It's not all doom and gloom, I've just that. In the current financial climate there are owners who are trying to off load aircraft they can't afford to keep. The catch is that getting finance for a aircraft over 10 years old is very difficult at the moment. If you have the means, you can get a very good older aircraft at a good price.
You do have to have a realistic idea of how much you are going to fly. In my case it only makes sense if I fly it more than 50hrs year. Any less, it's cheaper to rent. I guess I'm fortunate I can afford to fly that much.
I learnt to fly in my own aircraft, and currently my CFI uses it for 25 hrs which helps to offset the cost.
To give you some numbers, I am the proud owner of P28R-200, the final project cost for the aircraft $90k by the time I did a little work too it that I wanted to do.
Annuals cost $2000, insurance $3300, hangar (my share) $1200, direct cost $90/hr. Total = $13,250/year.
Cost of hiring an Arrow for 75hr , $22,275. (How much I flew it)
Do you sums carefully, talk to owners who have an aircraft like the one you may be interested in, take your time. Having your own aircraft to use when you wish is a great freedom, but having the wrong one could be a millstone.
Last edited by garrya100; 20th May 2013 at 12:07.