On the Project Front; Borderline projects with common Themes and missing parts were the rule for 2019. People are dragging up mess from everywhere.
They are asking (demanding?) more from it. 300 is the new 50, 1250 the new 600.
As Buyers of EM's become more discerning bad Titles with high production counts are ignored as restoration candidates.
Bottom line; Collectors possess the majority of worthy restoration prospects. Rare exceptions pop up infrequently. Demand for good examples strong.
Collective information sources like Pinside are influential in determining a desirable Title. Undesirable Titles will begin to be parted out in droves or sold for little.
Drop Targets remain hot. So does multi-ball. 2019 may have witnessed Bally surpassing Gottlieb in desirability (Zipper flipper madness) as well as a re-newed appreciation for Artwork.
Late-Model Williams have no problems selling, certain 60's versions not accepted as greats iffy.

What say you? Spill it out, there is a lot to talk about.

Recent right of passage for late-model machine Collectors to own at least 1 EM. Many (most?) of these new owners intend to and/or attempt repairs. With the resources of Pinside I would guess most are successful. Lot of decent shop job to OEM restorations documented on these pages.
Novice Buyers are more aware of what is considered cool with Youtube, IPD Reviews, scuttlebutt on Pinside providing insight as well as pricing. This leaves
readily available Titles (you know their name) languishing on the for sale Sites forever, usually at ridiculous prices.
Tonight I counted eight Ems for sell in my area from 750-1250 that a year ago would have been listed at 350-800. People perceive inflation in the Market
whether it is real or not.

Used to. The cat is out of the bag, so to speak that EM machines are actually simple once you wrap your head around the concept. The ones who figure this out seek Original machines that just need maintenance. 2019 demonstrated (to me, in my area) the supply of restoration candidates has dropped several notches with missing parts (usually glass,coin doors, lockdown bars, transformers,etc) becoming the norm.
Freely available restoration knowledge has resulted in a slew of restored (?) EM out there for sale.
Many people have discovered nirvana in restoring/re-furbishing old EM machines. They will not pay a premium for a restored machine because the narcissist
side tells them their efforts will be as good, or better.

My experience with 1963 Williams Merry Widow? Machine meticulously serviced, new pop bumpers and flippers. Played like a dog, hit a ball went straight out through wide sidelines or the middle. Really wanted to love that machine, looked really nice.
Willing to try another Title if one comes around.

Good to hear from someone with extensive experience in EM. What I may have noticed is so many machines listed at much higher- to astronomical prices in my area. This does not mean they are selling at those prices though.

Around 79 they opened a rock and roll/ Disco in a former ice skating rink in Greensboro. It was a wide open Joint so I usually retreated to the Game area.
Among the new SS machines which I hit once or twice a mint 4 Million BC sit in a corner. I had many memorable games on it.
Current Trend? You rarely see desirable Titles, when you do they are over priced.
90 percent are restored, heavily shopped, returned to factory, professionally serviced, blah.
The other 10 percent have trashed back glasses, ground play fields, nicotine cabinets and hack wiring.
It's like the Low End Pin Man is gone, he either upped his budget or doing without.

EM is now a very desirable format, people have learned if they go through them correctly they are very reliable machines. Even though I own SS and understand the Engineering I prefer the Utility of EM.
Nine times out of ten I head for the EM over the SS. I really enjoy the early SS but it is always an event firing one up versus hitting go on an EM.
Always envisioned EM prices getting "Respectable" but now that it has happened not too happy.