Like a kid with a treehouse, a hangar is the ideal for most any aircraft owner. Not only are you and your ride protected from the elements, but there’s also room to store the miscellany accompanying aircraft ownership. The barriers to hangar heaven have always been availability and price. The former is often too scarce and the latter too high-at least on the surface. Many owners put their names on the waiting lists for a hangar, but when it comes time to put down the $400/month or more, the $50/month tie-down doesnt look so bad. More than one owner responded to our recent AVweb.com survey that even when you factor in the wear and tear on paint and other exterior items like tires, the tie-down can be cheaper. A net of $4200/year buys a lot of maintenance. We still think when you factor in the intangibles of convenience, comfort and just staying dry on a rainy-day preflight, a hangar is the way to go if you can swing it. Prices and options vary so wildly across the country, that we cant offer hangar advice so much as a hangar strategy. 
Option One: Rent It
Over 60 percent of our survey respondents rent hangar space. It was more common at larger airports where the municipality owned the airport and the hangars. Prices varied, as youd expect, with 40-foot, closed T-hangars in good condition at some rural airports available for less than $100/month. A median price was more like $400/month at a mid-sized metropolitan airport. Prices could climb over $900/month in the densely populated areas near New York City or in Southern California.
Waiting lists for available hangars are still the norm, but the lines are generally shorter than even two years ago. An owner from La Grange, Georgia, told us, “For the first time in 25 years we have two empty T-Hangars available.” Many people reported that what was a multi-year wait was now six months or less, and a common comment was that shade hangars, or other three-sided hangars were waiting to be filled. The trend seems to be that newer, nicer hangars are being filled by pilots upgrading from less desirable hangars on the same field.
Location always matters, and it pays to shop around. One owner told us of long waiting lists at Endicott, New York, but open hangars waiting for tenants at Binghamton, New York, only nine miles away. A similar situation exists for Groton, Connecticut. It has hangars looking for tenants while Chester, Connecticut, and Westerly, Rhode Island, about 10 miles west and east of Groton respectively, are full. Why? Endicott is more GA friendly than Binghamton, and Chesters hangar prices for shared space are $200/month cheaper than a T-hangar at Groton. If youre willing to be flexible, you might find a hangar right away while you wait for the better choice down the line. We saw similar stories from Illinois, Minnesota and Washington State.
That said, any arrangement that puts the aircraft further from your home may cut your yearly flying hours just from inconvenience. That adds to your hourly cost and may offset the savings. And there may be no hope at the most popular airports. “The waiting period [at Santa Ana/Orange County] is between 100 to 200 years. There are close to 200 people on the waiting list.”
Another option for hangaring is a shared hangar at an FBO. This opens the door to hangar rash as your aircraft gets moved in and out, but it has its perks. A pilot parked in Pawtucket, R.I., told us, “The plane is on the ramp when you get there or just inside the hangar door in bad weather. When you get back you just pull up and they chock the wheels and have a fuel truck and ladder up before you even have your headset off. They fuel the plane and put her away.” Not bad for $350/month.
Comparison-shopping matters here as well, as this owner found:. “Im doing a three-month contract in the Minneapolis area and calls to FBOs were very revealing. Costs ranged from $150-500/month with a range of services. Thats a big saving for a half hour of calling around.”
In the shared hangar space arena, we heard two disturbing trends. One is that several airports are not renewing leases for small aircraft and even demolishing