Yes, that's a deal. I would have bought that if I saw it first.

That would also be an airplane totally unsuitable for your Instrument rating.
Borderline for your private if you intend to make it a career. Just to noodle around recreationally sure.

Here’s my recommendation: do your IR in the same make and model you do your Private in.
Make sure you know the power settings and the in and outs of VOR navigation. This will save you a lot of aggrevation during your IR, money too.
Unless you’ve got money to burn owning an airplane is a PITA.
Tie down fees, maintenance funds, insurance and fuel cost.
If you can fly for $100/hr on your own airplane you’re lucky.
So you buy a plane for $30k and fly 250hrs at $80/hr.
You’re now at $50,000.
Now you need to rent a plane for your Commercial add $3,500-$4000 and add a twin for your ME rating at $5000 give or take.
You’re total is $60,000 which is the same you’ve spend if you’d have your own airplane but without the headaches and having another airplane available in case of maintence issues yadayadayada.
Buying an airplane for your training being cheaper is a case of false economics.

You're forgetting - after your numbers, you still own a $30k plane.

Not always. It can work out if you can take the risk. Do enough hours in it and the risk dilutes enough so it can make a lot of sense.
Mine cost me $54/hr (this includes every single thing I put to the plane, FBO fees, upgrades etc), got me my instrument rating, and 400 hours that allowed me to skip CFI and go straight to jobs that paid a livable wage. Best investment I've ever made.
Buy smart and it's almost impossible to lose money over 250 hours in a plane that's not a dog.

And THAT is very difficult for somebody that isn’t familiar with airplanes to begin with and completely has to rely on other people to make the choice.
And an airplane is only worth what you can sell it for and not what you paid for it.
And that $54/hr includes fuel? I’m sorry I’m just really sceptical.
You also pay more for flight instructors if you’re not using school/FBO airplanes.
I know people that have done this and for some it worked but it would be the last thing I’d recommend.

Yup. Everything. Lowest I paid was $3.09/gallon. Ethanol free from a pump at an airfield near by. Highest was just under $10/gallon at KMIA. My average price was $4.40, approx $25.50/hr in gas, this is average over 400 hours.
You see, almost $10/hr was the plane appreciating. I sold it for about 3500 more than what I paid for it.
You also get much, much better selection/control over who your CFI and DPE is when you have your own plane. And scheduling is a million times easier. And I'm not sure why you would pay more for an instructor? I paid the same as the going rate in the area.
And if you're doing any time building, own airplane is almost a non-brainer. Overnight trips with no daily minimums etc.
I loved that thing.
Have you ever owned an airplane?

No I haven’t.
But I have worked for a flight school where we had a lot of privately owned lease back aircraft.
And I’ve instructed in privately owned airplanes.
And some of them are just toast.
Nothing is impossible and I’m not disputing it worked for you.
I’m disputing that it’s a good idea for a newcomer in aviation.

Thank you for your reply... I am leaning towards Phoneix East aviation but before then i seriously want to knock of my privates (pay as you go) at a Local mom and pop in my state and hopefully see if i will still be on fire for this career before taking out any huge loan.

Lets keep this simple...Here's a Tale of Two Brothers.

> The First Brother did the Local FBO/Pay-as-you-go method. Long story short - " It was ALWAYS Something". The Instrument Aircraft was broken, the Instructor cancelled, the money ran out, the weather sucked, the FBO closed, the girlfriend caused problems, the Boss wouldn't let you off work on a given ( important ) day,...It was ALWAYS one step forward and two steps back. Until finally, sick of the lack of consistent progress, he quit flying until he had saved ALL the money required for training, agreed with the Wife that he could quit his job if necessary, agreed with the Boss that he could take a Month off with no pay, and off he marched to a Total Immersion process and left town to go to American Flyers and live in the Apartments they provided. 8-10 hours per day of Ground School, Simulator, and Flying ensued. Three weeks later he had attained his Commercial, Instrument, and CFI . The SAME licenses he had been working on for the past THREE YEARS.


> When the Other Brother ( years later ) said " Hey, if a numb nuts like you can be an airline pilot so can I ! How do I do it? " The First Brother replied " Dump your girlfriend, quit your job, get ALL of the money ( loan, savings, whatever ) in one place... and GO for it ! "

Six months later this Brother had gone from Zero time to Comm. , Instrument, Multi, CFII-MEI and was immediately employed as a Flight Instructor at the school he trained at.


In short: Get all of your TIME, money, resources and responsibilities wrapped up and in one cohesive place and dive in. As opposed to wasting any and all of the above going at things piece-meal.

Just speaking from experience...

GOOD LUCK!

Stimpson

P.S.- I saved the additional money and never did the CFII/MEI. Just did primary Flight Instruction for 600 hours and got my first airline job. That was in a VERY crappy hiring environment, as opposed to now.

I did save up and quit my job to focus on training (the GF was given a choice, and she stayed and became permanent eventually).

Some of that had to do with wanting to enjoy school/training again for a while, and I did. But I could have kept my job and proceeded at a slower pace, although that would depend on your job, boss, and other circumstances. In retrospect that would have worked better when ay-holes started flying planes into tall buildings.