Client pressure

[Chris Bernhardt]

How do you handle clients that want you to write up everything as if its on its last legs cause they want to strong arm the seller to fix it or reduce the price?

Chris, Oregon

[Jim Morrison]

Hey Chris,

I just tell them: "I think you might've hired the wrong guy. I can't be dishonest." The conversation never goes beyond that.

[kurt]

Immediately bail. They're loose missiles seeking targets.

[Brian G]

I politely tell 'em I can't do that. My job is to find, document, and report the truth about the house. The truth usually winds up being more than they were expecting anyway.

Brian G.

Professional for Hire, Not a Hired Gun [^]

[hausdok]

Hi,

I have a pre-inspection contract that spells out what I will and won't do for the client. Nothing in that contract says that I have a duty to lie for them, in order to get them a better deal.

I have no problem with reporting that something that is beyond the end of it's expected service life could fail at any time. In fact, I've literally written in my report stuff like, "It's so old and corroded that I'd be very surprised if it didn't fail before I'd backed out of the driveway," but I'm not going to blatantly lie for anyone.

That's like a prosecutor asking a witness to twist the truth to get a conviction - it doesn't matter how much of a dirtbag the perp is, it just isn't right.

I'd tell them that I'm sure that they hired me because they were confident that I'd tell them the truth about the house and wouldn't lie to benefit the seller or the realtor in order to garner future work. Then I'd ask them why, if they hired me because they wanted an honest inspector, they wanted me to lie about the actual condition of something, thus putting a question mark on my credibility in their own eyes?

Depending on how they answered that, I'd be tempted to walk. If I did, I'd tell their agent why and that I intended to inform the listing agent or seller that they'd asked me to rig the deal in their favor.

I don't want to get paid to be duplicitous.

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

[kurt]

Originally posted by hausdok

I don't want to get paid to be duplicitous.

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

Are you saying WON'T, or are we haggling price?[:-dev3]

[Chris Bernhardt]

I had this happen once where the buyer/client came to me at the start of the inspection and said that he didn't like how the windows were installed and that he had talked with the neighbor and the neighbor indicated that the home owner installed the windows.

Because of that he wanted me to recommend that the windows be replaced or reinstalled as needed by a professional installer.

I looked at the windows and as far as I could determine based on a strictly visual inspection the installation was OK, satisfactory, appears to be functioning as intended etc.

With the piece of information alledging that the home owner may have not installed the windows properly and yet your observations indicate that it is otherwise performing what would you say?

Chris, Oregon

[StevenT]

Chris,

Let's pretend you really wanted to help the guy out and get him his new windows, even though you really saw nothing wrong with the existing ones. How would you document it? There goes your credibility out the window.

[Brian G]

Originally posted by Chris Bernhardt

I had this happen once where the buyer/client came to me at the start of the inspection and said that he didn't like how the windows were installed and that he had talked with the neighbor and the neighbor indicated that the home owner installed the windows.

Aside from not having any genuie basis to criticise the installation, you have to be very careful about accepting or using any information that has no proof behind it. In court they call information like that you described above as "double hearsay". Your client says that another guy said....i.e., you're getting it third hand. You can't rely on info like that to start with.

Brian G.

No Rumors in the Report [:-taped]

[hausdok]

Originally posted by kurt

Originally posted by hausdok

I don't want to get paid to be duplicitous.

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

Are you saying WON'T, or are we haggling price?[:-dev3]

Huh,

Gud ting you ain't in Seattle der Chicago Kurt or I'd have da boys moidalize ya.

OT - OF!!!

M.

[Jim Katen]

Originally posted by kurt

Originally posted by hausdok

I don't want to get paid to be duplicitous.

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

Are you saying WON'T, or are we haggling price?[:-dev3]

I know an inspector who was inspecting a high-end house for a wealthy couple. The wife-buyer loved the house. The husband-buyer didn't. In the basement, the husband-buyer offered the inspector $5,000 if he'd kill the deal.

The inspector refused, citing his professional ethics, the fool. . .

- Jim Katen, Oregon

[Bill Kibbel]

How do you handle clients that want you to write up everything as if its on its last legs cause they want to strong arm the seller to fix it or reduce the price?

I fire the client and enjoy the extra time to have a nice lunch.

[hausdok]

Originally posted by Jim Katen

Originally posted by kurt

Originally posted by hausdok

I don't want to get paid to be duplicitous.

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

Are you saying WON'T, or are we haggling price?[:-dev3]

I know an inspector who was inspecting a high-end house for a wealthy couple. The wife-buyer loved the house. The husband-buyer didn't. In the basement, the husband-buyer offered the inspector $5,000 if he'd kill the deal.

The inspector refused, citing his professional ethics, the fool. . .

- Jim Katen, Oregon

Hi Jim,

That's an interesting situation. Now, consider this. What if the husband was testing the inspector's credibility. Hell, they could have been an undercover investigative news team - seems to be a lot of those sneaking around with miniature cameras these days. If he'd accepted, he might have found himself in some pretty deep kimchi.

OT - OF!!!

M.

[Darren]

I had a client about 8 years ago that approached me towards the end of the inspection and offered to split any monies he recieved from the seller. He wanted me to write everything; he was even telling me things to write (made up issues).

I declined of course; I was gonna write him a letter (just to cover my butt) but I just let it slide. I figured he might come after me for bogus problems but I never heard from him again.

Darren

www.aboutthehouseinspections.com

[Jim Katen]

Originally posted by hausdok

. . . That's an interesting situation. Now, consider this. What if the husband was testing the inspector's credibility. Hell, they could have been an undercover investigative news team - seems to be a lot of those sneaking around with miniature cameras these days. If he'd accepted, he might have found himself in some pretty deep kimchi. . .

In that case, it would've been entrapment - not the best basis for a news story.

It happened in your area. The buyers were Microsofties. I think my reaction would've been, "Make it 10k & we'll talk." Or as Dennis Nedry said in Jurassic Park, "Don't get cheap on me Dodgson."

- Jim Katen, Oregon

[hausdok]

Originally posted by Jim Katen

Originally posted by hausdok

. . . That's an interesting situation. Now, consider this. What if the husband was testing the inspector's credibility. Hell, they could have been an undercover investigative news team - seems to be a lot of those sneaking around with miniature cameras these days. If he'd accepted, he might have found himself in some pretty deep kimchi. . .

In that case, it would've been entrapment - not the best basis for a news story.

Well yeah, except that what news reporter ever worries about their little stunts actually being considered entrapment? They usually don't seem interested in seeing the bad guy prosecuted, so much as being the first to reveal the sordid details of whatever it is they're "investigating" and the angle that they want to pursue.

It happened in your area. The buyers were Microsofties. I think my reaction would've been, "Make it 10k & we'll talk." Or as Dennis Nedry said in Jurassic Park, "Don't get cheap on me Dodgson."

- Jim Katen, Oregon

Gee, now I'm feeling so inadequate. In 11 years I've never had an offer like that. WHAT AM I DOIN' WRONG??!! Sniff. [:-cry]

OT - OF!!!

M.