Are asking prices really as unrealistic as they look

"Dude" wrote
If it is your assumption that most airplanes are turds, and you then decide
that the ones with interior and paint maintained are still most likely
turds, then I may go with you on that one. Depending on how old a plane is,
ones idea of "turd" may change. 90% is too high a number though, especially
if you find a bad jug as acceptable.

No, in my experience 90% is about right. And here's the problem with
a bad jug - the best maintained planes get them. You can't tell
without doing a compression check - the power loss is not noticeable.
So if you're buying a plane, and you do the first compression check
the plane has had since annual, 4 months and 4 hours ago...

If you think buyers typically pay too much attention to the paint and
interior quality then you are completely correct. So if you want to sell
aplane, no matter how good the mechanicals are, painting it is a good idea.

No argument.

If it is your belief that nothing can be told from fresh paint and interior
vs. not so nice same, then you are wrong. Based on those facts as well as
an intuitive look at the owner, his mechanic, and the log books you can get
some good ideas on how suspicious you should be.

No. The look at the owner, mechanic, and logbooks tells you a lot.
The fresh paint and interior never tell you anything positive. They
MAY tell you something negative.

For instance. The owner is crisply dressed, makes or has a lot of money, is
moving up to more plane, drives an expensive late model car (no dents,
waxed), and his hangar is neat and tidy (or he uses a hangar service that
pulls the plane for him). The mechanic has a neat, clean shop. The plane
and log books are compulsively neat and clean. This plane is likely to be a
winner, no matter what the paint and interior condition

Bingo. Paint and interior tell you nothing at that point.

but you and I know
this guy has a nice interior and paint.

Almost certainly. Only way he won't is if he bought the plane ratty,
started to upgrade it, paid attention to the important stuff first -
and then decided he needed more plane than he has so is trading up.
Not likely, which is why most of those planes will have nice interior
and paint. Also they will bring top dollar.

On the other hand. Take a slob owner, who is trading down, or out. Combine
that with a mechanic working out of the back of an '89 buick. This plane is
desiring a serious amount of skepticism. If the paint is new - walk away.

Again - agree. So the new paint has told you something about the
plane - but it's negative.

If its old, this doesn't tell you much

Right again. Maybe the owner and mechanic are just slobs, maybe
they're mechanically sloppy too. You don't know. Old paint told you
nothing. But new paint told you to walk away. This is exactly what I
was talking about.

but you want to look for things they
may not be telling you because there is a good chance they cannot afford the
repair. Can you afford the prebuy on this plane?

Good question. If you're going in cold as a novice and making the
decision to call in the mechanic on your evaluation - the answer is
probably not. If you have the benefit of an experienced owner with
you who knows the type, don't walk away so fast. In an hour or two of
looking at plane and logs, he will either tell you it's a turd (90%
probability) or tell you that it looks good to him. If the latter,
get the mechanic for the prebuy. But not any mechanic - you need one
who really knows the type and knows where the bodies are buried. Of
course that's the case anyway.

Now, you have a retired guy, who seems the responsible type who wants to
sell his plane. His mechanic is rough around the edges and curses a lot,
but he seems to know his stuff. The paint and interior are old or original,
but clean. The logs look to be in order, and everything seems to work on the
plane except the Loran (which is placarded). Now, I find nothing suspicious
here either. This is likely worth a prebuy.

Once again I agree. What's more, this plane is probably the best deal
going.

Can you see where I am going Michael? The plane's condition has to fit the
rest of the story. Saying you should walk away from nice paint and interior
seems a bit foolish.

It is, and that's not what I said. What I did say is that nice paint
and interior never tell you anything positive. Sometimes they're a
certain sign that you should walk away, other times they're just an
expected part of the picture.

I can tell you that a seller who wants top dollar will
put paint or interior on anything that needs it. Personally, I would rather
do that myself as a new buyer, but most buyers do not respond this way.

Once again, I completely agree.

In the end, nothing really works but a good prebuy.

Once again - I agree 100%.

Michael