[ken36]

[size=x-large]eBay!!!![/size]

I Consider eBay as the greatest opportunity in the world for a young person with age 17 energy. Buy something that you KNOW about cheaply. Sell it on eBay at a higher price. Do it again. And again. You get the idea. I envy you this great chance at becoming an entrepreneur. I wish I were young again.

 

[braillediver]

Offer to clean neighbors’ yards, attics and garages in exchange for old audio components, records or stuff that you can sell on eBay?

Be creative and use the opportunities you have leverage you money and effort.


Mitch

 

[K2Grey]

I would suggest waiting a while between deciding to buy anything and actually buying it (and by deciding to buy anything, I mean after first having done all research and moaning etc.) unless you are totally sure the thing is going to be useful. I think this helps in that often, even after you are sure, you may still change your mind or believe that there are better things to spend your money on.

Also, if you know you will upgrade then skip straight to what you would upgrade to. It is cheaper that way since you won't have to sell the cheaper item at a loss, and you will also gain the benefit of the better item for a longer period of time. However be careful on whether the upgrade is really inevitable or not.

Money is meant to be spent, the purpose of saving it is so that you can spend it later when it brings you more bang for the/your buck. If you are certain you will buy something, then why not do it now, so you get to enjoy it sooner? But of course on the other hand you can't necessarily be certain about whether you'll change your mind or not...

Right now, you probably don't have to pay for various living expenses yourself so it might be tempting to view all your $$$ as being for an audio rig (if that is your only interest which burns $$$). However I'd caution against this as you never know when you may take up another interest that also burns up $$$ and in that case having some spending money for it may be useful. For example if I had done some more audio purchases in the past it might be harder for me to buy a new computer right now which is something I had not anticipated (although I should have).

 

[aluren]

hmm... save whatever money you have now for college. then once you're in college, get a higher paying job. you can even work your class schedule so you can work full time by taking all night classes (if available). just keep your parents in mind and cut them some slack for financing you. that thought helped me save alot of money throughout college... but of course, if you really want a killer setup, then that is fine. at least you worked to earn that setup, rather than relying on your parents to get them... cuz then you've crossed the line to being spoiled!!

 

[Dedpoet]

You know, I went to college with an awful lot of kids who "saved for college." Some of them saved every penny they made from when they were old enough to work until they were 18 to "pay for college." Many of them had several thousand dollars. When the $6000 tuition bill came for the first semester, it was all gone as fast as they could sign a check. The next semester, we were all borrowing $6000. The difference? I had a bit of pocket money to spend in high school and they didn't. The cost to me? Probably $20/month difference in our student loan payments after school. Was it worth it? To me it was.

I'd certainly never argue against saving money. I put away as much money as I can afford to now, and have been since I got a real job out of college. But at 17? I wouldn't do it differently if I had it to do over again.

 

[gsteinb88]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ken36 [size=x-large]eBay!!!![/size] I Consider eBay as the greatest opportunity in the world for a young person with age 17 energy. Buy something that you KNOW about cheaply. Sell it on eBay at a higher price. Do it again. And again. You get the idea. I envy you this great chance at becoming an entrepreneur. I wish I were young again.

Exactly what i do. Check my profile, every single thing there was purchased with profits from ebay. Not to mention the fact that i do pretty well investing (but i havent spent a dime of that, i just continue investing). Get a decent brokeredge account, read some investing books (i reccomend peter lynch), and start researching stocks. At 17 you can afford some risk, and remember that long term investment is good, selling off short term is bad. I had a stock crash 25% about 3 days after i bought it. Its currently up 54.81% in about a year. But it was down for the first 8 months or so. If you pick a solid company that is going to continue to turn a profit, its stock is going to go up, it just might take a bit. Dont get scared when the stock goes down, wait it out.
And thats enough of a brain dump about investing and making money, im going to go eat lunch. Enjoy!

 

[warubozu]

Right now at the age of 17 I would concentrate on my studies during the school year first and then work whatever hours I'm able to without affecting my studies. You can get into Ebay as some has mentioned as it will help you obtain the cash a little faster. When school's not in session you could try and ask your employer if you could work extra hours. Being able to save your money wisely and cut down on any unnecessary spending helps too, although it's easier said than done.

