Finding Your Ideal Aircraft: You Know What They Say About ‘Best-Laid Plans’

Aircraft financing is unique when compared with home or car loans.

Jonathan Welsh

Monday, October 24, 2022 at 04:24 PM ET

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On our way to the pre-buy inspection. [Credit: Jonathan Welsh]

Key Takeaways:

The author and his wife faced a financing challenge for their desired Commander 114B aircraft when their initial lender refused the loan, labeling it an "orphan" due to its manufacturer being out of business.
This experience highlighted that lenders may have specific, sometimes unstated, criteria regarding aircraft financing, such as requiring active manufacturer support, which can necessitate educating the lender or finding a more specialized one.
Despite the initial setback, the couple successfully found a more sympathetic lender and is proceeding with the purchase of the Commander, following a highly positive pre-buy flight experience.

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When my wife and I got serious about buying an airplane, one of the first steps was to secure pre-approval for financing. That would allow us to shop with confidence and make an offer as soon as the right candidate appeared.

We also understood the importance of keeping our lender updated on the aircraft we were considering, because the exact terms of the transaction would change with varying market values of different aircraft. What we did not know was that we might need to educate the lender regarding certain details of the aircraft we intended to buy.