Let’s face it, there are consequences to our actions.
None are exempt from this “law”, we make choices and there are results of those decisions. I give my daughter a chocolate bar 20 minutes before bedtime and I quickly regret it 20 minutes later (no, I haven’t tried that, but orange juice has similar results!). Sometimes decisions have much longer lasting implications: days, weeks, years, even decades worth of resulting fall out over choices we’ve made. Perhaps more eloquently stated:
Let’s take a trip down memory lane to a time when every real estate agent was bustling around, driving their Hummer, checking their Rolex and making closing after closing in a red hot market. The year, 2006…and the market analysts at that time said, “There is no end in sight, it’s up! Up! Up!”. I was working for a general contractor at that time and he had me doing many projects, smaller ones, some would say “punch list” or “handy man” type of work. Most of the time I would work by myself, completing tasks, learning the ropes of so many odds and ends, and my short-sightedness was weighing in on me. So, as any young man would do, I called up my dad to express my disdain for the tasks that I was doing.
“Dad, I just feel like I’m not building anything. I mean, I could be framing houses, I love framing houses!” In my dad’s wisdom he replied, “Son, I know you’re new to this, but housing markets change, real estate is not a guaranteed thing, and once people stop building houses…what are the framers going to do? You will be better off being a man of many skills than only one.” And he was right, I can now say that I grew into a well rounded craftsman due to making the choice of sticking with it. But unlike my heed to my dad’s wisdom, others during this time decided to ignore better judgment and chose to take on heavy loads of debt, interest-only loans, mortgages that they could not afford in a “red hot” market…
In comes the “opposite and equal reaction” part.
Foreclosures, bankruptcies, default on loans, delinquent payments, etc. etc. Even typing out those words makes me cringe and I’m sure some that read this will do the same.
Homeowners weren’t the only ones hit. Remember all of those bare vacant lots that were ready to build and then just sat….for years?! Remember those halfway built homes that were framed up, and then had half of the house dried in with building paper and then just sat….and rotted away? Bunk loads of materials strewn about, unpaid for, literally going bad like an expired gallon of milk: only one destination, the landfill. Folks, supply houses lost their (you know what) during that time. People were irresponsible, had haughty eyes and greed running through their minds and did…not…pay…their…bills! Homebuilders tanked and went down right in the middle of production, and the lumber yards of the world had really no recourse to get their materials 100% recouped. Not on material that had been installed onto a structure already, or was delivered to private property. Besides, lumber does have a shelf life, it will eventually go bad, and so much of it did! But because people did…not…pay…their…bills, enter the “Intent to Lien” era that we still experience today.
Let me break it down for you.
Chumley Construction has accounts at many of our suppliers and vendors. We make orders for materials and they are delivered to our customers’ sites. Take ProBuild for instance: for ANY order over $1,000 (not saying that’s a small sum of money, but it’s not a lot when it comes to building materials.) their company policy is to send out an “Intent to Lien” letter. It is sent via certified mail, and requires a signature from the homeowner.
What an unpleasant experience. I mean, you just signed a contract, put a deposit down to get your house worked on and have $4,500 of siding arrive in your driveway and you get…THIS?! I know, I know. I would be perturbed too! Don’t even get me started on what my wife’s reaction might be! But, remember the aforementioned part that I said the lumber yards of the world lost their (you know what) during the Great Recession? All that an intent to lien letter is accomplishing is the ability for those same suppliers to cover their…(you know what) from customers or contractors that…do…not…pay…their…bills.
A sign of the times I say, where companies have no choice but to always be checking their “six”. I would love for our world to be a place that a handshake was enough. Maybe it’s because I trust myself, and I expect others to be trustworthy, honest, and people of integrity. I’m sorry, I really am, that ProBuild (and other locations) have been forced to this resort. I could imagine that there was a board room of directors back in 2008, staring at each other, staring at the CFO and a team of lawyers all asking themselves, “What do we do to avoid ever having to go through this again.” I think this is what they came up with: A scary letter, with large font stating that it is in fact NOT a lien, but an INTENT to lien if the bill is unpaid. I have to explain to every customer that falls into this $1k+ category, “You’re going to get a letter from ProBuild…” But it’s a necessary thing, keeping it square on all sides. Accountability and responsibility for all.
We pay our bills. Every tool we own…we actually own, we do not buy on credit with unpaid balances hanging out there. Every vehicle that the company has…is paid for. We do not make payments on our vehicles. Our accounts are paid in full every month, our subcontractors are paid. This is for my personal peace of mind, our business’s reputation, and for the decision on my behalf to grow Chumley Construction one…step…at…a…time. I am committed to setting an example for my family of what a professional or company can choose to do, with better than good results.
How about a new sign of the times? Accountability and responsibility for all.
Thank you!
