DAR FEES

[yakdriver]

I would like to know if DAR fees are comparable thruout the country or is there a big difference in fees. One of the DARs in the area charges $800 plus $40 hour plus expenses travel fee. Don

[Mel]

Don,
DAR fees are set by the individual DAR and are quite different in different parts of the country. My basic fee is $400 for fixed gear, non-pressurized single engine recip, plus travel expenses.

[Rick6a]

Originally Posted by yakdriver

I would like to know if DAR fees are comparable thruout the country or is there a big difference in fees. One of the DARs in the area charges $800 plus $40 hour plus expenses travel fee. Don

Huge difference. My DAR does the inspection for free if done locally although he does charge for costs if he has to travel. Others told me to just give him a ham and a six-pack if I wanted to. A few days after the inspection, I mailed him $300 just because I felt sort of....well, you know. After all, he did spend almost 3 hours with me that day, even finishing up paperwork I neglected to complete. Later, he called and said "Rick, that really was not necessary.....you are going to give me ideas!"

[robertahegy]

The MKE FSDO does it for free. Your local FSDO should be the same, if available. The FSDO can also file for your Repairmans Cert, where a DAR can not.

Roberta

[Scott Will]

In the Atlanta area, the two prices I got were $500 and $650. Went with the $500 guy... it's just all about paperwork around here. He could care less how the aircraft was built - it could have been held together with speed tape and chewing gum and he wouldn't have noticed.

My buddy tried contacting the ATL FSDO. They initially said they'd do it for free then their management shot that idea down. Said they had more important things to do, or something like that.

You are your own best inspector. Also get a bunch of experienced guys (A&Ps, IAs, RVers, etc) to go over the plane with you because a fresh set of eyes can spot things you might have neglected.

[hydroguy2]

Hey Don, the DAR we used for our Rans charged $350 or $400(I don't recall exactly). He is south for the winter, but should be back by April. If you need his name let me know, I think he travels.

[Kyle Boatright]

The last time I checked, there were at least two guys just NW of Atlanta who were charging $300 and $350, respectively.

If anyone needs a contact information for them, drop me a note off-line.

[RV6ARoger]

Here in central Iowa, our DAR charges a flat fee of $400 for a pretty large radius around the Des Moines area. Outside of that, he charges more for travelling. I think that is pretty reasonable. What I really like about he conducts the DAR business is that he likes to get with builders early on in the process. You pay him about $200 and he will come back as needed during the building. He likes this because he can help keep builders from making major mistakes along the way. He is like a really really good tech counselor who can, actually, make you change or fix something-- unlike tech counselors who can offer suggestions. At the end of the process, the final inspection is a no brainer, all of the paperwork is in order and there are no surprises. Makes sense to me.

[yakdriver]

Thanks for the input. Our FISDO doesn't usually do inspections but they have a couple of new guys that need to get the practice so I will get mine done for free. They come by about once a month and check on progress so it should go smooth. The DAR in Boise is the only game around. He retired from the FAA and when he became a DAR the FISDO refused to do any inspections as they were just too busy. Don

[cjensen]

Funny that you started this thread this evening! My wife and I just got home from dinner with my folks, and we were discussing this very topic!!