[jwholden]

We're about to finish a 15k job that is coming out awsome. However, I think I have hit the greatest difference between the Husband and Wife of my career. I should also let you know that this guy is a project manager for an engineers office.

She is all happy about the way things are going and he is quiet, EXCEPT when it is time to write the check!

I pretty much saw this coming in but can't believe the gall of some people. She wanted me to do some extra work that came to around 2K so I gave her a written estimate and asked if she's like to talk to her husband BEFORE I start the work. She says to just go ahead and do it. She pulls up the next day and says her husband wants to talk to me and dials him on her cell and hands me the phone.

He starts explaining how he's only got 2k left and he had hoped to do so much more. He starts trying to play lets make a deal. Needless to say I gave him a very minor amount off (which I shouldn't have) and can't beleive how dumb I was to do that. All day today I kept thinking that when he started throwing lower numbers I should have raised my estimate.

Anyway, the world will go on and it's not a huge deal but how do you handle this situation? A real life situation would be nice to hear, not the theory of what you would do when not in the heat of the moment.

[Stonehenge]

We had something a lot like that, but on a project that was smaller scale. After the work was just about complete, he wanted to deal. I told him that we agreed to a price, and that he had nothing to bargain with to make the price lower, so NO, I was not going to lower my price.

He wanted to pay in cash, and gave me the run around - said he'd have it Saturday - gave me part of it. Said come back for the rest Monday - I was ticked but said OK.

I drove by Monday morning...nobody answered the door. I walked to my truck and keeping my hands where they couldn't see them I dialed their number. Someone answered. I said "Hi. I'm the guy that's been knocking on your door for the last 5 minutes. I'm here to collect my money. Open your door.

He still squabbled and shorted me $50. At that point I figured it was cheap insurance - and several plants died the next spring. He called and called to reach me that next spring, and finally did - I don't recall what I said, other than it was very fast, very loud, very angry, and ended with me hanging up on him.

[Stonehenge]

On another less fun note, we had one for exactly that size about 4 years ago, that after fiddling in the court system for 3 years, I finally decided to write off somewhere between $7-10K, with the agreement that they agree to hold us harmless for anything and everything, forever.

That one would take weeks for me to write about. Suffice it to say I have made many changes in how the business is run because of this customer. I never really knew what crazy and unreasonable was until I met these people....

[Stonehenge]

One piece of advice - don't be afraid to 'stop the train.' Don't leave yourself in an overly vulnerable position (like having them owe you $7-10K).

[Stonehenge]

I was in a hurry when I typed that last one....

If you are running into what seems a very troublesome client, it may be wise to change hats from super-customer-service to CYA and my-way-or-highway (at least until you can recognize these problem customers earlier and avoid them altogether).

Tell them that you don't want to continue any work until you get these details and the payments squared away. That's what I did for that project that I wrote a bunch off on. And glad I did, or I'd be out even more money. At that point in the biz I was asking for 50% the day we started, and billing the balance, net 30. Recognizing that these people were trouble, I told them I would not start without 75% of the money paid in advance (which at that point was $9K).

They were ticked, but they wrote the check. In fact, when we showed up on day one, I told the guys I was going in their house for a meeting, and to not unload anything until I came out and gave them the OK. I had the check in hand, and work began.

To be sure, I called the bank a few hours later to make sure the check would clear. Guess what? They said there wasn't enough funds. I told the guys to stop what they were doing. Knocked on the door, asked what was up. They said they had transferred money, it would be in there later today. I decided to move ahead. A few hours later I called the bank again and the money was there. I raced to their bank and asked to have the check cashed, and returned to me in the form of a bank check, not a personal check. They obliged.

I'm sure if I hadn't done all that, I would have been out the entire amount. Why I didn't walk away from this a million different times I don't know. But learn from my mistake. There is so much more to this story, but I just don't have time to type it all.

[Stonehenge]

There still must be some bad juju with this former nightmare client. I talk about them here yesterday and this morning, and then as I pull in to Home Depot later this AM, who do I see walking to the truck parked right in front me? You guessed it. Same client.

[Rex Mann]

I had a guy like that once. They were doing a million dollar addition to their already grotesquely huge house. We we hired by the wife to do a 1200 sf patio. She picked out the materials for the patio and the steps, 2 of them. She had asked her husband for his input and he said he was to busy. Material came and we started laying it. It was defective. It was a slab product and had slumped. They changed materials. The price went up by 300.00.

Day we are done the ever elusive and busy husband calls me and says he never approved a CO for the additional money. Did not care that his wife had verbally OKed it. Also, the two steps were 1/4 off between the both of them. He was deducting that amount to pay his GC's mason to rebuild them. I said your only going to pay me X-amount regardless of what I say aren't you. He replies, thats right.

Things like this have changed I do business. Every change must have a co signed and paid for in advance other wise no go.

And get this. This guy was a referral from one of my nicest clients ever.

I know to shy away from jobs where the owners were given a truck load of money by their daddy.

Peace,

Rex