Filed under: Etc.
NYC Taxi medallion sold for record $600,000
Forget the stock market. If you're in the possession of a NYC taxi medallion, you're sitting on a goldmine. A retiring Pakistani driver who'd been driving a cab in New York for the last 25 years sold his medallion Wednesday for a staggering $600,000 -- an all-time record for such a sale. The medallion, which gives cab drivers the right to operate legally in the city, cost $30,000 when it was purchased in 1981. The new owner is a taxi fleet operator who already owns somewhere around 100 medallions.Prices have been steadily rising in recent years, and at the last city-held auction, medallions fetched upwards of $500K. Experts feel that the city could bring values down to a more realistic level -- around $300,000 -- if they added 5000 new ones to the pool. Until that happens (if it happens at all), expect to see more astronomical sale values as medallions change hands. There's a limited number of the things out there, and right now, the demand appears to be off the charts.
At this rate, it's probably just a matter of time before we see a reality show about this. Flip This Medallion, anyone?
We covered one of last year's big-money medallion cars here.
[Source: NY Post, via GM Inside News]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Yayaja 10:37AM (6/01/2007)
Wow... a couple of years ago, my uncle was making a deal to buy two cab medallions for $675K. Unfortunately he never ended up going through with it because of financing.
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Mike 11:25AM (6/01/2007)
Meanwhile, the drivers are still getting porked due to high gas prices and owners not passing on any portion of the fare increases.
Horrible.
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ANdy 11:30AM (6/01/2007)
hmmm...why are they called medallions when they are just permits to drive a (many?) taxi(s). 1 medallion = 1 taxi? What do NY taxis charge anyway?
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Max 11:34AM (6/01/2007)
NYC cab drivers are homicidal maniacs that do not deserve to receive anything for the kind of driving that they exhibit every day. I don't care if they drove a tank or a tractor wherever they came from -- they are here now, and they need to start grasping the value of human life and private property.
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Mr. Oak 12:02PM (6/01/2007)
Hey Max, NYC cabbies are what we here call "skilled". The way they drive is a reflection of how most inner-city drivers drive. If you are from the 'burbs and is not accustomed to this style of driving, it could scare the Jesus out of you.
ANdy: It is called a medallion because it is exactly that. It is a red medallion (oval shaped) about the size of a small plate affixed to the hood of every yellow cab in NYC. It is registered to a specific vehicle. cannot be shuttled from car to car, it must be oficially transferred to a new cab by the TLC (Taxi and Limousine Commission).
Whiplash 11:38AM (6/01/2007)
Wow. If I'm understanding what a "medallion" is, it seems like a horrible investment unless you planned to be a cab driver for a very long time. Any New Yorkers out there care to shed light on the whole cabbie business?
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Tom W 11:39AM (6/01/2007)
Welcome to America mohammed.
Hahahahahaha!
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Hamud 11:53AM (6/01/2007)
That's about the same price here for taxis that operates near the airport, something around R$ 500k. The airport is a bit far from town, so every run goes for a nice fee.
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Mr. Elm 2:26PM (6/01/2007)
You're right about the driving, Mr. Oak. I moved into the heart of a second-tier city (Baltimore) half a dozen years ago, and had to learn how to drive like a maniac fast! If you don't floor it between every light, stay inches from the leading car's bumper, and change lanes for even a six-inch advantage, you will *never* get through rush hour. City driving is not for pussies.
Max 3:27PM (6/01/2007)
Mr. Oak, I drive from Brooklyn to my job in Manhattan. The skill that you are referring to should be attributed to people who have to live here and know how to avoid potentially fatal collisions with cab drivers, while still proceeding to the destination at an acceptable pace. Having been born in a 3rd world country myself, I'm totally fine with having to "outdrive" the cabbies as part of my daily routine, but sometimes I wonder if I've had one close call too many.
jeffinToronto 12:19PM (6/01/2007)
Holy shit- that guy is sitting on $60 million for 100 medallions. Not bad for a career, and sort of rivals successful investment bankers on Wall Street.
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Guenther 12:35PM (6/01/2007)
How much revenue does one taxi generate running at optimum utilization? Must be quite a bit. Then again, since it is also a commodity, it is an investment in itself. Interesting...
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Jonathan Fung 3:40PM (6/01/2007)
Oh my. Am I the only one who recognized the Pokemon reference that just went on in the comments?
But wow. With 600K, you'd have enough capital to start a pretty nice business anywhere. So I'm assuming NY taxi drivers are busy enough to make back their investment in a reasonable amount of time. IDK, nobody rides taxis here in Hawaii except to and from the airport, and clueless tourists who don't know about the free trolleys. But 90% of the taxis I see are empty here, so I don't think our taxi business is so huge. Maybe I just don't understand the ways of New Yorkers.
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bathtub gin 11:29PM (6/01/2007)
BTW - adjusted for inflation, the 30k he spent on the medallion in 1981 is now around 70k. he sold it for 600k? That's a pretty good investment.
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Pinoy 8:49AM (6/02/2007)
@Max
@Mr Oak
Visit the Philippines and you'll know what a skilled driver is hehehe taxi racing anyone?
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HOTstuff 8:59AM (6/02/2007)
CHA-CHING! That's money in the bank...
wonder how much this odd ball thing cost.
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john 8:21PM (6/02/2007)
another 5000 cabs....noooooooooo
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MillionDollarJourney.com 2:00PM (6/28/2007)
If medallions cost around $500k, how do cab drivers make money? There's no way that a cabbie can make that much in their cab career.
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alami700 11:42PM (5/26/2009)
Hi guys, interesed in buying a NYC Medallion?, get here:
http://www.nycitycab.com/Business/TaxiMedallionList.aspx
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