How Much Do You Really Need To Spend On A Watch?

When you think about it, the watch market is kind of crazy. Even though they all tell the time, the difference in what you can spend is tremendous. There are people willing to spend millions on these items so that they can get something that they want. 

But, for the average person, how much do you actually need to spend on a watch? Is it worth remortgaging your home? In this post, we take a look.

We explore and figure out how much do you really need to spend on a watch and what’s right for you. 

Start With Something That You Want

People have varying opinions about how much you should spend on a watch. But, ideally, you want to start from the point of buying something that you actually like. While you could go for something cheap, that’s not always a good policy. Sure, you’ll get something that tells the time for you, but you won’t get something that you want. Nothing is sadder than buying a watch for a lot of money, only for you not to enjoy it.

Today’s watches have a lot of features. While many look great, they’re not all the same. And that can really grate on you if you wind up compromising. For instance, you might love the look of the dials on your watch, but if the case shape gets on your nerves, it’s not the sort of long-term investment you want to make.

Before buying any watch, take a look at all the features and ask yourself whether you can live with them, one by one. If there’s something that you don’t like, it might be a better idea just to wait until you have the budget to get something that you really want.

The exception here is if you are buying for investment purposes. If that’s the case, then you probably should buy a watch with features that you dislike. It is unlikely that the market will have the same preferences as you. 

Get Something That You Can Afford

While there are some watches out there that rise in value over time, the vast majority do not have anything like those levels of returns. Therefore, it’s good to buy something that you can both afford and enjoy. Don’t borrow to buy a watch. You could wind up with a depreciating asset and interest payments you can’t afford. Instead, stay within your budget. This way, what happens to the price doesn’t matter as much. You’re still getting an asset that serves you well but won’t saddle you with interest payments that you can’t afford. 

What you don’t want is a “ball and chain” watch. Getting lumbered by a piece of jewelry is never a lot of fun. 

Buy A Watch That Won’t Lose Value Immediately

Why is the antique watch market so hot right now? After all, big brands like Rolex and Seiko release new watches to the market every year. It’s not like there is a supply shortage. 

The reason comes down to the fact that many of these older watches are collectibles. And that means that their value tends to go up over time as watch enthusiasts seek to pay ever-higher prices to add them to their collections. 

The same is not true when you buy a newer watch. While some will become classics, the vast majority will, unfortunately, lose value over time. Many investors buy new believing that the item will stay the same price, or go up. But that’s rarely what happens. Instead, owning a new watch is a little bit like buying a new car. The value starts high, but it goes down quickly over time. 

With old watches, though, that doesn’t usually happen. Instead, antiques on the market tend to retain their value or go up over time. Plus, you can also maintain them. I recently used an antique watch repair near me. These services make it easy to keep watches working, even if they are old. 

What About Finance? 

There are some situations where you might want to consider finance to make a watch affordable. But you should only do this if you view the watch as a consumer item, not an investment. The money you spend on the watch can replace the money on other things that you might have done for personal enjoyment, such as going on vacation. 

If you buy a watch on finance, you can expect to pay around 2 percent of the watch’s cost every month. In other words, if the watch costs $5,000, you can expect to pay around $100 per month in repayments. Most finance options are for 36 months, though you might be able to find some that are spread out over 72. 

Look For Ways To Stretch Your Money

It’s easy to spend a lot of money on watches and contribute to businesses’ profits and not only this there are watch replacement bands of various colors available online. That’s how the industry is set up. 

But there are always ways to stretch your money. Bargains do exist in the watch market, even though they are sometimes hard to find. 

Therefore, always look for ways to stretch your money. If you have a certain budget, ask yourself how far you can make it go. 

If you’re going for a less well-known brand, you may be able to get quite a considerable discount. The market for these isn’t always as tight as it is for the big names, so you have some wiggle room. 

Find A Watch That You’ll Want To Keep For Life

Lastly, many watch enthusiasts buy a watch that they love and then get bored of it a couple of months later. They inevitably wind up selling, and often lose money. 

Therefore, before you buy, ask yourself whether you’re spending money on a watch that you actually want. Ask if you’ll get bored of it, or whether it is something that you can live with for life. 

If there’s a more expensive watch that you know you’ll keep, it’s probably worth waiting until you can afford it. In this case, spending more is better long-term.