 

[ojnihs]

Man when I was 17 I didn't even have time to think about anything besides school and training for sports. During the summer, I worked my butt off to save up money for college so that my parents wouldn't have to pay all of the $43,000 a year school tuition. It makes me feel good to know that I'm not relying on them completely and it makes them feel good because they know that I'm serious about my education and willing to help finance it myself.

If you MUST have more audio equipment, I'd use ebay as everyone here has already suggested.

 

[Audiofiler]

Quote:

Originally Posted by braillediver Offer to clean neighbors’ yards, attics and garages in exchange for old audio components, records or stuff that you can sell on eBay? Be creative and use the opportunities you have leverage you money and effort. Mitch

I agree,
proclaim, preach, and plead with locals and friends at your HS, or community. Make everyone aware how nuts you are for music, and volunteer. Getting out there and talking is the best you can do, and will come back to you in spades if you do. All of a sudden, eveyone has an old Sansui tube amp collecting dust in their basement, unwanted.
Goldmine

 

[Viverr]

Apart from PinkFloyd's ethically-questionable suggestion, there's another opportunity out there of equally questionable sanity (just to balance out the thread...

).

Student Credit Cards.

At your age, credit card companies will have just started to notice you exist. Grab one or two of the student card offers. They're limited accounts and the maximum credit limit won't raise. However, if you pay off your balances for a month or two, the really big credit card issuers should start to take notice and send you offers for cards with huge credit limits. Think of this like a source upgrade, if you will.

Sign your name to as many cards as you can. Buy what you'd like. Rent some escorts. Do two chicks at the same time. Collect the entire ATH-W line. Tell everyone how big your "pen" is (banker lingo). Now, you've got a huge amount of debt. What are you going to do?

Declare bankruptcy.

As long as you don't turn 18 while you're spending your new-found wealth, you're good. Plus, as a bonus, you'll be free from all the pesky "having declaired bankruptsy" problems by the time you're 24 and a year out of college. Just the right time to sell off all your gear, buy a car and settle down with your former escort friend!

See? Easy to do, and you don't have to bang any really old women! Win!

Enjoy your new gear!

-V

p.s. Don't do this (OP, or anyone else). This is a really stupid idea. I am not a lawyer, etc.

 

[rodentmacbeastie]

You can always just get a job that requires serious work. The oil rigs are hiring everywhere in the world and you can make well over five grand a month. You will get in great shape while you make cash. Just don't party with the rest of the crew or you will end up owing money. Keep your mouth shut too or you will get beat down. That said, it is just good hard work and they will not cry if you leave after a couple of months. If you are still in school this is a problem, but the next summer would be good.

My personal opinion, suck it up and live with a cheapo rig for a while. Save as much as you can an then get the hell out in the world and travel to other countries. It is the best education you can get and generally removes the ignorant ******* stigma that is generally common amonst most in the developed world. Humility is probably the best thing you money can buy at this age. Also, at the rate the US is going, no one will be able to travel soon. When curfews are imposed and conversation restricted in the name of security, then buy a headphone rig and lock yourself in, or revolt and straighten Big Brother out!

 

[Woosh]

ok i really dont like the idea of SAVING money. saving money is good but no one has ever gotten rich off their savings account. you should bring your money alive by investing them. simply leaving them in your savings account is just like leaving them to rot. money makes more money so ultilize this concept well.

as to simply how to invest your money its a whole different question, its for your self to explore and find out. since your 17 you can only invest in material goods, think of something cheap you can get real easy and find a need in the market and boom your in business.

 

[chouman]

For all the ppl who suggested ebay, how do you sell your items? all auction with no reserve? what's to prevent you from actually losing money?

 

[hciman77]

Quote:

Originally Posted by chouman For all the ppl who suggested ebay, how do you sell your items? all auction with no reserve? what's to prevent you from actually losing money?

A) Generally a low/no reserve garners better final bids as long as you put items in the right place - talk items up without lying - take good photos - be very honest about the condition of items - make any return, insurance or warranty policy absofragginglutely explicit - dont profiteer from shipping.

B) Nothing, unless you set a reserve you can always lose money

 

[vapman]

i never use reserves
and i don't think i've ever bid on an item with a reserve
what's the point?
youre gonna sell the thing anyway for that price
why not just show it?