The National Aircraft Resale Association (NARA) recently held an industry-wide forum focusing on “Challenges and Opportunities Ahead: The Aircraft Sales Industry in the Next Six Months.”
The forum, which took place in Dallas Feb. 25-26, gathered more than 200 brokers, dealers and finance officers in the resale market. Participants discussed the financial markets’ impact on the global economy, and the global economy’s effect on aircraft sales.
The meeting opened with a panel of bankers, who began the discussion with an overview of the current financial disruption and market degradation due to liquidity constraints. The critical message was that banks are still lending, but the rules have changed. Most lenders now require larger down payments and shorter amortization schedules in today’s financial environment.
From the brokers’ and dealers’ perspectives, the market has not reached equilibrium yet, with fence-sitters waiting for prices to fall further and inventories still rising. Buyers are dictating aircraft values that have not yet stabilized. There was consensus among attendees that brokers and dealers could instill consumer confidence by better educating clients and managing expectations more realistically.
Although bankers, brokers and dealers know that there is no “silver bullet” for what ails aircraft sales, the take-away from the meeting was a collective resolve to work together to close transactions.
For more information: 703-671-8273 or NARA-Dealers.com
