tbenton1

Wow! Thank you all for such a warm welcome and awesome advice. I want to reply to each post, but will share some common feedback I'm hearing. First, the third kid did turn out to be very expensive as some have noted! I was a happy a father of two, looking at Mooneys and 182s when about 40hrs into my PPL my wife surprised me with news of our third daughter by telling me "we need a bigger plane". I'm now the proud father of three girls and the common thread I'm hearing is to get a plane that we can all enjoy as a family, which rules out the Mooney unfortunately. I never intended to fly all 5 of us in the Mooney obviously, but thought of it as a stepping stone to build time and proficiency in while taking short trips with just my wife, taking friends up for $100 hamburgers, and taking my older kids up for fun flights and fly solo for currency. The compromise was no full family trips until the youngest gets a bit older and then upgrade to a 6 place. Sounds like the general counsel is don't wait to start engaging the family and buy a plane we can grow into. I do appreciate the perspective on buying a plane to fly vs upgrade. I definitely want to fly, I'm pursuing ownership mainly for freedom of access to a plane since renting has been so frustrating. It sounds like I should prioritize a plane that is as close to my goals as possible without needing major upgrades out of the gate. I will absolutely head this advice and will reach out to Jimmy and Richard also. I do have my name on all the local hanger waiting lists, and really hoping to find a plane that's already hangered locally, which is why I've gotten plugged in to our local EAA chapter. Lastly, thanks for calibrating my expectations on overhauls, avionics and paint costs. This will be helpful as I look at how to compare pricing between planes and set my maintenance reserve budget as I plan to start with at least 15-20K in reserves and will pay an hourly rate into that reserve. Thanks for all the feedback, I look forward to learning a lot from you all!

Good Evening, first post, new member, excited to join the Mooney Family! Quick intro and background: My name is Travis and I just finished my PPL and IR last year, started in January 24 and passed my instrument ride right before Christmas, all in a rented 172 out KGVL. I've got right at 150 hours and I'm ready to buy my first plane and looking closely at Mooney's especially J models. My mission is regional flights for fun and business around the SE, maintaining instrument currency/proficiency, and sharing the joy of flight. I have a wife and 3 kids, 11,8,1; I really wanted a 6 place to take family trips, but I can't justify the acquisition cost, maintenance and operating costs on the 6 place planes I was looking at (A36, 210, 206). After an honest conversation with my family, I don't think we'll be taking too many family trips until I've got more time, finances, and our youngest is old enough to travel. So, the compromise is a 4 place for now with the goal of building time/experience to transition to an A36 at some point and the M20 E,F,J models seem to be the best value and lowest ownership costs I have found. To top it off, my Dad was in a club out of PDK in the 90's and my earliest flights with him were in an M20J and I've always loved the lines on a Mooney! I did all of my IR training in a G1000 172 and my PPL was behind Dual G5's, GNX-375 and a GFC-500. I'm looking for a J model with at least dual G5s and a GFC-500, but planning to upgrade whatever I find with a decent suite of modern Garmin avionics. Questions: Should I engage a broker to help me find and purchase my first plane? Any recommendations in North Georgia/Atlanta Area? How should I initiate this process now that I have decided to buy? If given the choice, would you rather find the perfect airframe, power plant, or avionics? What is the order of priority and why? What upgrade is easier/quicker to complete; a panel upgrade or an engine/prop overhaul? As I compare different planes, I'm trying to normalize the pricing by budgeting for panel upgrades, engine/prop overhaul, interior upgrades and paint. I've done some research and found some rough numbers, please let me know if I'm off base, and let me know how I should be comparing prices from plane to plane. Engine Overhaul: $40K for reman engine plus $20K for install/consumables/unforeseens - $60K total Prop Overhaul: $20K for new prop or $5K for overhaul including governor Avionics: $75-100K, varies widely, based on my goal for a 10" G3X w/ EIS, GI-275 Backup, GTN-750xi, GTN-650xi, GMA-350, GTX-345, GFC-500 Interior: $10-15K for seats, carpets and refresh on the plastics Paint: $20K for strip and repaint I've read many people recommend finding a mechanic before you buy a plane, any recommendations for Mooney A&Ps in the North Georgia/Atlanta Area? Lastly - if you know of anyone with a J model in North Georgia looking to sell, take on a new partner, or form a partnership, please let me know! I'm not on Facebook or social media, but if there's value to networking please let me know what FB groups I should be looking into. Thanks in advance for all the help, looking foward to learning from this community! Travis Benton, KGVL Gainesville, GA