High Performance Aviation has been helping owners in the Houston area buy and sell aircraft since 2009, transacting well over 100 on behalf of clients across high-end piston aircraft, turboprops, and light-to-mid-size jets. Here is how the process actually works, and where an experienced broker earns their keep.

Pricing your aircraft correctly

Price it too high and it sits, collecting reduced offers and skeptical buyers. Price it too low and you leave money on the table. A credible number comes from actual comparable sales, not just what similar aircraft are listed for, because asking price and closing price are rarely the same. The fastest way to get a read on your number is a conversation. When you schedule a call with HPA, we walk through a no-obligation, generalized valuation based on your aircraft and current market activity. A detailed, desktop appraisal is a separate step that requires your logbooks, current photos, and a formal engagement, and that first conversation is free, with no obligation.

• Total airframe time and engine/prop time remaining to overhaul
• Avionics, useful load, and any modifications
• Damage history and logbook completeness
• Current market demand for that make and model

Preparing your aircraft for the market

Buyers judge fast, and a well-presented aircraft sells faster and closer to asking price. Before you list:

• Gather and organize logbooks (airframe, engine, prop, avionics)
• Address obvious squawks and cosmetic issues that create doubt
• Get current, well-lit photos inside and out
• Compile a spec sheet: times, equipment, damage history, ADs complied with

Marketing and finding qualified buyers

Listing an aircraft is easy. Getting it in front of buyers who are ready to close is the hard part. Just as important is filtering out tire-kickers early. HPA’s team, the same people who handle research, valuation, and technical evaluation on every deal, screens inquiries before they reach you, so your time goes toward offers worth negotiating.

Evaluating offers and negotiating

Not every offer is equal, even at the same price. Deposit size, financing contingencies, prebuy scope, and closing timeline all affect how likely a deal is to close. A broker negotiates on your behalf, pushes back on unreasonable prebuy demands, and keeps the deal moving when buyers stall.

The prebuy inspection: what to expect as a seller

Almost every serious buyer will want a prebuy before closing. HPA facilitates that process on your behalf. The right scope depends on the aircraft, its maintenance history, and where it is based. Reasonable buyers do not walk away over minor squawks; unreasonable demands for perfection are a red flag worth pushing back on.

Closing the sale

Once a buyer is satisfied, closing involves a title search, escrow to hold funds and title until conditions are met, and FAA paperwork. Escrow protects both parties. A broker who has closed many of these knows the checklist cold and catches missing paperwork before it delays the deal.

How long a sale typically takes

Plan on roughly two to four months from accepted offer to closed sale, driven mostly by vendor timing, especially scheduling the prebuy. HPA has taken a transaction from offer to closing in as little as 48 hours, but that is the exception, not something to plan around.

Why sell through a broker instead of FSBO

Selling yourself means handling marketing, buyer screening, negotiation, prebuy coordination, and closing alone. HPA is led by a broker who is also an ATP, CFI, CFII, MEI, and A&P mechanic, a seven-time Master Instructor, a Wharton MBA, and holds multiple PIC jet type ratings. That is not just sales experience, it is hands-on aviation knowledge applied to reading a logbook, judging an airframe, and sizing up a buyer’s real intentions.