[Pete's Painting]

Haven't posted in a while, ran into a bit of a conflict.

Those who remember me know I am a small young company. Here's the issue: Contract is in place to repaint the entire interior the same colors over the existing colors. HO returned from vaca and says (lies) that he was surprised to see one of the rooms was not the right color after our conversation to change the color. No conversation ever happened.
The room is big 16 foot ceilings etc. He will not make the final payment on the interior until I show up and start work on the exterior and agree to repaint that room for free on a rain day. I have not intention of starting the exterior after his bull. nothing has been mentioned about quality. My plan is to show up, unload my ladders for the ext, grab the check and if it clears load back up and leave. This guy is a gozillionaire who made me feel like pile of crap the whole time I worked there. Anything I should be worried about?

 

[slickshift]

Contract is in place to repaint the entire interior the same colors over the existing colors.

HO returned from vaca and says (lies) that he was surprised to see one of the rooms was not the right color after our conversation to change the color.

Anything I should be worried about?

If you have a signed contract that says same color, and you did same color, then he owes you the money

You should be worried because this guy is obviously on another page then you, and might be difficult even if you have a signed contract backing your side

Start lien proceedings NOW
It will probably not ever get to that point, but you need to:
A) Start the process in motion, as it takes a while and your window of time is limited
and
B) Need to play hardball

Often receiving the "Letter of Intent To Lien" can shake loose the sheckles from the stingy
..though it may just make this guy pissed...at this point he's hosing you so tough crap

 

[vermontpainter]

Pete

Its the old "homeowner holds money until you do the freebie" trick...do what you have to do. Slick is right - hardball. The lien process can be an effective leverage tool.

 

[johnthepainter]

pete, i like your plan,,,,,,id get the lein process rolling also

it will be a great feeling as you drive off with your ladders

he is a thief

get a ton of pics,,,,judges/mediators like them

do you have emails from him???

i am finding that communicating via email with my customers has many benefits

one of them being the written word that can be used in court,,,,,,,this works out better than >he said-she said

 

[MAK-Deco]

yes the lien process and do not even think of doing the exterior I wouldn't even bring my ladders near there.

 

[paint_booger]

Slick is right!

Start with a letter of intent ... a lawyer will cost more than your final payment.

And MAK ... YUP! No more work for the guy!

PB

 

[ProWallGuy]

a lawyer will cost more than your final payment.

No, it shouldn't. If the contract was written up correctly, and you find the need to use legal counsel, then those fees should be covered above and beyond the final payment.

 

[vermontpainter]

Also, you dont even need to do a letter of intent to lien. If you choose to, you can do that yourself, although it may pack more wallop on law firm letterhead. Filing the lien itself is simple. Go to the town clerks office, look up the property in the land records, fill out the form and pay the $8 filing fee. The town processes it and gives it to you. You mail a copy to the homeowner. He gets mad and says "how dare you!". You smile and say "you left me no choice." In our state, you have 180 days to "perfect" the lien. Meaning if the homeowner chooses not to pay still, you can file a suit and attach the lien to the suit, which keeps the lien intact until the suit is settled. It ties the homeowners hands in the sense that he cant sell the house or do any major financial transactions involving the mortgage until the debt is satisfied.

The only suggestion I would add is that you might make one more formal request for payment, and when he declines, suggest to him that you will be exploring the next level of collection.

 

[Pete's Painting]

Thanks guys,
I thought the goal was to perfect your work so you could do business in these high-end neighborhoods which is what I've been targeting. But, you can't squeeze a nickle out of them. A month ago I walked off one job in less than an hour after realizing that priviledged tightarse had lied and I was gonna get screwed. Now this bonehead.

Right now I feel lucky that I have work from past customers this summer. Nothing like working for people you know and trust.

 

[vermontpainter]

Pete

There are different levels. Over the years I have read all the Thomas Stanley books, like The Millionaire Next Door and The Millionaire Mind. There are patterns to behavior within this demographic. I did the reading more out of interest in human nature than as a business idea, but it applies.

