looking for a cheap piano

[Gill the Piano]

Well if it ain't out of tune when you buy it, it will be by the time you've moved it! Look in local papers, shop windows, and just put the word out generally; it's amazing how many people have pianos they don't know they want to get rid of until someone puts the idea into their heads...and look on the pianos for sale bit on this page; sometimes there are pianos free to good homes. Local tuners often know of pianos in need of good homes too.

[Bill Kibby]

Surely the point here is that if you are offered a piano (cheap or otherwise) and it sounds out of tune, you should never proceed without getting it checked by a professional tuner. It may just be overdue for tuning, but if the tuning pins are loose, it may cost more than the piano is worth to fix it. How cheap? I would suggest spending half your budget on the piano, that way you have some money left for repairs.