Need advice ASAP - What to do?!

Long story short...

Am graduating soon, hoping to get into photojournalism/freela​nce/whatever else will pay the bills along those lines photography.
Have a crappy 17 - 55 f/3.5 - 5 (no IS) kit lens, and a 50mm 1.8 fixed

I live in Europe, where everything costs a damn fortune. I've had issues with customs in the past, so I'm kinda hesitant to buy online. I have friends parents coming in the summer who are willing to brng me a lens if I get one shipped to their house, but it'd be a hassle.

My friend is selling a used 17 - 55 f/2.8 IS for 700 euros, including a lens hood. That's aprox 1050 USD, the same price as a new one from BH Photo.

I'm not planning to upgrade my camera for a while, and this will likely be the only lens I can afford for a while. It'll breal the bak, but it might be worth it

So tell me, especially photojournalist/photo doc types (but everyone else too)...
-If you could only have 1 lens, would this be it?
- What's the resale value on these lenses, in case I want to upgrade?
- What else should I be asking myself?
- Are the ISs really a lot more inclined to break down?

Thanks!
Dana

Dana-

If you're going to 'break the bank' on this one and are sure of the purchase, I would at least make sure the lens is under full warranty w/a receipt. Hence, I would not purchase it from your friend as there can be issues with transferring the warranty.

I casually browsed Amazon.uk and saw this lens for £622.95 w/free shipping. Amazon is quite trust-worthy. More importantly, you would have a full warranty on the item if something were to prematurely go wrong.

My other only advice is that you are set w/a crop-body. The 17-55 is phenomenal lens from the reviews I've read, but being an EF-S would really bother me, that is unless I had income to play with and didn't ever see myself using a FF camera. I believe you are making this a career, so really think this one through.

In regards to your other inquiries, I am not sure as I have not used this lens nor have much know-how on it. I think the major issue is 'breaking the bank' and not having the lens covered under warranty.

If you want a set up for freelance photography it would be best to have everything covered. If your budget is rougly 1k USD then i would get your friend to bring you a 70-200 f/4 (600 USD) for starters. If you don't feel your kit lens is good enough I would suggest the tamron 17-50 f/2.8. You would have 17-200 covered with very good glass and it would be around the the amount you are going to spend anyway. IS is great to have but it really can be considered a luxury, in your shoes it doesn't sound like a luxury you can afford but thats just my opinion.

Look into the 40D and hold one in your hands. If you've got the extra cash you might like what that body has to offer. There is a lot to play with on that thing.