"Ben Jackson" wrote in message
news:jMbKb.754827$Fm2.700654@attbi_s04...
In article ,
Jim wrote:
I am a curently a comericial student that is looking to buy a light
single to build time in and for the short family flights. I am having a
problem finding financing due to a lack of a large down payment (due to
school cost). Is there an easy way to buy or am I just S.O.L. untill I
get the down payment???? Please help.... Thank You

It's not difficult to buy an airplane (easier than selling I bet!). It
can be tricky to find the right one to buy.

If you mean "easy" as in "cheap", well, if you can't afford a 20% down
payment there's no way you can afford to own an airplane. A 152 is
$20-25k. At any moment something could go wrong to cost $4000 (ie
down-payment-sized) in maintenance.

I'll probably catch some flak for this, but I think if you buy a light
airplane you should be *able* to buy it for cash, and then you should
get a loan because the cost of money is so low right now. If you get
a loan because you *need* it (on anything other than brand new) you're
not going to be able to fly and maintain it.

I agree with Ben. I purchased my plane when I had the cash available and
some extra for repairs, reserve, etc. I am finally in a financial situation
that I will pay cash for any vehicle or any other purchase. If I can't
afford to pay cash, I won't buy it until I can.