First time Buyer, please help

[dcotton]

So me and two other guys are strongly considering purchasing an LSA together. I hear all the horror stories of aviation purchasing and some less than ethical folks involved and do not want to screw this up, obviously.

My questions are as follows;

1. Pre-Buy, one of the planes we are considering is in PA, we are in FLA, how and who would you all recommend for a pre-buy, what questions should I be asking? What should I expect to pay for a great service?

2. After the purchase. One of our members would likely be the administrative member, this is a fair amount of work of course, what would a reasonable compensation be for this member ensuring SD's, mechanical services etc are being taken care of?

3. Whats the best way to pay for the use of the plane? Is there a best method out there? After the plane is paid for, based on each members usage of the plane?

4. What do I not know that you can tell me I should know?

Thank you!!
-d

 

[cgrab]

I did my own pre-buy on my plane but that was after a couple of years of research and talking to owners of the type I was looking for. I flew from DC to Seattle for an inspection only to find the mechanic that I had a couple of conversations with had not checked an important part of the plane and the corrosion I discovered made it un-airworthy. I flew home the next day. An expensive lesson that saved me a alot.
My advice is join the owners group for the type you are looking for and learn all you can then do the pre-buy yourself. Only you know what "the paint was OK" really means.