Lesson 9
Why What You Own Feels Worth More
See why owning something can raise the price you’d sell it for, how much that depends on how you’re asked, and how to price it as if it weren’t yours.
Builds on
The car that’s never let you down
You’re selling your car privately. It’s been reliable, you know its little noises, and you’re sure it’s worth £6,000. Buyers keep offering £4,800. Be honest: if the same car, same mileage, same history, were on a stranger’s drive, would you pay £6,000 for it?
Many people wouldn’t. Asking more to give something up than you’d pay to get it is called the endowment effect, and experiments have found it with things as ordinary as a coffee mug. How big the gap is depends a great deal on how the question is put, so there’s no rule that owners ask double, or any other fixed amount.