Rent or buy used. She wants a good working instrument that has a decent sound -- if she has the crappiest one, she will be discouraged and won't progress.

buy a new mouthpiece for her and try to wash the instrument if at all possible.
my DD fell in love with the sound of a clarinet so we jumped in and bought her one. she wasn't practicing much for the first year, but then she started to and got much better and the better she got the more she played. it was risky, but I was lucky

Anonymous wrote:Do you find it easy to buy and sell on eBay? We don't and there was too much hassle with PayPal and giving out all that info. We end up with 1 flute, 1 trumpet, 1 clarinet and 1 violin sitting in the cupboards ! Left behind because I chose to buy secondhand Vs rent or use the schools. (Our schools is also very disgusting and stinks really bad too!)

While I don't find selling on eBay to be difficult, there are certain items that are better sold locally. For musical instruments, I'd put them up on Craigslist or on a local Facebook selling page. People like to inspect the instrument. Do it this time of year when new band and orchestra students are looking for insturments. You will probably make $300-$400.

rent at chuck levins. I rented first with somebody else and ended up with large unexpected bills. but the guys at chuck levins are great and it is anyway just a fun place to visit.

Where are you? Presto Brass & Woodwinds in Arlington is run by a former Navy (I think) band member who sells perfectly adequate clarinets for about $100.

Do you find it easy to buy and sell on eBay? We don't and there was too much hassle with PayPal and giving out all that info. We end up with 1 flute, 1 trumpet, 1 clarinet and 1 violin sitting in the cupboards ! Left behind because I chose to buy secondhand Vs rent or use the schools. (Our schools is also very disgusting and stinks really bad too!)

We bought a trumpet for our son and flute for our daughter. Both had good resale value so it was much better than renting. So my vote is to buy but it can be a sizable upfront cost. But I'd stay away from the school instrument.