# Not being paid.. What is the proper steps to take...



## Guest (Feb 3, 2012)

We did a tarp and removed a section of mildewed drywall from a FreedieMac property via a broker who sent the invoice to FM. It has been two months and no pay...Is it time to do the Lien or would this not work for this case? The house has not been sold as of yet...The amount owed to me is $600..

Advice please?


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## SwiftRes (Apr 12, 2012)

First thing I would do is see if agent has a "boss", if so I would contact them first. The brokerage house may put pressure on agent. Big question is whether our not agent received reimbursement. I have had agents receive money and just not pay me, and some just not submit my invoice and photos. If other options exhausted then lien. In Iowa we have 90 day window after job is complete to lien. Another thing I did was find out whom the asset management company was and contact them directly.


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## Guest (Feb 3, 2012)

Lien them


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## Prestigious Property (May 30, 2012)

The Broker told me he has sent several emails to FM about the invoice. I am thinking he pocketed the money. Do I call FM direct and give them the invoice number first and till them they have x days to pay or lien is going on property?


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## SwiftRes (Apr 12, 2012)

Tell the agent that you're going to lien the property now. In the meantime see if you can find out if agent got paid, if you can't find out in a few days, lien it.


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## brm1109 (Sep 17, 2012)

I would tell the agent that you need to be paid within 3 days or the property is being liened.
The last job that I wasn't paid for, I told them I was liening the property. The "person" I dealt with actually had the nerve to tell me "you can't lien a property because it is in the agreement". My response was, well my getting paid was in the agreement too and you violated it, have a nice day. Check was received a week later.


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## Guest (Feb 3, 2012)

For those of you who have liened a property before, how many jobs did that person send to you after liening? Always something to consider.


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## SwiftRes (Apr 12, 2012)

Agreed. If the agent is really telling the truth and you lien the property it may reflect poorly on agent.


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## Guest (Feb 4, 2012)

72opp said:


> For those of you who have liened a property before, how many jobs did that person send to you after liening? Always something to consider.


None and I don't the want the guys work anyways, if he can't get his finances in order now good chance he has been a screw up before and will continue to be in the future, as a matter of fact when he hired you he was replacing someone probably because he didn't pay them and will now replace you with someone he will not pay at some point either


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## Guest (Feb 4, 2012)

Chris Johnson said:


> None and I don't the want the guys work anyways, if he can't get his finances in order now good chance he has been a screw up before and will continue to be in the future, as a matter of fact when he hired you he was replacing someone probably because he didn't pay them and will now replace you with someone he will not pay at some point either


This line of thinking may be good if you are in the construction trade but property preservation is a different animal. Think of it like the difference between snooker and pool. You use balls, a table, and ques to play, but the rules are different.

If the OP is working direct with Real Estate agents (which is really hard to find/retain) and he liens the property prematurely, he will in effect end any future business with this Real Estate agent. That alone, given the nuances of the PP world, can kill his business just as fast as not getting paid.

My intent in posting my question was to influence the OP to pursue other avenues of collection of his fee's other than liens. Liens are a last resort in this business and they can get you blacklisted with other companies.


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## mtmtnman (May 1, 2012)

What you need to do is have the broker BCC you every time he contacts his asset manager and ask for a copy of the response. I have no problem getting either of these. Just this Wednesday i got a Fed Ex with $3600 from BOA from a job my agent originally turned in on 10/4/2011. She sent me bi weekly communication from the time the invoice was sent in but the banks are DAMN slow paying. Had another that was turned in for 3 months every 2 week and i got 2 $4200 checks back to back for the same job. I was honest and told them about it twice with no response. The EXTRA check still sits on my desk 4 months later............


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## Guest (Feb 4, 2012)

mtmtnman said:


> What you need to do is have the broker BCC you every time he contacts his asset manager and ask for a copy of the response. I have no problem getting either of these. Just this Wednesday i got a Fed Ex with $3600 from BOA from a job my agent originally turned in on 10/4/2011. She sent me bi weekly communication from the time the invoice was sent in but the banks are DAMN slow paying. Had another that was turned in for 3 months every 2 week and i got 2 $4200 checks back to back for the same job. I was honest and told them about it twice with no response. The EXTRA check still sits on my desk 4 months later............


I bet if you cash it you will hear from them the next day...lol


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## mtmtnman (May 1, 2012)

summithomeinc said:


> I bet if you cash it you will hear from them the next day...lol



That's what i'm thinking. Plus i would loose what i have with them and maybe get blacklisted...........


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## Guest (Feb 4, 2012)

mtmtnman said:


> That's what i'm thinking. Plus i would loose what i have with them and maybe get blacklisted...........


Mail it back to them and see what kind of response you get. :thumbsup:


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## Guest (Feb 4, 2012)

AffordablePS said:


> We did a tarp and removed a section of mildewed drywall from a FreedieMac property via a broker who sent the invoice to FM. It has been two months and no pay...Is it time to do the Lien or would this not work for this case? The house has not been sold as of yet...The amount owed to me is $600..
> 
> Advice please?


My experience with FMac is, on IS's (or pre approved items), FMac can take up to 90 days to reimburse the broker. 
On bid approvals, IF the broker submits everything correctly, payment will usually be received within 30 days, and most likely within 20 days. 
If all the I's are not dotted & T's crossed, it can take over 90 days. So if your broker doesn't have experience billing FMac, good luck


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## Guest (Feb 4, 2012)

AffordablePS said:


> The Broker told me he has sent several emails to FM about the invoice. I am thinking he pocketed the money. Do I call FM direct and give them the invoice number first and till them they have x days to pay or lien is going on property?


What makes you think that the broker "pocketed" the money? I think that the quickest way NOT to get paid would be to threaten them with a lien. You could use this situation as an opportunity to gather information. How about writing down a list of _specific_ questions such as if he has any preferred methods of transferring pictures and invoices, the lender's rules regarding payment timelines and if he knows about any potential reasons why invoices would not get paid. Then contact the broker AFTER you have your specific questions ready. Tell him you want to pick his brain for a minute or tell him you need his expertise on a couple things. Don't even mention the unpaid invoice until you have gotten all your questions answered. 

The key here is to prepare the right questions BEFORE calling him. These are not going to be general questions or opinion based questions. And if you don't understand any of the answers he gives you, simply tell him you don't understand and let him explain it a second time. And once you ask him a question, close your mouth and let him explain. Don't do what a lot of other people do and start talking and trying to finish his sentences for him.


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## Prestigious Property (May 30, 2012)

To answer your question about him pocketing the money. He has stated more than once how broke he is. He used to pay us himself then it got to the point were if I did not say anything I would never get paid. He is a great guy as I have known him for a long time and he has given us a ton of work but now he says he is being told he needs to send the work to the Vendor that they use...He even showed me the letter he got from FreedieMac. It says that they want all there Brokers to send any work over to the Preservation company to be handled and not sent to local contractors directly unless it is a must and preapproved first.....Crazy....Gone with the old days....


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