Does 2012 seem like a long time ago? Eight years flies by like the blink of an eye. But remembering what farming and agriculture were like back in 2012 might seem like a lifetime ago. Back then commodity prices were strong and had been for five full years.

When I see 2012 farm equipment at auction, I think back to that era from late 2007 into early 2013 when so much new iron sold. Used values were high.

Now, I’m seeing increased buyer demand on 2012 equipment in good condition. That makes sense given these items are now approaching 10 years old and the cost of new equipment has only continued to rise. The magic 10-year-old line pulls used values higher.

Let’s zero in on 2012 model combines. Check out the table for recent auction prices on 2012 model harvesters. Here are a couple interesting facts:

• The average auction price on 2012 John Deere S660 combines ($96,107) only depreciated 3.3% this year versus down 13.4% last year.
• The average auction price on 2012 John Deere S670 combines ($95,719) is up 3.2% so far this year versus down 18.3% last year.

Note the first two combines listed in the table below: $144,000 is the highest auction price this year on a 2012 S670, and $131,000 is the highest auction price this year on a 2012 S660.