Selling Your Aircraft: Pricing, Marketing, and the Closing Process

How long does it actually take to sell a private aircraft?

Plan on 90 to 270 days from listing to funded wire. The midpoint for a clean, in-production light or midsize jet in a balanced market is roughly 120 days; older airframes, out-of-production types, or aircraft mid-cycle on engines and inspections routinely push past 200 days. The 2021-2022 seller's market compressed timelines to under 60 days on some Citations and Phenoms, but that was an anomaly. Plan and price for the historical mean, not the last cycle's peak.

The clock has four segments: pre-listing prep (2-6 weeks), active marketing to executed LOI (30-120 days), pre-purchase inspection (15-45 days), and closing (5-15 days). The segment most sellers underestimate is prep. Pulling logbooks, scanning records, ordering a title search through Insured Aircraft Title Service or AIC Title, clearing open squawks, and getting an accurate damage history disclosure on paper takes longer than owners expect.

What's your aircraft actually worth right now?

Market value is what AMSTAT and JetNet comparable transactions say it is, not what Vref or Bluebook print. Both Vref and Aircraft Bluebook publish baseline values, but they lag the live market by one to two quarters and don't account for engine program status, paint and interior age, avionics configuration, or damage history. A broker pulling comps will look at the last six to twelve months of recorded sales for your make, model, and serial range, then adjust for hours, engine and APU program enrollment (ESP, JSSI, MSP Gold), avionics (Garmin G5000 vs. Pro Line 21 vs. Pro Line Fusion), interior cycle, and 8C or Doc check status.

Engine program enrollment is the single biggest swing factor on midsize and larger jets — an aircraft on MSP Gold versus an off-program equivalent can carry a $500K to $2M delta. Damage history, even fully repaired and signed off, typically discounts value 5-15%. If you want a defensible number for a divorce, estate, or partner buyout, order a USPAP-compliant appraisal from an NAAA or ASA accredited appraiser; expect $5K-$15K and two to four weeks.

Should you list with a broker or sell it yourself?

For anything above a piston single, list with a broker. The 3-5% commission buys access to AMSTAT and JetNet subscriber networks, Controller and Trade-A-Plane placement, the broker's direct buyer rolodex, and — most importantly — a professional negotiating layer between you and the buyer's broker during the inspection squawk fight. Direct sales on turbine equipment routinely leave 5-10% on the table and expose the seller to misrepresentation claims that a broker's process documentation would have prevented.

The broker categories sort cleanly. Large international firms like Jetcraft, Guardian Jet, Mesinger Jet Sales, and Avpro handle the large-cabin and global-buyer market and bring international tax and import structuring in-house. Boutique brokers — there are dozens of credible shops — typically run leaner on light and midsize jets and turboprops, often with deeper specialization in a single model line. OEM pre-owned desks at Textron, Bombardier, Gulfstream, and Embraer will take trade-ins against a new purchase but rarely market third-party listings competitively. Interview three brokers, ask for recent comparable transactions they closed, and read the listing agreement carefully — exclusivity terms typically run 90-180 days with tail provisions.

Where does your aircraft need to be marketed?

AMSTAT and JetNet are the institutional databases every buyer's broker searches first. Controller.com, Trade-A-Plane, and the OEM type-club forums catch the owner-flown segment. A serious listing package includes high-resolution exterior and interior photography (expect $2K-$5K for a professional shoot, often on the ramp at a clean FBO), a full specification sheet with avionics, interior configuration, program enrollments, and recent inspection status, and a redacted logbook summary buyers can review under NDA.

Pricing strategy matters more than placement. Listing 8-12% above your target net is standard; listing 20%+ above market signals an unmotivated seller and kills inbound interest. After 60-90 days without a qualified offer, the market is telling you the price is wrong — not that the marketing is wrong.

What happens during the pre-purchase inspection?

The buyer selects and pays for the PPI at a mutually agreed facility, but the seller pays to fix airworthiness squawks. Roughly 70% of PPIs surface $50K+ in findings; on aging midsize and large-cabin jets, $150K-$400K in discovered items is routine. The contract — typically an AIA or NBAA-derived purchase agreement — defines what counts as an airworthiness item (seller's cost to correct or credit) versus a discrepancy (buyer's election to accept, negotiate, or walk).

Negotiating the squawk list is where deals die or get done. Experienced brokers price the expected squawk pool into the LOI from day one. First-time sellers who refuse to credit legitimate airworthiness items watch 60 days of marketing evaporate when the buyer walks and the aircraft goes back on the market with a now-known inspection history.

What are the tax consequences of selling?

If you depreciated the aircraft under IRC §168 bonus depreciation or MACRS, the sale triggers ordinary-income recapture on gain up to the amount of depreciation taken. An aircraft bought for $8M, depreciated to $2M book value, and sold for $5M generates $3M of §1245 recapture taxed at ordinary rates — not long-term capital gains. This surprises sellers who took 100% bonus depreciation in 2018-2022 and are now disposing of equipment that held value better than expected.

A §1031 like-kind exchange into a replacement aircraft was eliminated for personal property by the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, so the recapture is due in the year of sale regardless of whether you replace the aircraft. Plan with your aviation tax counsel six months before listing, not after the LOI is signed. State sales and use tax on the buyer side can also affect deal structure, closing location, and delivery state — Delaware, Oregon, Montana, and certain fly-away exemption states still drive closing logistics.

How does the actual closing work?

Closing runs through an aviation escrow agent in Oklahoma City — typically Insured Aircraft Title Service, AIC Title, or Aerospace Reports — because the FAA Aircraft Registry sits there and bills of sale, security releases, and registration applications file in person. The escrow agent holds the buyer's funds, confirms clear title via a fresh search, records the AC Form 8050-2 bill of sale and the new registration, releases any existing lien, and wires net proceeds to the seller. Closing costs run $5K-$15K and are typically split or assigned per the purchase agreement. From signed final acceptance to funded wire is usually 48-72 hours when the paperwork is clean.