Your instincts are wrong.
George: (yelling unintelligible greek cusswords into his phone)
Me: “George?”
I was in the real estate business when I got this call. George was a client of mine who asked me to help him find an investment property for his grandkids. A first generation American whose parents brought him to this country with nothing, George built a great business and sold it 50 years later for a small fortune.
He wanted to give to his family the financial security he never had as a kid. He wanted his grandkids to get checks every month from a building he bought for them. He wanted them to remember him long after he was gone. He wanted to be their favorite grandad.
George (more unintelligible greek cusswords)
Me: “George… My Greek isn’t so good, but it sounds like you’re mad.”
George: “You’re damn right I’m mad! That building you sold me, it’s a piece of sh%t!”
Me (in my head): Oh shit!
Me (after taking a breath): “Ok. Tell me what’s going on.”
George (raging): “That new building I closed on last week. The one for my grandkids... The one that the store opened today…”
Me: “Yeah?”
George: “There was a bunch of rain and the roof leaked! The (unintelligible greek cuss word) roof leaked and the ceiling tiles fell into the building and they had to cancel the grand opening!”
Me: “Oh shit, George.”
George: “Oh, that’s not the worst part either! The (unintelligible greek cuss word) tenant says they’re gonna cancel the lease if I can’t fix the roof now. YOU said that was a new roof! YOU said it was a good building!”
Me (in my head): I did not! I told you the developer was a sorry bastard. I told you not to buy it. YOU wanted it because it was near your grandson’s college. You wouldn’t listen to me!
Me (deep breath, out loud): “George… I am so sorry. You probably want to kill me. This is all my fault.”
George: (Silence)
Me: (Silence)
George (after what seemed like an hour, probably closer to 10 seconds, now speaking in a more pleading voice): “No, Walker. This isn’t your fault. I don’t care whose fault it is right now. You’re the only person I know who can help me fix this. Will you help me?”
Me: “I’m so sorry about this mess, George. Sure. I’m happy to help you.”
I reached out to the roofer. Turns out the developer had hired him because he was low bid, then continued to beat him up on his price, telling him to ignore the specs of the tenant. He got a crappy price and did a crappy job.
We hired our own roofer to fix it.
We hired an attorney to handle things with the developer and got a settlement that was about twice the cost of replacing the roof.
15 years later, the tenant is still there paying rent. They say they see no reason they would ever leave.
George died 8 years ago. I went to the funeral and had the pleasure of meeting his grandkids (he was their favorite) who now own that building where the tenant sends them checks every month. I also had the pleasure of telling them what a smart business guy their grandfather was and how much he loved them.
Take responsibility for everything bad that happens. Even if you didn’t do it. That’s one of the best ways to build a healthy business relationship.
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