Just realized my handshake rate quote from 2019 still haunts me

I was looking back at old emails last week and found a rate I quoted to a client in Portland back in 2019. I said $45 an hour without any written terms, just a phone call and a handshake. That project went sideways when they added three extra revisions and paid late, and I had zero backup. Now I always send a one-page rate sheet with a 14-day payment window before any work starts, even for repeat people. It feels awkward at first, but it's saved me twice already this year. Has anyone else had a verbal agreement blow up and change how they quote forever?

2 comments

2 Comments

owens.laura1d ago

That Portland thing sounds way too familiar... I quoted a landscaping job for a neighbor back in 2021 over text, just a quick "sounds good" and a number, then they added a whole backyard drainage project on top and haggled me down after I finished. Now I always put a line in my quote saying any changes need a signed add-on, and I swear it's stopped half the headaches before they start. It's a pain to be formal with people you know, but one bad handshake taught me that lesson for good.

xena_hernandez981d ago

Oh totally, but I think the real trick is getting that signed add-on BEFORE any extra work starts, not just having the line in the quote! Written terms only help if you actually enforce them, otherwise it's just a fancy piece of paper.