Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Forum What's the interest rate on a piano loan?

I completely agree. I think, for many of the people who are relatively new to the working world(aka. recently graduated), a lot of things are about "having" them without actually "owning" them. I fell into the trap of leasing a car. And I think this new shiny piano thing is another one of those things that it's good to wait for, in my case.

One thing that I think though, (and you may feel free to disagree with me) is that coming out of college and not being settled, renting may not be that bad compared to owning.

Well, not to get too personal, but, since you asked: yes and no, in my case.

I paid cash for my Yamaha U1 in 1999, (but it was only around $5000.00 at the time). Then, I used it as a trade-in on my Estonia 168 in 2000. The balance due on the Estonia 168 was financed through my bank.

In the meantime, I saved diligently so that when I was ready to trade in my 168 for the Estonia 190, I was able to pay the balance due in 90-days-same-as-cash. So, yes, I can say I paid cash for my new Estonia 190. It made quite a little dent in the budget, momentarily, but I own the 190 outright which is a wonderful feeling - all the more so because I am not a wealthy man, but I do try to live frugally and within my means.

Regards,

I don't know about others. I have purchased a total of 3 grand pianos, all paid by cash. I saved hard for them. My first, an excellent Premier baby grand for $1700. My second, a rebuilt 1924 SS M for $9500 and my third a brand new Petrof III for slightly more. All paid by cash.

I bought my car with a loan because I got it at 0% interest right after 9/11 (and you can still get those loans). I paid cash for all three of my pianos, including the Estonia. And I'm not rich, despite what the Democrats think.

Gryph, if it makes you feel any better, I'm a democrat, and I don't think you're rich.

Jeez, the stuff you miss around here .

Congratulations Bruce D. on the 190! I assume this was announced this some time ago?

When the threads first started on the Estonia, with David Burton and others who don't seem to be around anymore, I remember your input on the 168 vs the 190. Many happy returns to you.

I think most forumites buying mid-tier and higher pianos are doing it while carrying a mortgage. Since the home equity loan interest is deductable, your usual 5% loan is more like 4% or less after taxes. I can say I bought our piano with cash, wire funds actually , but I can't pretend that my mortgage wouldn't be around 30k less if I didn't.

My mantra has frequently been "You can't miss what you never had". Partly untrue, I suppose, if you make a sport out of visiting enough high end piano stores. The pain of delaying such a purchase is usually worst the moment you decide not to buy. Since the quality margins get so thin as you get to 40k, why not consider something for 20-30?

Chris

If you can't buy a $44K piano with cash you have no business owning it. It's neither a necessity nor an investment.

One thing to try. If you belong to a credit union, you can take a loan with very low interest rates.

I'm on both sides of this equation...you know yourself. It would seem that if you don't own a home, that might be a more reasonable priority. I regard homes as "piano containers" - permitting privacy and audience development.

As for cash versus credit - you have to know yourself. If you're an impulse person, you need to be careful - because there will always be more impulses. OTH if you want to do one crazy thing in your life, you could do worse than overbuy a piano.

FWIW, I bought a piano right after my divorce - wasn't the smartest thing to do financially - but it was an important thing for me to do - a signal of what I wanted for my future.

Ken

There is a lot of truth here. Boy, I think I'm going to hold off until I pay off my current piano in cash (which will probably be in one year or two).

Good idea, especially if you don't own your current piano. It's easy to get caught up in immediate wants. Society primes us for it. Is having the piano worth making a monthly contribution to the profit of a finance company? By the time its paid off, you probably will have paid almost $44K in interest. Borrowing money to buy a $44K piano won't help you buy a house, either.

I would have liked to have paid cash but I didn't want to take anything from savings, even though that would be the best thing. I also know how bad I am at paying myself back. The plan was to pay off the piano within 2 years. So I put a reasonable amount down (trade in + 3k) and financed the rest, knowing that prices on European pianos were likely to go up in the next couple of years. Rather than saving disposable income I decided to offset the interest that I will pay against the price increase that will occur in the two years that it would take to save the money. Again, not the cheapest way to go but it would have been tough to sell my wife on taking that much out of savings, especially since I already had a piano. I'm a year into the plan and have reduced the loan by half, right on schedule. Our home is paid and I just didn't want to do an equity line although it would have been cheaper and the better choice. The good news is that in one year the price increase is more than the total interest I will end up paying.

Well, each of us has the best idea as to how to maintain one's sense of security. Remember, though, that the home equity loan not only carries a lower interest rate, but the interest itself may well be tax-deductible.

luckily where I'm purchasing my piano, it's through the company interest free.

That's a great deal, Ell - good for you!

I also obtained interest-free financing. Placed a significant portion of the purchase on my Discover Card and got my 1% cash back on the purchase price. Then did a balance transfer to a new card that offered a 0% interest rate on the transferred amount (for the life of the balance) with no balance transfer fees.

It would have been foolish for me to have paid for the entire purchase in cash. I get the time value of having my money in my accounts and I actually earned a few hundred dollars from the transaction.

Lots of card issuers are still offering 0% balance transfers to consumers with good credit histories. I got 2 or 3 such offers in the mail last week alone.

Thanks, Chris! I didn't really "announce" it formally; when it is shipped (safely!) and set up in my new home in Victoria, I will send up rockets and flares with pictures attached!

Cheers!