I pay for the month starting, which means I pay him in advance. Figured if he took me for my money, I would not longer use him, and I’d back-talk him. He has never let me down.
He also told me to pay to his PO Box, but we make a point of seeing him the last week of the month to pay him for his following month. If I have extra work to be done, I ask him to do it. He usually does it by the following week, if he’s pressed for time. I pay him for that, too, on the day I request the work, once we’ve settled on a price. Not because he asks me to, by the way, but I figure I would continue the pay-in-advance process he requested at the beginning.
I started using him because, like you, my neighbors were using him. I prefer doing business with the little guys, rather than big companies, cause actually I’ve had more problems with the big companies than the smaller enterprises. I would trust the word of mouth of your neighbors regarding the person’s integrity and professionalism. And, by the way, I figure the reason the person asks for money in advance, because he has been taken advantage of by the customers. I know for a fact that my guy has. Neighbors are here part time, “forget” to pay him when they’re heading out, get a different person when they come back. Dishonesty runs both ways and both parties are wanting to protect themselves.
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