AOPA Pilot Magazine - March 2016 - 114

NEWS & NOTES
AOPA FINANCE

MEMBER PRODUCTS

Buying an aircraft?
Four keys to determining your creditworthiness
WHEN A LENDER IS DETERMINING

whether to extend credit to you,
income is just the beginning. Lenders
look at your financial history in these
additional ways.
Credit score: Your credit score
helps determine whether you should
qualify for credit, what the interest
rate should be, and what the credit
limits should be. An ideal credit score
is at least 720, and it should not be
lower than 650.
DTI: DTI stands for debt-toincome ratio and is the amount of
money you owe in any given month.
That number is divided by your gross
monthly income (income before taxes
are deducted) to determine your DTI.
Lenders like a DTI under 40 percent
(including the proposed aircraft loan).
Liquidity: Liquidity refers to
how easily an individual can meet
financial obligations with liquid
assets (assets that can be quickly
bought or sold without affecting
the price). Cash is the most liquid

of assets, followed by money market
funds, checking accounts, and savings accounts. Illiquid assets would
be items such as art collections or
rare books, stamps, wine, jewelry, or
coins. One of the least liquid assets is
real estate, since it could take months
to convert a real estate asset into
cash. Cash is king!
Unsecured debt: When debt is
unsecured, it means that there is no
property or equipment attached as
collateral. Your mortgage is a secured
debt in that if you don't pay your mortgage, the bank can recoup its losses by
seizing your house. Try to keep unsecured debt to a minimum.
AOPA Aviation Finance understands that securing an aircraft loan
can be daunting. Our goal is to make it
easier to finance airplanes. Our experienced team of aviation-savvy loan
experts is ready to discuss your situation. Visit aopafinance.org or call
800-62-PLANE (75263) to determine
which loan works best for you.

REALIZING HER DREAM
AMY MUNIZZI HAS FOND MEMORIES as a preteen
of watching her ex-Air Force dad parachute on
Saturdays. "I fell in love with aviation then, but life
and circumstances got in the way," she says. After
she lost her father to Parkinson's disease, she says,
"I realized it was time to live this dream."
Forty years after that love of aviation was
sparked, Munizzi is a student pilot. She soloed in
June 2015.
"I found buying AOPA insurance a completely
painless task, and that's saying a lot for the purchase of insurance, since it's often confusing. The
process, options, and why I might want or need one
thing or the other was easy to understand. Paying
for it online was a breeze and I was finished with
the whole thing in about 10 minutes," she says. "As
soon as I got to the airport I recommended it to
several other students. Turned out, they began
requiring renters insurance from all of us that
week, so it was a timely purchase."
No matter what you fly or for what reason, AOPA
Insurance has the right policy for you. For more information or to apply for a policy, visit aopainsurance.
org/rent. You may qualify for a 5-percent discount just
for being an AOPA member, and revenue from AOPA
Insurance programs goes right back to AOPA to help
grow and protect general aviation.
WEB

http://insurance.aopa.org

CONTACT AOPA
AOPA FOUNDATION
ADDRESS CHANGE?

Send your new address and AOPA
membership number to AOPA:
421 Aviation Way
Frederick, Maryland 21701-4798
Fax: 301-695-2375
www.aopa.org
TOLL-FREE PILOT
INFORMATION CENTER

800-USA-AOPA (872-2672)
www.aopa.org

800-955-9115
www.aopafoundation.org
AIR SAFETY INSTITUTE

AOPA AIRCRAFT INSURANCE

AOPA CREDIT CARD PROGRAM

AOPA PILOT PROTECTION SERVICES

AOPA AIRCRAFT FINANCING

AOPA RENTAL CAR PROGRAM

800-638-3101
www.airsafetyinstitute.org
800-523-7666
www.aopa.org/creditcard
800-627-5263
www.aopafinance.com

800-622-AOPA (622-2672)
www.aopainsurance.org
800-USA-AOPA (872-2672)
www.aopa.org/pps
866-315-9155
www.aopa.org/cars

AOPA PILOT INFORMATION CENTER HOURS

Do you have questions or need information about an aviation topic? Access the team of aviation experts in our Pilot Information Center
during our convenient weekday hours. Call 800-USA-AOPA (872-2672) Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. until 6 p.m. Eastern time, with
your questions and our staff will be happy to assist you.
WEB Visit the website (www.aopa.org/aopapremier) to learn about upgrading to the AOPA Premier membership.

114 | AOPA PILOT March 2016

http://www.aopafinance.org http://insurance.aopa.org http://www.aopafoundation.org http://www.airsafetyinstitute.org http://www.aopainsurance.org http://www.aopa.org http://www.aopa.org/creditcard http://www.aopa.org/pps http://www.aopafinance.com http://www.aopa.org/cars http://www.aopa.org http://www.aopa.org/aopapremier

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - March 2016