Anyone want to talk me out of...

Well, it's mostly about money money money. A Mooney like that will
probably run about $50 an hour to run (25 for gas, 10-15 for
maintenance, 10 for reserve plus hangar and insurance), not counting
cost of purchase. If you have the money, and a partner who will pay
his bills, sure go ahead. I hope you are aware that airplanes are
going for less than their appraised value right now its a buyers
market. Lets hope its up from here. 10-20% off asking book is not
unusual, though the most important thing is to get a plane that will
do for few years as is. That means it has the avionics you will be
happy with. Make sure you sit in those back seats, they are small.

I used an escrow service to hold the deposit (though I have heard that
AOPA has discontinued theirs). Make sure you find a reputable one. Be
careful where you register it as there are sales tax issues (Delaware
corps etc but they are a bit of hassle). Some cities have sales tax. I
recommend collecting the engine reserve in the planes checking acct as
then you have some cushion. You might consider getting a plane credit
card and paying it off out of the planes checking acct. That way you
don't have to hassle gas tank issues, just charge by the hour. An LLC
for ownership is the way to go, though it does cost some money unless
you can copy someone elses paperwork. When you sell, just sell the LLC
etc. But lots just take ownership in their name. YMMV on that on that
one. A second on the home is much better interest rate wise and tax
wise than financing the plane and using the plane as collateral.

Be picky about the engine compression test and oil usage as these are
signs of engine wear. Find a good mechanic if you can. Annuals don't
have to cost that much if you do the work yourself.

Good luck!
Jon Kraus wrote in message . ..
buying my first airplane? Better hurry because Monday we have the
prebuy inspection to go thru. If that goes well then probably by the end
of next week I'll be an airplane owner (co-owner actually). I have
really gotten a lot out of this and the Mooney owners news and email
groups. It appears that we have found a clean '79 M20J for a decent
price. I am paying more then I originally bugeted but welcome to
aviation right? I figure that I would take the plunge in a plane that I
can use for a while with out feeling like I need to upgrade right away.
I have a feeling that that is what would happen if I would have bought a
152 or Warrior. The Mooney can hold 4 people and cruise at 150 knots on
10 gph. I think that will satify me for a while anyway. Anyone have
any regrets about airplane ownership they care to share?

Jon Kraus
PP-ASEL-IA
Student Mooney purchaser