My contractor friend dodged a $12k lawsuit over a handshake deal last month

I was grabbing coffee with my buddy Mike who runs a remodeling crew in Denver. He told me he almost got sued because he did a $4,200 job for a neighbor based on a text message and a handshake. No written contract, no scope of work, nothing. The neighbor refused to pay claiming the work wasn't what they agreed on. Mike spent 3 weekends and $800 in lawyer fees just getting them to settle for half. He showed me the final invoice and it hit me how easy it is to lose everything over a verbal agreement. Do you guys use simple one-page contracts for small jobs under $5k or do you risk it with handshakes?

2 comments

2 Comments

casey6826d ago

lucasschmidt has a point about not overdoing the drama but man, your buddy Mike's story hits close to home. My cousin did a bathroom tile job for a guy he worked with - all verbal, no paper. Guy paid $500 up front then ghosted when the grout was still wet. Ended up taking a $2k loss cause he refused to lawyer up over principle. Small jobs under $500 I still do handshake stuff with people I really know, but even a text message with the price and scope written out can save you a headache. @lucasschmidt gets it right that most people are honest, but one bad neighbor can make you wish you had something on paper.

lucasschmidt6d ago

Whoa, slow down there. I mean yeah, getting stiffed on payment sucks, but is it really "losing everything"? Your buddy Mike settled for half and only spent $800 on a lawyer. That's like, what, a bad week on a bigger job? Honestly, a lot of these "handshake deal horror stories" get blown way out of proportion. People act like every verbal agreement is a ticking time bomb, but most folks aren't trying to screw you over (especially if you're a neighbor). I'd say for tiny jobs under a grand, a handshake is still fine. Just do the work, get paid, and move on.