Need Advice!!!!

bostonbaby10

Hey ladies, I really need some advice on what you would do or how you would handle this situation....

So, my fiance and I are getting married in a year and a half (9/1/12) and we haven't even booked our venue yet, but I know that I want a friend to be our DJ for reception.  So I asked him yesterday if was still DJ'ing and if he would be interested in meeting up and going over things for the wedding and we'd go from there...after talking.  He said that because we were friends (he is the cousin of my recently deceased best friend..) he would cut us a little deal...$130/hour rather than $150/hour.

So he messages me today, and asks if there's any way we could give him a down payment before we meet in 2 weeks, because he's overdrawn in his bank account and is having money problems.  Would you guys go ahead and book him and give him the $200 down payment to help him out, since he's giving us a discount, or is this just crazy and it's more of an "it's his problem, not mine" type of thing?

I'm not sure what to think right now about it....feedback is appreciated!!!

lisarose7

I wouldn't give him anything without having a signed contract.  If you definitely plan to use him, have a contract drawn up and have it specify that your deposit is fully refundable if he backs out...and make sure he signs it before you give him a dime.

Honestly, though, I'd have reservations about booking a DJ this far out...especially one who tells you his bank account's overdrawn.  Seems unprofessional to give that much information about why he needs the deposit so soon, even if you are friends.

bostonbaby10

Thank you for your feedback! I feel very uncomfortable about it, so I am going to talk about it with my fiance and then talk about it with the DJ.  I am honestly still kind of shocked that he asked me to do this for him today.  I mean, we are friends, but not best friends.  Like my MOH said, "if he wasn't your DJ, would he be invited to the wedding?" I said no, and she said, then you're not close enough to put money in his overdrawn account!!!