Short story:

I have an old friend who is ill. I have done some shooting with him over the years and at times I have shot his Hi Power while we're at the range. I kind of fell in love with it and have "lazily" been looking for one. Well, he stopped by the shop today and asked me if I wanted to buy it. I was kind of surprised as he had previously told me he would be leaving his firearms to his son in law and daughter.

He told me he would like me to have it and to just make him a fair offer. The gun is a 1980 Belgian version and he has what appears to be an original soft sided Browning case, the original paperwork and owners manual, (3) 20 round Mec Gar magazines and two Browning 13 rounders. Also included is a leather thumbreak holster and a 3 mag nylon mag holder. Everything included is in immaculate shape and the gun itself is basically in brand new condition sans a small light scratch on the frame. I'd be surprised if the gun has more than 1000 rounds thru it. The finish shows zero signs of wear or abuse, other than the aforementioned light scratch. He also has a couple spare recoil springs. A factory replacement and a wolf.

I don't know much about the value of these and don't want to over pay, at the same time I don't want to insult him. I know the new ones are around $900-ish, but are the old ones any better or worse? I see some listed on gun broker and the prices/condition seem to be all over the map . Any advice/opinions on what the gun is worth would be appreciated. Thanks.

out here in az around 6 to 800 bucks there is still a fairly good demand for these .

A while ago I bought an early MKIII for $550 that included 5 mags, box and papers and at the time I thought it was a great deal for me.

They're all Belgian, even the "assembled in Portugal" ones. Also, many that aren't marked "assembled in Portugal" are also assembled in Portugal. So, really, there isn't much premium for the markings. Absent historical markings, etc., they're pretty much all the same IMO. Age has more to do with features/shootability. For a shooter, newer is probably better as the sights are a little better, safety is larger and they may feed hollow points better. I don't believe anybody makes the argument that a particular era is of higher quality or build to better manufacturing standards. They're all good. I'm sure Hi-Point collectors would quibble with this, but that's my take.

Condition is everything. You can buy a brand new blued Hi-Power for about $900, so a high condition used one should bring $600-700 or so. There's been a bunch of ragged out surplus ones on the market lately in the $400 range.

Sweet guns. I've had two or three in the past but always sold them. Recently, I decided I needed another one and started watching the surplus offerings. Found a relatively high condition MkIII and stepped up at $500. Probably high for a surplus import but it's a nice one.

Thanks. Still trying to learn about these. So possibly not "assembled" in Belgium. It only says "made in Belgium" on the slide.

Made in Belgium by Fabrique Nationale Herstal on one side and Browning arms Company Morgan, Utah and Montreal PQ on the other. Stopped by to see him this morning and told him I'd pay him whatever he wanted. He has been good company over the years at the range and drinking coffee / talking politics at my motorcycle shop for the last 10 years and I wanted to be fair.  He told me he'd take $500. I gave him 6. I thought the price I gave was fair for the condition and extra accessories.  Thank you all for the info/help

Well played sir. Well played. Sounds like you'll have a special piece for the collection . . .

You were very fair to say the least, well done. Now grab some more 13/15 Mecgar mags and off to the races.

IMO you both made out very well in that deal. $600 is not too much and your friend got $100 more than his asking price. Enjoy your new BHP and remember your friend every time you handle it.

Thanks again guys. Sadly, my friend could not stand the thought of burdening the people around him with any more chemo treatments. He put together a well executed plan to wrap up everything on his "to do " list (which he did in less than a week) and took his own life last Thursday . Just got home from the memorial service. 68 is too young.

Godspeed Larry. I'll miss you my friend.

I'm very sorry for your loss OP.
My condolences to you and his family.