Aircraft financing company recommendations

[bonal]

Has anyone ever financed through a 401k loan. You borrow from yourself and the interest is paid back to yourself. I did this several years ago and when I was paid off I was way ahead on the balance of my account. Much better to pay myself than the bank.

[Oldguy]

21 hours ago, flight2000 said:

What was the time frame for your loan?  I used AOPA/BoA back in 2009 and mine was over 30 at the time (it was 42 years young at that point).

Cheers,

Brian

Brian,

Mine was in 2013 for a 1984 J.

[FloridaMan]

On 1/19/2016 at 9:48 PM, LevelWing said:

I went through NAFCO. They were really helpful and very patient with as I went through several pre-buys.

On a side note, and this may be a little dumb on my part, but I didn't realize you could re-finance an aircraft loan. It makes sense, though. I'm going to look into this and see what it looks like. 

Just as a note, make sure if you're going to finance through NAFCO that you get a history report from aerospace-reports; AOPA only goes back 10 years and NAFCO goes back the entire duration of the aircraft's history. 

[kpaul]

11 hours ago, jetdriven said:

This was 5 years ago but at that time, Dorr had a 75k loan amount minimum.  Is this still the case? 

I'm not positive...my loan was no where near that.  However, they are a credit corporation not a bank, but they should be able to find a bank that meets your financing needs.

[NotarPilot]

I happened to come across this tread last month and decided to call A Freedom Loan as mentioned in a previous post. I have to say, Mitch at A Freedom Loan was great. Everything went by very quickly and communication was great either by email or text. I was about to get refinanced at 5.29% over 10 years. I was a little over 11 years on a 15 year loan. When I was told my plane appraised for about $20k more than what I paid for it I asked Mitch if I could pull some money out to do an avionics upgrade. He communicated with the bank on my behalf and told me they would finance 85% of the avionics and to get a quote on the avionics. 

Well, my payment ended up going up a bit but I still reduced it to 10 years and I'm getting some really nice panel toys. Next month I'll be getting two IFD440s and an NGT-9000. Pacific Coast Avionics is offering $6k trade-in credit for each 430W. I think that's an offer even I couldn't refuse.

I can't say enough about what great customer service Mitch provided along with Commerce bank in Worcester, MA (the bank I ended up getting financed with). Anyone with specific questions feel free to PM me.

Edited February 23, 2016 by NotarPilot

[Brian Scranton]

2.9% at Wings Financial. Those guys were SUPER easy to work with. 

[thomas1142]

9 hours ago, Brian Scranton said:

2.9% at Wings Financial. Those guys were SUPER easy to work with. 

Can you provide any specifics, such as amount, time frame, amount down. This is a great rate!

[Brian Scranton]

13 hours ago, thomas1142 said:

Can you provide any specifics, such as amount, time frame, amount down. This is a great rate!

Yes, their rate sheet is:

2.99% under $50K

3.99% under $100K (I think)

4.99% under $500K

The terms were 15% down, 5 year fixed on a 10 year loan...after 5 years the rate adjusts once to their current aviation loan rates. $140 for title search, no other closing fees. 

They put it together in a week. Awesome to work with. 

 

Edited February 24, 2016 by Brian Scranton

[BDPetersen]

Wings (formerly Northwest Airlines credit union) is pretty savvy about aircraft loans. Have had several.

[Pictreed]

I noticed you just have to have a drivers license to sign up for a Wings account but I just pulled up another page that says you must be/have been employees by an airline or aviation industry (something like that).  

What experience have you guys had?

I tried to sign up but they sent an email saying it failed and they sent me a paper application. 

Tim

I just tried it again and remembered I worked for gate security with a company called Ogden Aviation (if I remember right) at DFW airport 25 years ago so maybe that will be enough.  It seemed to work.  Totally different application this time. 

Edited April 15, 2016 by Pictreed
New attempt

[bradp]

On January 19, 2016 at 7:10 PM, Oldguy said:

I used AOPA/BofA for my J, but they had a limit of 30 year-old planes when I did. Since mine was 29, it was okay, but they did say nothing over 30. Don't know if they have changed or if you would be buying something newer than 30.

