I parked at Friedman Memorial Airport at the Allen & Company Sun Valley Conference held in Sun Valley, Idaho on July 10th, 2025.
Kevin Dietsch | Getty Images
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The new federal spending bill is expected to encourage private jet sales as owners will take advantage of faster amortization of purchase prices.
The jet brokers and advisors said they saw an explosion of activity from clients who had refrained from purchasing until the bill was signed. Among its many new tax clauses is the revival of “bonus depreciation,” allowing businesses to quickly amortize 100% of the purchase price of capital equipment, including private jets.
Individuals who own jets through private companies or holding companies are generally able to amortize all costs of new or used jets in the first year of ownership of planes used after January 19, 2025.
Tax benefits apply only to business jets, not jets used for personal use. It will revive the tax cut provisions for 2017 and replace the phasing rate of 60% in 2024 and 40% in 2025.
“There were a lot of owners who were looking for an upgrade and waiting for this,” said Barry Shevlin, CEO of Flyusa, Aviation Solutions Company. “And I have at least half a dozen other people trying to buy after this is passed.”
Tax stimulation is coming at a time suitable for the private jet industry, where growth is slowing from its enthusiastic pitches in 2020 and 2021. The industry has surged to new owners, charter flyers and fractional owners after Covid, but many of the wealthy people who bought planes have since started selling sales or shifting to higher maintenance costs of maintaining.
According to JetNet, the number of second-hand business jets for sale increased to an average monthly fee of over 1,800 in the first half. This is up from 1,744 in the first half of 2024. The average time on the market also increased, up from 386 days to 418 days.
“Many people who bought planes during Covid didn’t know what they were obsessed with,” Shevlin said. “They were shocked by what it had to do with the cost.”
Philip Rushton, founder and president of Aviatrade, said that currently there are 23-25 G650s in the market, with around 23-25 G650s, slightly higher than usual.
“It certainly is normalised after Covid,” he said.
However, big rush to buy a private jet may not start until fall. The broker said private jet purchases will usually skyrocket at the end of the year when businesses and individuals have finalised tax bills.
Guardian Jet’s managing partner Matt Walter said he would not decide to buy the plane just for tax changes. “But that certainly helps with that decision,” he said. “If you plan to upgrade your plane in 12 months, you might do that in six months instead.”
He said he advises clients to buy by September, but to sell after September.
“You want to buy it before it gets hooked,” he said. “From September onwards you’re going to compete with other buyers and compete for inspection slots. In a fierce market, everyone is trying to do the same and find an inspection slot.”
