Pre-owned Transactions on Downswing, Analysts Say

The number of pre-owned business jet transactions is slowing, but average asking prices are firming in the light and midsize segments and time on market is shrinking, according to industry analysts JetNet and Amstat.

For the first nine months, the number of business jet transactions dropped 2.8 percent and turboprop transactions slid 8.9 percent, JetNet’s latest market report shows. Average asking prices for business jets have climbed 6.8 percent this year, and turboprop prices are up 3.6 percent. Average time on the market for a business jet in the first nine months declined 39 days, compared with the first nine months of 2014, JetNet reports.

Business jet transactions were stronger in the third quarter than in the second, with 2.5 percent of the fleet turning over, but still down from the 2.7 percent that turned over in the third quarter of last year, Amstat reported. The activity in the third quarter was below the 20-year quarterly average and year to date was the lowest of the last three years, Amstat added.

By market segment, midsize jets led the pre-owned market with 3 percent of the fleet turning over in the third quarter, up from 2.7 percent in this year's second quarter and 2.8 percent during the third quarter last year. Large-cabin jet transactions, however, were down both quarter-on-quarter and year-on-year, while light jet transactions were flat. Large-cabin jet prices slid slightly, but light and midsize jet prices are up, Amstat added.