So, you want to buy an RV?

[Way Up Here]

After a considerable amount of time spent lurking hither and yon in the forums, pawing through preview plans, excessive forays into builder sites and shameless bouts of YouTube watching, with the odd trip to Oshkosh thrown in...I have come to realize that at this point in my life I am a flyer and not a builder. As luck would have it, there seems to be a lot of people that have decided they are builders and not flyers. I have decided that it would be mutually beneficial for me to relieve one of these good people of their aircraft shortly after they relieve me of all this excess cash I have (hahaha). Anyhow, having never purchased an airplane, I need to ask ya'll some questions:

1. What would be a rough 'flowchart' of how to purchase an aircraft? I am aware of the need for a good pre-buy inspection...but where does insurance and paperwork and whatnot figure into the process?

2. Is it fair practice to ask if anybody on the forums is familiar with a particular aircraft?

3. Has anybody ever put together a "how to buy an experimental aircraft" guide?

4. What are the pitfalls that I might stumble into in the process of purchasing an RV?

5. Should I prime or not? (OK, that one was a joke....really.)

I know that is a lot of questions, so thanks in advance for taking the time to respond to one or all.

Ian

[Mike S]

Ian, welcome aboard the good ship VAF

Best advice I can give you is to first off determine your mission-------family outings with the wife and kids kinda rules out all but the 10------that type of thing.

Make a list of things you desire, and things you reject. IFR vs VFR, carb vs FI----that type of thing. Use this to narrow down the list of planes a bit.

Next, get a ride in the model(s) you think you want----plenty of folks here willing to offer you a ride

[Ironflight]

Ian, you're in luck - Van's has already anticipated at least a part of your question:

http://vansaircraft.com/pdf/letters/..._flying_rv.pdf

This is an article on their site with a few things to think about when looking for a flying RV

[aarvig]

Advice if you are buying...BUYER BEWARE! Find a plane you really like and then hire a reputable, vans recommended transition trainer/prebuy inspector to fully inspect the aircraft prior to delivery. Might I recommend Mr. Tom Berge at http://www.rvtransition.com
If you do a forum search you will find many good things said about him. I can personally vouch for his knowledge, skill level, and intellect on all things RV.

[Bill_H]

EAA.org has resources about buying an experimental. Lots about buying planes in general at AOPA as well.

[FlyArmy]

Learn about applicable sales/use tax as well as property tax. That can be a confusing mess and there are so many different situations that no one ever has a good answer. But, it can affect some buying decisions depending on the laws. I consulted with a couple aviation/tax attorneys who were of surprisingly little help and just dug through the laws myself to make sure I was straight.