[superuser2]

I wrote a longer reply, but the problem is you're looking at this from the side of consumers consuming things they want. I don't give a shit about the resale value of my Macbook Pro, and in 2015 if you're buying a new car you're well aware that you're throwing away the first third of its value in 5 years. Deflation is not a concern when we're talking about people buying things for the joy of owning them.

What we're talking about is investors buying things (like capital equipment) for the purpose of making money. But even for an individual - would you go $200k into debt for a house that's going to be worth $50k in 10 years? Of course not! A rational actor would even shy away from leases - you want to jump to something cheaper (or better for the same price) as frequently as possible, to minimize the amount of time that you're paying above market value for housing. Just like how you want to move between tech jobs relatively frequently to minimize the amount of time you're being paid below market value.