. They are not available anyway and can be manipulated to suit either side so what is the point. The market helps determine the asking prices. The short articles and the misc classified ads are worthwhile. I recommend it. Nothing regarding these cars is inexpensive; the subscription rate is what it is.

 

if so then why does the official Ferrari dot com site still allow dealers to post prices on a model search?

http://ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=187367

guess they aren't reading their own memo.

 

I used to subscribe to the letter, but stopped several years ago.

How do you feel the letter prices compare to Cavallino's prices: he uses dealer figures and auction prices, which I find more accurate.

 

Art,

On avg. the diffrence between asking price and true selling price is 2.43% or $5,000 off the asking price. We track tax and lic. information and this what people are paying on tax and lic. We can not get your name or adress but we can get the states that have recent ferrari sales, and what the % is paid, thus the true selling price!

True if Ferrari and Lamborghini built 100,000 cars per year! But they dont, so who controls the supply, there by sitting the market price and in turn the demand?

 

We have every issue back to its inception. It's an indespensable resource if you track the older cars like we do; plus there have been amazing articles throughout the years; the article where Gerald transcribed the original hand-written notations from Pininfarina providing the original exterior and interior colors for every 250 PF Coupe comes to mind. A must-have source for historians.

 

I can't speculate on how Cavallino arrives at their numbers, only the methods by which I've heard they get their numbers. There is a very complex, systematic and thorough approach Gerald uses to formulate each and every Asking Price Index he publishes. I've seen him do it and he's explained it to me and I still don't understand the whole thing; but it's a lot more than just grabbing numbers from here and there and executing basic math functions. I know there have been questions in the past at how FML arrives at the current asking price for certain models, but it's difficult to gauge a model's worth in the current market when not more than one or two examples of said model come up for sale in a calendar year. For most Ferrari models, I would go with FML's API than someone else's.

I agree with Brian - and having a full set is definitely valuable if you're a historian or want to get a feel for past markets/generations.

 

I've subscribed to the hard copy version for over a decade...it is good reading... enjoy looking back at issues as price changes...I also like to follow cars from owner to owner and price to price...

 

Online version is sufficient. You have access to archive issues. You can also download a PDF version of the current paper issue. Pretty good reading.

sting

 

The Ferrari Market Letter is mainly classified ads. The price charts is very interesting but they are WAY, WAY, WAY OFF. They are stating that F50`s are only worth just a little over $500K and F40`s are under $400K. They need to get their figures correct. Many vehicles on their classified are outdated and no longer available.

 

Thanks for all the replies.... I ordered both on-line and print. I'll give it a try and see which I like better

-I like to get away from my computer, so print will be good for that.
-On-line...I like being able to go back and search all the old letters.