Finding a Hangar to Rent Can Be an Elusive, Remarkable Achievement

Notably absent from the list was a first-time airplane owner managing to simultaneously purchase a home and find a hangar to rent from out of state. Given my total lack of success in this area over the past few years, I am left to assume it is simply insurmountable and has never been accomplished in our history.

It certainly hasn’t been for lack of trying.

Back in late 2022 and early 2023, I called every public-use airport in and around my region of interest in southeastern Lower Michigan and added my name to each hangar wait list. Some airport managers simply declined to add me, explaining that the waits would be decades long and that there’s no point in even trying to get a hangar. When I did get onto a list, I had dozens upon dozens of people ahead of me.

Subsequent follow-up calls revealed that I am progressing at a rate of approximately three to six positions per year. This corresponds to waiting a decade or more to reach the top of most lists.

Recently, I decided to get a little more creative in my search.

While browsing Zillow for homes to buy and exploring Google Maps' satellite view, I noticed quite a few uncharted private strips sprinkled across my region of interest. All were grass, and most were 1,500-2,500 feet in length. Additionally, all were equipped with at least one airplane-sized pole barn.

If hangars and airstrips were left unused as frequently as many airplanes left to rot on airport ramps across the country, I reasoned that at least a handful of those private hangars and strips must also be empty and unused. And perhaps the owners might entertain the notion of renting their unused hangars to make a few bucks with little to no effort. So, on a subsequent visit to do some walk-throughs of various houses on the market, I decided to investigate a few of those strips, as well.

Before looking up the property owners and calling them out of the blue, I thought it prudent to drive past each strip to evaluate whether a phone call would be worthwhile. Given the state of some of them, this proved to be a good strategy.

The first strip was charted, though upon first glance, I wondered why. The trees and foliage surrounding it had been allowed to encroach upon it substantially, rendering it uncomfortably narrow and reducing its length to about half the number listed on the chart. The grass was overgrown and peppered with random debris. It was truly the airstrip equivalent of an old Cessna left derelict on some unused corner of a ramp.

The next strip on my list was similarly bleak. Although the owner had been keeping up with mowing the strip itself, they had made no effort to keep the trees back. What was once a nice strip tucked into the woods and next to a beautiful farmhouse was now usable only by pilots willing to allow each wingtip to come within about 8-10 feet of trees. Some big round hay bales were scattered on the strip itself, removing any doubt about its level of use.

The last strip on my list wasn’t charted but was fortunately plainly visible from the road. Unlike the others, it had the appearance of being well maintained. Tall trees and power lines were an obstacle on one end, but the other was wide open and clear of obstructions. Even with a noticeable hump in the middle, it looked promising.

The house itself was remarkable in its modesty. Whereas most houses with private strips tend to be massive 7,000-square-foot McMansions, this one appeared to be only about 800-1,000 square feet, with a metal hangar that could fit a couple of planes. For a single guy like me with an airplane and no kids, it was darn near perfect, and I wondered whether the owner might entertain the idea of selling the entire property.

With visions of shotguns and aggressive dogs filling my head, I drove up the nearly half-mile-long driveway and parked next to the house. In addition to being modest in size, it was also slightly shabby and in need of some work on the siding and trim. Also perfect, given my budget. Unfortunately, my knocks went unanswered, so I opted to leave a friendly note with my name and phone number.

Later that week, I received a call back from the owner. He had built the strip decades ago and still flew his Ercoupe out of it, albeit only occasionally. He told me the story of obtaining the property, building the hangar, and clearing the land. While he has no plans of selling the property and has no extra hangar space for me, it was nice to chat with him and make the acquaintance of a potential future flying buddy. At the very least, I’ve now got a friendly contact with a fun-looking strip who might welcome an occasional visit from a taildragger with an extra case of beer.

I was left to wonder how many private strips are ultimately left to deteriorate to nothing after their owners hang up their headsets and move to the next chapter in their lives. So much hard work and effort is left to fizzle out as the grass and trees take over and the memories fade.

As my search for a home (and hangar) continues, I make a point to occasionally include some keywords in my searches. Once in a while, adding terms like "airstrip," "runway," or "hangar" reveals a hangar home at an airpark or a property with its own strip. Thus far, all are well outside of my means, but I cling to a shred of hope that a modest, slightly shabby option might emerge so I can breathe new life into it with some fresh mowing and taildragger flying.