Reflecting on 2025: Navigating the Shifts in Aviation Real Estate and Buyer Trends
- Erik McCormick
- Dec 31, 2025
- 3 min read
2025 Aviation Real Estate Year-End Recap
As 2025 winds down, aviation real estate continues to prove it is about more than property values — it is about lifestyle, community, and visibility for pilot buyers. Even as the market balanced out this year, one thing stayed true: when pilots see aviation property listings, and the price is right, they sell.
Market Highlights: Visibility + Price
Airpark homes, hangar properties, and airport-adjacent parcels are moving in this more balanced market, especially when they are marketed directly to pilots and priced realistically. Today’s aviation buyers still want:
Direct runway and taxiway access or located withing an airpark community.
Simple, functional, well-maintained hangars.
Active aviation communities and lifestyle amenities.
Targeted exposure on aviation-focused platforms converts interest into offers far more effectively than general MLS-only marketing.
Hangars: 40 Years of Shortage
Hangars remain one of the most constrained segments in aviation real estate and have been in short supply for more than 40 years. The core issue is not lack of building, but overbuilding the wrong product: many developers chase luxury or corporate hangars, while about 80% of general aviation pilots fly single- or light twin-engine aircraft that need practical, affordable hangars.
Well-priced, GA-sized hangars in airparks and on GA airports continue to see strong demand and typically move quickly when presented to the aviation community.
Audience Growth and Community Reach
Through Aviation Real Estate Magazine and AviationRealEstate.com, the combined audience surpassed 40,000 engaged followers in 2025, giving listings national exposure to pilots, owners, and aviation enthusiasts. Partnerships with EAA, AOPA, and major events like Sun ’n Fun help keep aviation properties in front of active general aviation buyers and strengthen connections within the community.
Waterfront Expansion and Floatplane Data
This year also brought the launch of sister brand PropertyOnTheWater.com and the Waterfront Property Specialist program. More than 80% of Aviation Real Estate Specialists also handle waterfront property, reflecting how many pilots combine aviation and boating lifestyles in markets like Florida and other waterfront regions.
Every waterfront property on PropertyOnTheWater.com includes:
Whether a floatplane can land on the waterway.
Distance to the nearest general aviation airport or airpark.
This lets a pilot see, for example, a Florida waterfront home with boat access, floatplane potential, and hangar options nearby in a single view.
MLS/IDX Integration: Better Listings for Buyers
AviationRealEstate.com is rolling out page rentals for MLS/IDX population so specialists can pipe their local MLS data directly into aviation-focused pages.
Benefits to the end-user buyer include:
Listings are current and updated automatically from the MLS.
Price and status changes (new, pending, sold) update in real time.
Email alerts can be set so buyers are notified when matching aviation or airpark listings change or hit the market.
This removes manual maintenance and ensures pilots are viewing accurate, up-to-date aviation real estate inventory. Brokers should make contact to learn more and get started.
Advocacy: Keeping Airparks Aviation-Focused
A critical issue for airpark communities is who ends up holding the HOA/POA votes. When too many non-pilots buy into an airpark, priorities can shift away from aviation — leading to conflicts over runway use, noise, maintenance, and long-term support for aviation infrastructure.
The solution is specialty aviation marketing:
Brokers must advertise directly to pilots and aviation enthusiasts.
Airparks should insist on aviation-focused exposure when owners sell.
Keeping pilot buyers in the ownership mix helps protect the aviation mission and voting balance within the HOA/POA.
Strategic marketing to the aviation community is not just good sales practice; it is a form of advocacy that helps preserve airpark culture and runway access.
Message from the Publisher
“Pilots can’t buy what they can’t see. When your aviation or waterfront property is consistently in front of pilots — and priced right — it sells, and your airpark or waterfront community stays true to its lifestyle mission.” — Erik McCormick, Publisher, Aviation Real Estate Magazine
Heading into 2026, the focus remains clear: expose aviation and waterfront properties to as many pilots as possible, with accurate data, automated listing updates, and specialty marketing that keeps aviation communities strong.
