That week in Phoenix where I lost a $15k commission because I didn't listen to my gut

I had a buyer client who kept pushing for a closing date that felt rushed, and against my better judgment, I let the lender pressure me into moving forward. The loan fell through on day 20 of escrow because their paperwork was a mess, and the whole deal collapsed. Has anyone else had a deal blow up because you ignored a red flag to keep a client happy?

3 comments

3 Comments

reeseanderson2mo ago

I used to believe bending the rules for a client was just good service. That Phoenix deal taught me a hard lesson about trusting my own experience over their urgency. Now a gut feeling is an instant pause button, no matter the pressure.

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michaeladams2mo ago

A buddy of mine rushed a permit for a big client last year, skipped a final site check. The whole backyard patio project failed inspection, cost him weeks of rework. He said reading @reeseanderson's post about Phoenix hit home. That client's urgency almost wrecked his business. Now he tells his team a bad feeling means stop, full stop, even if the client is yelling.

tyler_baker2d ago

My old neighbor in Gilbert runs a small framing crew, and he had a similar wake up call. He was building a covered patio for a guy who wanted it done before his daughter's wedding, so he signed off on a beam that he knew was undersized, just to keep things moving. That beam sagged like four inches over the next year, and he ended up having to tear the whole thing down and rebuild it on his own dime. He still brings it up whenever someone talks about cutting corners, says it cost him way more than the job was worth. I saw @reeseanderson mention that same kind of instinct in his Phoenix story, and now my neighbor tells his guys the same thing: if your gut says something is wrong, don't let the calendar or a loud client talk you out of it.