Buying a piano

[NicMM]

I started to send my 5 year old son to a piano group lesson. The purpose is just to give him a chance to enjoy music and maybe he will acquire some skill; by no means that I want to make him a pianist or something. The music class uses keyboard in the classroom, so my original thought was to buy a keyboard for him to practice at home and buy a real piano for him in a couple of years when he shows real passion and talent.

But what I learned from the parents of other students shocked me. The piano price goes up every year even in this economy. They tried to organize some group purchasing. According to them, the group price for YAMAHA U1 was around $5000 two years ago, early this year it was $5900 and now $6400. The MRPR is over $8000. Learning this I feel an urge to buy the piano with this group. Putting off the purchase for a couple of years may cost me over $1000. But on the other hand if my son has no interest or talent for it, the piano can end up being just an expensive piece of furniture.

Can any piggs with experience or insight in pianos shed some light?

Thanks in advance,
-NicMM

[bearishgurl]

Two of my neighbors bought pianos for $200 and $400 respectively from other neighbors who were moving. Of course, they may have needed tuning service after they got them set up.

Why don’t you look through craigslist and e-bay (local-only) to find a piano for your son to practice on? Lots of people have pianos sitting and gathering dust.

Your son is very young and you don’t even know how long he will stick with this hobby. These items are heavy and require special handlers and larger trucks to move them in. Therefore, many people sell them instead of move them, if they are not used.

Better yet, just ask around your neighborhood. You would be surprised who has one that is not using it and would be willing to sell it. Then you won’t have to move it too far.

[bearishgurl]

Two of my neighbors bought pianos for $200 and $400 respectively from other neighbors who were moving. Of course, they may have needed tuning service after they got them set up.

Why don’t you look through craigslist and e-bay (local-only) to find a piano for your son to practice on? Lots of people have pianos sitting and gathering dust.

Your son is very young and you don’t even know how long he will stick with this hobby. These items are heavy and require special handlers and larger trucks to move them in. Therefore, many people sell them instead of move them, if they are not used.

Better yet, just ask around your neighborhood. You would be surprised who has one that is not using it and would be willing to sell it. Then you won’t have to move it too far.

[bearishgurl]

Two of my neighbors bought pianos for $200 and $400 respectively from other neighbors who were moving. Of course, they may have needed tuning service after they got them set up.

Why don’t you look through craigslist and e-bay (local-only) to find a piano for your son to practice on? Lots of people have pianos sitting and gathering dust.

Your son is very young and you don’t even know how long he will stick with this hobby. These items are heavy and require special handlers and larger trucks to move them in. Therefore, many people sell them instead of move them, if they are not used.

Better yet, just ask around your neighborhood. You would be surprised who has one that is not using it and would be willing to sell it. Then you won’t have to move it too far.

[bearishgurl]

Two of my neighbors bought pianos for $200 and $400 respectively from other neighbors who were moving. Of course, they may have needed tuning service after they got them set up.

Why don’t you look through craigslist and e-bay (local-only) to find a piano for your son to practice on? Lots of people have pianos sitting and gathering dust.

Your son is very young and you don’t even know how long he will stick with this hobby. These items are heavy and require special handlers and larger trucks to move them in. Therefore, many people sell them instead of move them, if they are not used.

Better yet, just ask around your neighborhood. You would be surprised who has one that is not using it and would be willing to sell it. Then you won’t have to move it too far.

[bearishgurl]

Two of my neighbors bought pianos for $200 and $400 respectively from other neighbors who were moving. Of course, they may have needed tuning service after they got them set up.

Why don’t you look through craigslist and e-bay (local-only) to find a piano for your son to practice on? Lots of people have pianos sitting and gathering dust.

Your son is very young and you don’t even know how long he will stick with this hobby. These items are heavy and require special handlers and larger trucks to move them in. Therefore, many people sell them instead of move them, if they are not used.

Better yet, just ask around your neighborhood. You would be surprised who has one that is not using it and would be willing to sell it. Then you won’t have to move it too far.

[UCGal]

When my older son started Piano lessons 2.5 years ago we started with a keyboard. That was fine for the first 9-11 months. (It wasn’t a full size keyboard – that was the issue for us.)

When he showed some interest/talent (he’s not a prodigy but he’s good and he enjoys it)… we decided to buy a used piano.

We just scoured Craigslist and ended up buying a very nice upright from a person in Carmel Valley. $700, had recently been tuned, was in excellent condition. The previous owner had just upgraded to a grand piano… so this worked out for us. It was $125 to have it professionally moved.

Since then our younger son has started playing – so it gets lots of use.

We looked at new pianos but the prices were too high… We got a piano that sounds new, for 20% of the new price.

[UCGal]

When my older son started Piano lessons 2.5 years ago we started with a keyboard. That was fine for the first 9-11 months. (It wasn’t a full size keyboard – that was the issue for us.)

When he showed some interest/talent (he’s not a prodigy but he’s good and he enjoys it)… we decided to buy a used piano.