John

I used AOPA as well for a 35 yr plane.  

[dlthig]

What about a home equity loan? I think that would allow the interest to be tax deductible. Also, are you guys buying now seeing prices consistent with vRef?

[carusoam]

Home equity loans or refinancing the house are great ideas.  Low interest rates and tax deductions where the airplane loan doesn't.  There is no penalty for paying a home loan off early.

Some words of caution go with that.  Running out of dough because a change in the economy leads to unemployment... Don't lose the house because you can't afford the plane.

If you are single, living in a firebird isn't that bad... A family of four, not so much....

See how that works?

Best regards,

-a-

[Yetti]

They should be consistent with the other planes for sale.  Most blue books are put together by sellers/brokers.  They want higher prices.

[Parker_Woodruff]

You might try this if the dollar amount is under $100K.

I think it's unsecured debt.  I just used them to do a few house upgrades (HVAC, Water Heater, siding, and windows). I was approved and all documentation turned in within 24 hours.

https://www.lightstream.com/aircraft-loans

 

[Pictreed]

Wings gave me the same rate as my house and was easy enough. 

[jrwilson]

Red river state bank. Airloans.com

[Steve Dietrich]

Had only great experiences with

 

http://www.1st-of-pryor.com/

 

They specialize in aircraft and know Mooney

 

Great website , very competitive ,  incredible service

 

NO RELATIONSHIP OTHER THAN SATISFIED CUSTOMER

 

 

Edited April 29, 2016 by Steve Dietrich

[Steve Dietrich]

RE   HOME EQUITY LOAN TO FINANCE AIRCRAFT

Lots of bad things can happen when you use your home as security for something ..   

 

Banks offer great rates on home equity loans because they not only have you by the throat but by the tenders as well 

[Steve Dietrich]

On 1/19/2016 at 5:44 AM, bonal said:

Has anyone ever financed through a 401k loan. You borrow from yourself and the interest is paid back to yourself. I did this several years ago and when I was paid off I was way ahead on the balance of my account. Much better to pay myself than the bank.

 

Very few of us ever think about bankruptcy .  However, should it happen you 401k is probably safe .  However, if you borrow against it presumably you have destroyed the firewall.

I would at least get a quote from a bank which specializes in aircraft financing . 

 

[ArtVandelay]

On 1/19/2016 at 5:44 AM, bonal said: Has anyone ever financed through a 401k loan. You borrow from yourself and the interest is paid back to yourself. I did this several years ago and when I was paid off I was way ahead on the balance of my account. Much better to pay myself than the bank.

 

Very few of us ever think about bankruptcy .  However, should it happen you 401k is probably safe .  However, if you borrow against it presumably you have destroyed the firewall.

I would at least get a quote from a bank which specializes in aircraft financing . 

 

401k is completely safe, by federal law. If you take out a loan, you have to pay it back, otherwise there will be penalties for early withdrawal, but it's safe from creditors. Normally 401k loans are limited to 4-5 years, no good for large loans.

[StevenL757]

On January 18, 2016 at 4:28 AM, anthonydesmet said:

I used Dorr Aviation in 2014.  Their rates were a 1.5% lower than AOPA/BOA.  In July 2014 I received 5% for 15 years with 15% down.

 They were outstanding and if you are going to finance you plane in an LLC, they will walk you through it.  

With all the refi talk I think I may look into it also plus I have a tank reseal coming up.

Absolutely agree.  I'm on my third loan with them, and the process couldn't be easier...with a "home town" friendly feel to it.  Located in Oxford, MA.  They're wonderful.  Give Bob Howe a call there.

[manoflamancha]

USAF seems to have good rates at 3-4.5%

[kpaul]

3 hours ago, manoflamancha said:

USAF seems to have good rates at 3-4.5%

Did you mean USAF or USAA?

 

I used Dorr Aviation, they were fantastic during the process and after when I have needed questions answered.

 

[PaulB]

6 hours ago, manoflamancha said:

USAF seems to have good rates at 3-4.5%

This is who I've used.  Lowest rate I can find and fast service. 1st bank of Pryor moved at a snails pace so I told them to cancel everything (took over a month).  Called USAF and had the deal closed within 72 hrs.