Do you offer a payment plan directly to the homeowner?

Summary:

Jeremiah states that he does not offer in-house financing or direct payment plans to homeowners, describing it as a slippery slope for both the business and the homeowner. He cites the laws in Washington State governing contractor and homeowner relationships, specifically lien rights on a property, and says he does not want to be put in a position where he would have to take that step against anyone. Instead he relies on financial institutions, and he has selected one he considers ethical because it places the homeowner in the position of power. The lender funds the homeowner directly rather than the contractor, which means that if the homeowner decides they no longer want to work with him, they retain the freedom to take that funding elsewhere. They can pay the deposit and settle the balance on completion. He considers this the most ethical approach to offering financing on a home improvement project.

Answer:

So me personally, I don't offer a payment plan directly to the homeowner. So I don't do what's called in-house financing. I think that that can be a slippery slope both for the business and for the homeowner itself, just because there's a lot of laws when it comes to contractors and homeowner relationships in Washington State, i.e. liening a property. I don't want to be put in a situation where I would have to do that to anybody. So I do heavily rely on financial institutions. I found a company that is really ethical and it puts the homeowner in the position of power for financing. So it basically gives them access to financing. It funds them directly. So worst case scenario, they're like, hey, I don't like Jeremiah, I want to take this money and I want to use somebody else. They have the freedom to do that. So they get the funding, they can pay me the deposit and they can finish it up when it's in, but they are in the position of power. And I think that's the most ethical approach to offering financing for a home improvement project.