We just scoured Craigslist and ended up buying a very nice upright from a person in Carmel Valley. $700, had recently been tuned, was in excellent condition. The previous owner had just upgraded to a grand piano… so this worked out for us. It was $125 to have it professionally moved.

Since then our younger son has started playing – so it gets lots of use.

We looked at new pianos but the prices were too high… We got a piano that sounds new, for 20% of the new price.

[UCGal]

When my older son started Piano lessons 2.5 years ago we started with a keyboard. That was fine for the first 9-11 months. (It wasn’t a full size keyboard – that was the issue for us.)

When he showed some interest/talent (he’s not a prodigy but he’s good and he enjoys it)… we decided to buy a used piano.

We just scoured Craigslist and ended up buying a very nice upright from a person in Carmel Valley. $700, had recently been tuned, was in excellent condition. The previous owner had just upgraded to a grand piano… so this worked out for us. It was $125 to have it professionally moved.

Since then our younger son has started playing – so it gets lots of use.

We looked at new pianos but the prices were too high… We got a piano that sounds new, for 20% of the new price.

[UCGal]

When my older son started Piano lessons 2.5 years ago we started with a keyboard. That was fine for the first 9-11 months. (It wasn’t a full size keyboard – that was the issue for us.)

When he showed some interest/talent (he’s not a prodigy but he’s good and he enjoys it)… we decided to buy a used piano.

We just scoured Craigslist and ended up buying a very nice upright from a person in Carmel Valley. $700, had recently been tuned, was in excellent condition. The previous owner had just upgraded to a grand piano… so this worked out for us. It was $125 to have it professionally moved.

Since then our younger son has started playing – so it gets lots of use.

We looked at new pianos but the prices were too high… We got a piano that sounds new, for 20% of the new price.

[UCGal]

When my older son started Piano lessons 2.5 years ago we started with a keyboard. That was fine for the first 9-11 months. (It wasn’t a full size keyboard – that was the issue for us.)

When he showed some interest/talent (he’s not a prodigy but he’s good and he enjoys it)… we decided to buy a used piano.

We just scoured Craigslist and ended up buying a very nice upright from a person in Carmel Valley. $700, had recently been tuned, was in excellent condition. The previous owner had just upgraded to a grand piano… so this worked out for us. It was $125 to have it professionally moved.

Since then our younger son has started playing – so it gets lots of use.

We looked at new pianos but the prices were too high… We got a piano that sounds new, for 20% of the new price.

[ybitz]

I’ve been playing piano for a long time. Personally, I would recommend getting a good keyboard instead of a piano. Buy a keyboard with weighted keys and full-set of keys. Unless you’re a audiophile or snob, you can’t tell the difference. It’ll be cheaper, more portable, and one can wear headphones if practicing at night.
Don’t worry about the cost of pianos going up in price every year. Pianos do not really appreciate in price, they get slightly worse overtime as it ages and gets worn down. A 200 year old Stradivarius violin still sounds amazing, but you will never see a concert pianist play an old, old piano.
If you’re looking into buying an used piano, make sure it’s not so crappy that it’s un-tunable.

[ybitz]

I’ve been playing piano for a long time. Personally, I would recommend getting a good keyboard instead of a piano. Buy a keyboard with weighted keys and full-set of keys. Unless you’re a audiophile or snob, you can’t tell the difference. It’ll be cheaper, more portable, and one can wear headphones if practicing at night.
Don’t worry about the cost of pianos going up in price every year. Pianos do not really appreciate in price, they get slightly worse overtime as it ages and gets worn down. A 200 year old Stradivarius violin still sounds amazing, but you will never see a concert pianist play an old, old piano.
If you’re looking into buying an used piano, make sure it’s not so crappy that it’s un-tunable.

[ybitz]

I’ve been playing piano for a long time. Personally, I would recommend getting a good keyboard instead of a piano. Buy a keyboard with weighted keys and full-set of keys. Unless you’re a audiophile or snob, you can’t tell the difference. It’ll be cheaper, more portable, and one can wear headphones if practicing at night.
Don’t worry about the cost of pianos going up in price every year. Pianos do not really appreciate in price, they get slightly worse overtime as it ages and gets worn down. A 200 year old Stradivarius violin still sounds amazing, but you will never see a concert pianist play an old, old piano.
If you’re looking into buying an used piano, make sure it’s not so crappy that it’s un-tunable.

[ybitz]

I’ve been playing piano for a long time. Personally, I would recommend getting a good keyboard instead of a piano. Buy a keyboard with weighted keys and full-set of keys. Unless you’re a audiophile or snob, you can’t tell the difference. It’ll be cheaper, more portable, and one can wear headphones if practicing at night.
Don’t worry about the cost of pianos going up in price every year. Pianos do not really appreciate in price, they get slightly worse overtime as it ages and gets worn down. A 200 year old Stradivarius violin still sounds amazing, but you will never see a concert pianist play an old, old piano.
If you’re looking into buying an used piano, make sure it’s not so crappy that it’s un-tunable.

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