Looking for a Mooney M20C, M20E, M20F

[TurboK]

Hello, I know many of you will say this is impossible and bla bla bla….but I know the market and looking for a forever airplane  

Im looking for a Mooney, low to mid time engine and prop. Don’t really care about the paint or interior. 
just looking for a good maintained machine to fly, A GPS would be great. 
 

budget is under $60k. 

[bigmo]

Not impossible for you to find a plane for under $60K, but just don't see you finding one with a low time motor. $60K usually = 1700+ on the motor. $80K will open up some real opportunities. The market is starting to relax a bit, but not sure you'll find what you're looking for without a little give.

I'm literally captain optimism...but the market is tough.

[MikeOH]

Be VERY careful at the low end... Is this your first airplane purchase?  If so, be aware that the buy-in price is just the beginning; ongoing costs are going to overshadow a low purchase price.  My number one consideration when I was shopping was consistent and recent use!  Many 'low price' aircraft had been sitting, or with very little use, for a year or, commonly, many years ;  I ran from those.

While it 'may be possible' your comment about 'knowing the market' tends to contradict today's reality. @bigmo is correct, I think, in that $60K is likely going to be a run-out engine.  I had the budget but chose to buy a plane with a run-out engine so that I could control the OH figuring I'd fly until the engine started talking to me...7 years and over 500 hours later the engine is still doing fine.  Point being, I was EXPECTING to need an OH shortly after purchase, but that was okay since I'd paid a run-out price for the plane.

No matter the hours on the engine that can still happen and you need to be able to swing that.

Good luck!

[AJ88V]

I've seen some half-decent looking C or D models in the $60K price range, but if the engine wasn't high time, then they had antique radios, maybe no ADS-B, definitely no certified GPS in that price range.

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Wonder if this one is still for sale

https://mooneyspace.com/topic/49494-1965-m20e-ifd440-and-full-ads-b-out-of-annual-40k/

Even I think that's a pretty interesting opportunity.  The engine risk is maybe 4 cylinders and cam.  Doubt the fuselage is a huge issue.  They chromated everything in 1965.  Even if you had to part it out, the engine core ($8+ K) and a used IFD440 GPS present pretty low risk.  And you might just get lucky!

[Guy123]

What about this one? It's a B model with a low to mid time engine. Has an engine monitor and ADS-B.

https://mooneyspace.com/topic/48792-1961-mooney-m20b-n-74768-for-sale/

[Utah20Gflyer]

Based on the price range a low time prop/engine is going to be a low usage engine with an old overhaul which likely negates the benefit you are looking for.   I would instead look for a higher time and high usage engine which is actually more likely to run a while without needing a major repair.   You are likely going to have to accept old radios and no gps and less desirable paint and interior.   The most important thing to look for is high usage and regular maintenance.   
 

In the long run you’ll probably be better off spending more on the purchase and get a very nicely kept specimen.  In three years I’ve spent more on maintenance and upgrades than I did on the initial purchase.  

[Echo]

Buy THIS!  Checks ALL the boxes.  Low time engine.  Nice interior and paint.  J bar.  STec 30 altitude hold.  430W.  EDM730.  Aspen.  Likely get it for 85k. 67 was a great year.  Beautiful leather.  I would of bought this if available a year ago.

[bigmo]

That's a nice plane for $95K. I expect they'll find a buyer at that price. Dare I say it's slightly under market (I would have guessed $100-105K).