Understanding Vehicle Depreciation: A Look at Kelley Blue Book's 2024 Best Resale Value Awards
Owning a vehicle comes with its set of costs: fuel, insurance, maintenance, taxes, and other expenses pile up, including the often-overlooked factor of depreciation. It’s not something vehicle owners think much about until it’s time to sell and buy another vehicle. This is where Kelley Blue Book’s (KBB) annual Best Resale Value Awards come into play, serving as a guide to vehicles that best retain their value over time.Â
The Ford F-150 Lightning has repeated its success by winning one of the 2024 awards, demonstrating its strong resale value among electric trucks. Although it didn’t make the top ten overall, it’s celebrated alongside the Ford Bronco and Ford Maverick, which topped their segments and showcased impressive value retention.Â
The Significance of Resale Value
KBB’s Best Resale Value Awards are determined by projections from its Official Residual Value Guide, formulated through extensive analysis of millions of transactions. This meticulous process ensures that the vehicles selected for the awards represent the best in retaining value over a five-year ownership period.Â
The Ford F-150 Lightning, with a projected five-year resale value of 43.1% of its MSRP, illustrates the electric truck segment’s growing resilience in value retention. This is notable in an industry where the average 2024 model-year vehicle is expected to retain just 42.4% of its value after five years.Â
The Cost of Depreciation
Depreciation is the most significant expense for new vehicle owners, underscoring the importance of considering resale value when purchasing a vehicle. For instance, a $50,000 vehicle today is projected to be worth about $21,200 after five years. In contrast, vehicles on KBB’s Top 10 Best Resale Value list for 2024 are expected to retain around 58% or more of their original value, offering a much better financial outcome for their owners.Â
Kelley Blue Book’s 2024 Best Resale Value Awards highlight the importance of understanding and considering vehicle depreciation when making a purchase. The awards reveal the models expected to hold their value and underscore the broader financial implications of vehicle ownership. With vehicles like the Ford F-150 Lightning leading the electric truck segment in resale value, it’s clear that choosing a vehicle with a strong projected resale value can significantly impact the total cost of ownership.Â