 

[crow]

was there words over paintin the ext? or did he just pop off with it? if hes like this, he aint gonna give you a check just for unloadin ladders, hell drag it out till your far enough into project that he feels comfortable, (that being bout what he owes you now), then its too late for you to walk off, (it would make no sense,) Id tell HO. heres the contract, this is what we agreed on, pay me in full for what I have done, and well talk bout the ext. work. He might in his heart truly belive that you all had this talk? Id ask him when did we have this conv? walk through the replay with him, but if hes just a crook with a fat pocket, best walk now, before he strings you along anymore. these kinda folks are smater than we want to give them credit for! they do allota readin and it might just be a game to them, kinda like studin human nature thing man,,,, hope it turns out for you.

 

[Pete's Painting]

Crow, you nailed it, it is a game.
He would visabley get upset when I left at 4:00 on Tuesdays to go golfing and wouldn't start until noon on Saturday for the same reason. I was on pace to finish early and it pissed him off and mentioned I should give him a discount because of it. I thought he was joking. He also purposely told me he didn't want me to start certain rooms until he left for vaca knowing it would slow me down. He enjoyed watching me slave away and wanted me to do so for as long as possible for an amount of money he considers crumbs. He owes me a few thousand, but it's his lack of class that is aggravating me.

 

[crow]

Id tell him that Im needin to pay my bills too, that we need to even up. If you know in your heart this conv. never happened, then I would do what I could to get even before he gets worst, next he'll be tellin ya he already paid you in cash! you "might" end up havin to paint the room again, just to get out from under this with min. losses, I always use my comealeon charm on folks that I have these kinda problems with. I have a gift of just know what to say at the right time, try talkin it out real polite and such, If the HO. is elderly youll have betta luck, listen to them like you really, really care. get whats owed and run. over the years you do pick up like a instict for this kinda human. you just get that feelin man,, mine aint been wrong in over 46 years! Id try to talk it out and at least get even, I talk to my customers (probable too much) but I find it usefull to have relations with them, I gotta be extra nice, they seem to shine on face tattoos at first! but once Im there they love me. be nice get your cash an go.

 

[Pete's Painting]

I'm always nice and polite, I only bitch in here and to friends occasionally. Have to unload the stress somewhere, but ya can't show the customer, it's tough sometimes.

Thought it was funny that someone in his neighborhood called and cancelled, strangely out of the blue. I had met with him, gave an estimate, but didn't know we had a deal to begin with.......

 

[vermontpainter]

Pete

Was that the one you posted about awhile ago...where you got the job and then started pricing for neighbors, but had a funny feeling about the original customer trying to work you over?

 

[Pete's Painting]

No , that was someone else. the 1st person you are referring to kept adding work, wanted me to do it for free, added colors, contrast walls etc. and wanted me to stick to the estimate on paint. I just walked away. i have kept in touch with one person in that neighborhood.

This person that owes me money actually called and has agreed to pay me for the work I did eventhough I won't be changing color or doing the exterior. Says he's very happy with the work. The games people play.........

 

[vermontpainter]

Pete

Thats good. Take the money and keep on walking. Over time, we all develop a sense for this sort of thing, like right at the initial meeting. Once in a while, one or two will fool you. In the end, if you get paid for your work, you have done well.

 

[Pete's Painting]

Thanks Scott,
My instincts are getting sharper. A personalities off the top of my head that usually raise a red flag with me. The 1st are the "tough guys"and "know it alls". the ones that start getting all roudy during the estimate. I want you to do this, i want it done like this, and disagree or attack your approach to the job, products, or techniques.
And then there are the complaining housewives who spend most of the estimate complaining about past work, the mess, the inconvenience, the scratch on the floor under the table that must have been made by the past painter and not a chair etc.
I also stray from the customer is too aggressive when negotiating and give a real attitude when they see the price. They may go back to this attitude when final payment it due.
I've also had people tell me during estimates that they never paid the last contractor.......yeah, I'll get right on that job.

 

[Pete's Painting]

Some contractors have told me, when you see these things, raise the price, make it worth your time. They couldn't be more wrong. Just run, look how aggitated I got with this last customer, and it never escalated into a "real mess"

 

[Zip]

Pete, am I to guess correctly that this was a verbal agreement? I like the letter from the lawyer idea when it's absoutly necessary. Weigh overall job profit vs. time to slap a coat on the walls? Idk.........it's your call so let us know the results.