jtara - 4:12 am on Jan 22, 2008 (gmt 0)

You didn't learn the most important lesson.

New Realtor in this market. Should have been your first clue.

1. Pre-qualify customer's ability to pay.

That may involve doing a credit check, getting a D&B or similar report on a private company, checking SEC documents on a public company, or simple logical reasoning.

Why on earth didn't you ask yourself: "New Realtor. Down market. Hmmmmmmmmmm....."

I know a lot of experienced Realtors who are crying right now.

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Ask your accountant what he would consider reasonable collection efforts, then do what he suggests. If you do not make reasonable collection efforts, you will not be able to write-off the loss.

She is unlikely to pay. If you doubt me, watch tomorrow's stock market, and pay attention to where the blame is placed. She bought-into the same mania that propelled property prices beyond reason. (I can be kind and say she was a victim of bad timing.) Now, you and she suffer, but it's great example of how the housing crisis is moving out through the economy in waves.

Sorry to ramble on. My point: be aware of general business conditions and adapt to them. You cannot focus just on your little niche. You must be aware of the world around you. My #1 reading recommendation for webmasters (or anybody in any kind of business) is The Economist. It's not at all as dry as it sounds - in fact, it's a fascinating read - my friends can't put it down when they come over. I kid you not! (You should have read their obituary for Ike Turner...)

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I think, also, a part of professionalism is considering whether taking on a job is in the best interest of the client. Knowing that she was going to work for (I gather) a large real-estate chain, I would never have done the job. They provide excellent online resources for their agents. I would only consider doing a custom site for an agent with a great deal of experience who has specific needs that won't fit into the company's offering.

A better proposal would have been to help her to better use the company's site. (In the case of an independent agent, I'd offer to help them choose a third-party service.)

It's a highly competitive field, and neither a new agent nor a web designer without prior experience in the field have any business building a one-off site. IMO, of course.

You might want to take that into consideration in making your final decision.

IMO - to quote Richard Nixon - mistakes were made.

[edited by: jtara at 4:32 am (utc) on Jan. 22, 2008]