Club Homepage Forums Classified Ads Buy & Sell - Airplanes Only financing for plane

Hey folks,
I just joined today.
Not sure where to ask but I'm looking to buy 150.
I found few I like but not sure how to go about financing the funds for it?
Is there preferred methods or organization like AOPA that I can use?
I already have airport and tie-down I'll use for this plane. Insurance will be taken care of.

I have used my local bank and also have gone through AOPA. Local bank is easy if they do aircraft loans, most do not. AOPA is fine, but there are plenty of hoops to jump through. One of the easiest ways would be to tap into a home equity loan if you already have one.

Pete

I've gone through AOPA, US Aviation Finance, and Dorr most recently.

Dorr had the lowest rate (4.65%) and down payment (15%) requirements while allowing a 20 year term. Additionally, their fee for everything ($695) was lowest and included the escrow and title search costs. Happy to make an introduction if you'd like.

Hi! Welcome to THE best type club on earth!



I’ve used both AOPA and NAFCO [airloans.com] to finance an aircraft purchase. AOPA is just a ‘front-end’ to a finance company, and AOPA switched to NAFCO a couple of years ago, so there’s little difference now.

The first plane was a Cessna 150. I think I financed $15k of the purchase price. The second is my Cardinal RG, and I think I financed $40k (both loans have been paid off so I don’t remember or care anymore ). I’ve read that recently some people have been having trouble getting financing for the ‘small’ amounts that are typical of a 150. Financing larger/more expensive aircraft is easier.

In short, give AOPA and/or NAFCO a call, see if they’ll give you an estimate on a hypothetical plane. Pick one for sale out of Trade-a-Plane or Barnstormers if they won’t let you make up numbers.

As others have said, a local bank loan, personal (unsecured) loan, or home-equity loan are other options. Some banks can handle “recreational vehicles” like RVs, Boats, and Motorcycles, but airplanes are an unfamiliar market.

One thing to consider is, as with cars and homes, most lenders want you to carry full insurance. However, the difference between full and liability-only insurance on a 150 or 152 is typically only a few hundred dollars per year, so the overall difference in expenses is not that great.

Welcome 19224 and good luck with your search.

Welcome to the club and our forum.....you've landed at a great place.

Good luck with your 150 search and purchase and don't be bashful if you have any questions as you go through this acquisition/ownership process.......you'll find a lot of help and advice here (most of it will be actually good advice).

I am in the business of non-aviation finance. If you can obtain the terms as described by Matt I would look into Dorr. All of the ingredients are reasonable including the fee.

Thank you all for the info!
I just pass my PPL checkride 2 days ago and looking forward to finding a 150.
But it seems the price of 150 are all over the place from 12K to 55K.
Ideally, would like to see for it myself before committing a pre-buy inspection (an AP wants $1200 fee).
And it seem I can only finance over certain amount.
If any of you folks know someone selling ready-to-fly 150 near southwest; please let me know.
This is first plane so I'm learning as I go.

Peter,

Welcome to the club!

A few years ago - I bought my 150 with a "0% interest for 6 months and NO % advance" credit card check. (They come up sometimes). I had most but not all the funds so I used the CC check for 6 months credit. Between the funds I already had and what I was able to get together over 6 months - paid the whole thing off just before I was going to get dinged for interest.

And amazingly - with the points the CC gave me (even though they had earned NOTHING) on the transaction - I was able to purchase a decent GPS for the plane.

It was an unusual set of circumstances where a CC offer of amazing benefit to me aligned with me buying the plane and knowing I could swing the funds when the loan would fall due.

I'm sure the CC company assumed they would make out when I failed to pay the loan off after 6 months..

Hi Peter! Welcome to the club!!!!

I met a young man who paid only $6000 cash for his Tomahawk, in non-running condition. He was able to get it airworthy again for only a few dollars, and a whole lotta elbow grease. Now he and his wife fly it often (I met them on a long cross country). He took a risk, but he said he sorta knew what was wrong with it and had a detailed plan. My guess, most of the time, that type of deal doesn't pay off.

I like Graeme's experience with a short, 6-month loan that he paid off rapidly.

The thing about boats and planes and such. They can sink you. I'd say, if you're set on getting a loan for a plane, make sure it's good plane that fits your mission. Inspect it, fly it, think it over. Do not let enthusiasm make you fall in love with the wrong plane. Make sure it fits your mission.

Of course, my uncle Verne would advise to save the purchase price first. That way, when you own your plane, it's truly yours. Also, if you can afford to save up for one, you can also afford to give it the care it needs, which can be shockingly expensive.

Go for your dream! Do it! Be smart about it, though. Have a plan.

Good luck on your plane search. I bought mine in 2014 after a long search for just the right one, which turned OK, in the end, although I compromised a bit.

Geoff