Hello All,

I have long dreamed of owning and flying a IV-P, and the moment has come when it appears I have the means to acquire one. However, as I began to search for the right plane, it quickly came to my attention that not all IV-Ps are created equal. In fact, the depth of my ignorance in regard to the aircraft has become stunningly apparent.  The result is that I have become tied up in a kind of analysis paralysis as I have discovered aircraft which had major build problems, significant damage histories, incomplete logbooks, bank repossessions under difficult circumstances, and so on.

Another issue I have is how to appropriately value the aircraft if I ever do find one I feel safe flying. I can value a Bonanza pretty easily, but given the tremendous differences in available IV-Ps, I am not even sure how to begin.  I have just reached the point I can afford a IV-P at the lower to middle end of the value range, and the last thing I want to do is make a boneheaded financial move.

Some questions I might ask more educated owners and builders:

- Would you acquire a Lancair with a challenging or unprofessional build history at any price (assuming the problems were corrected)?

- Would you acquire a Lancair with a damage history (say a gear up landing or significant damage from being hit on the ramp by another aircraft) at any price?

- Would you acquire a plane with very little TT on it?  There are several aircraft for sale with less than 100 TT, or which have turned into hangar queens in the last few years.

- If so, what considerations would you have, and what pricing adjustments would you make?

- Any information you have on prices that IV-Ps have recently sold for, with times and equipment descriptions would be extremely helpful.  I suspect there is a large divergence between asking prices and realities.



Thanks,

Jeff