Some people will tell you that the only safe path when planning to buy a used piano is to totally avoid private sellers and limit yourself to working through a dealer. Why?
The “company line” is that dealers are music industry professionals who have the lofty goal of building a long-term relationship with you by helping you start out with a quality used piano, so that as little Johnny improves as a pianist and needs a better piano you will come back to them to trade up. Or, as often happens, if Johnny gets older and decides that the piano is no longer “cool” and that he would rather play drums in a rock band, they hope that you will come back to them for a good drum set. (The really smart dealer might even throw in a few pair of earplugs for the rest of the family!)
The truth, unfortunately, is frequently less exalted. The dealer might have taken the piano in trade, or bought it outright, based only on a cursory exam by himself or one of his salespeople, only to find later that there were more serious problems hidden inside. Or the shop may have taken in an instrument for repairs or refinishing and the owners abandoned it when they realized how much the work was going to cost them. In either case the dealer has working capital tied up in the instrument and has to sell it or take a loss, and like most small businesses too many losses of this type could be fatal. So he has his shop fix up the instrument as well as possible as cheaply as possible, puts it on the floor and does his best to sell it. The price is usually marked well above what he actually expects to clear from the sale so that he can make a big show of giving you “such a deal” and still recoup his costs plus at least a small profit. Many times the sales staff is not aware of all the problems with the instrument.
Fortunately, not all dealers work like this. Some will only buy a piano or take a trade-in if their techs approve it. Some will scrap a junk piano. But far more will clean it up, make it look good, and wait for someone to walk in with more dollars than sense.
So how can the buying public protect themselves? Caveat Emptor – let the buyer beware. Don’t assume that the piano salesperson is a piano expert. In most cases, they’re not. (The best keyboard salesman I ever worked with had actually sold motorcycles in his previous job.) Before dealing with a company find out all you can about them. Google is a great place to start. Check with the Better Business Bureau. Talk to independent teachers and piano techs. (Be sure they are independent-a steady check from a dealer can greatly influence opinions.) If the dealer has a bad reputation, don’t even go into the store. If you do go in, use your eyes and ears. If something seems wrong, leave. If you find a likely candidate, go back with, at least, a pianist that you know and trust or, at best, an independent piano tuner-technician to check out the piano. You would need to pay the technician for his time, but since dealer prices are almost always higher than you would find in the private sector, it would probably be a wise investment. Finally, if you get as far as making a deal, make certain that any warranties or extras (such as delivery or tuning) are specified in writing and signed by someone in authority.
(NOTE: This article is based on my experience and observations over 25+ years as a piano tuner-technician. As I stated in the article, not all dealers are like this. If you are a dealer, and you don’t do business in the manner described, I would welcome you to post a comment (registration required) and explain the steps you take to ensure that the buying public can feel safe coming to you to buy a used piano.)
