I think he played you. So that he did not have to pay.

Weeds aren't "trees" by any stretch. This guy did a shakedown on you.

September 2012: Similar thing happened to me where I walked away from a mulch job that I had about 4 hours into + 2 cubic yards of black dyed. Woman was being real irrational and refused to pay claiming she did not like the smell of mulch & she would be sick from it so I walked away. October 2012: Hurricane Sandy DEMOLISHED her house which was 2 blocks from the Atlantic Ocean and 100 feet from the Shark River inlet in Avon, NJ. Heard she was away on business & took shuttle to airport so she lost her car as well. November 2012: As traffic was allowed back into town, I passed by her house & saw a pile of trash. In that pile was a Weber propane grill. Took it home, cleaned it & I am still cooking on it to this day!

Get it in writing before you start the work...Work Order...Customer signs it. Works every time. Get Paid before you start the job.

if someone let's that yard go to that point... red flag!!!

13 years in the industry. Honestly if I drove up to a job like that I'd just flat out say I'm not interested. People that let their property get to that state are usually trouble. I find I've become an excellent judge of character over time. Also as you pointed out it's hard to quote accurately, it's hard on your equipment and there's always the risk of damage due to hidden objects. Cheers

As soon as someone uses the fixed income excuse, I bail. I know they are going to be a problem. One lady asked me why I didn't want to do the job? I said right to her face, "I've heard every sob story and excuse to not getting paid. You've used the three most popular ones in our conversation. I know you will never pay me a dime. You won't get a minute of free work out of me."

I feel this on a spiritual level. I’m only 21 but have been mowing lawns since I was 13. Well, when I first started it was just a few people in the neighborhood... decent size yards, hills, good bit of weed eating.... easily a $250 for a lawn care business but since I was 13 they practically made me their slave. I would get up every Friday morning and go mow these yards, usually took me about 6 hours sometimes 7 1/2, and i only got paid a total of $30 at the end of the day. Well, after a few months I called them and told them the only way I would be able to continue mowing their lawn is if they each paid me at least $25 per lawn ($75 at the end of the day) but the daughter freaked out and said im ripping her off and that I don’t even weed eat (straight up lie) and that she’s gonna go tell everyone in town that I’m a bad worker... so I called her a dumb cunt and told her she’s been making me her slave all year and I’m done with it and good luck finding someone else to mow her yard for $10. Not long after saying that to her, her mom and dad (the other 2 lawns) dropped me, and that’s the best thing that’s ever happened. Big relief. Horrible experience

A friend of a friend asked me to take a local at all the new trees and landscaping work they had done. Everything was dead, and I mean everything was DEAD. Before I did anything I found out who the contractor was, "who had an incredible reputation" I called the contractor in front of the owner, the contractor was never payed for close to 10K of materials and labor. The owner was a POS. The contractor came back and literally salted the earth. I stood in front of the owner and laughed until I had tears in my eyes. Homeowners are crooks

This type of behavior is unbelievably common. I'm speaking from experience.

You made me felt a bit a better about myself that with your experience, you have the same issue as me. Taking job and working for free and sometime at a lost.

Sounds like he set you up so that he had leverage on the costs. I know it wasn't easy, cool to hear you kept it professional.

I know exactly what you mean brother. A guy saw me at the gas station and asked for a card, he called me yesterday and asked if I could swing by and take a look at his property because he needed his grass cut. While I was on my way there I thought that it was just going to be a simple lawn mow and that's it... surprise surprise. I get to his property and it's a huge front yard with high ass grass and obstacles everywhere... I priced him between $400- $500 and let him know... he never contacted me back lol. I don't give a shot anymor... I will rather lose the job than cheat myself out of money. I know that we're all guilty of it but once you learn there are no more excuses. I'm no longer doing jobs in the crappy part of town... let those cheap bastards cut their own lawns.

i have to deal with old people like that at my job. hard to respect elders who don't have any integrity...

many good points! I'm a licensed and insured electrician. people always want stuff for free. they assume a switch at home depot costs 1.00 so it should be the same to wire it. also everyone has an uncle that does wiring. In any business time is money. If you are in business, you need to charge to cover your expenses. including health care, insurance, workers comp insurance, vehicle reg, ins. payroll, and profit.

Dude, you got played. That old man knew exactly what he was doing with those "trees". He probably didn't even have the $120.

Good that you took the low price initially to help the customer, shame you got grief. I hope you get blessed for your hard work and ethics

I hate when I hear stories like this. The one time big clean up client almost never gives you more work so charge high or just pass. It's just not worth it.

I used to work for a landscaping company and my bosses would always bid $100 higher than normal for jobs they did not want to do. More often than not, they would get those jobs. And it'd be sort of worth it because of the extra cash they were getting. Also my step dad owns a construction company, and when he first started out he had 3 or 4 customers that would not pay him. So he started making his clients sign contracts saying that they had to pay him. So just a little tip if you don't already do that.

Makes me think for any tree to be cut, it needs to be physically marked and signed off by the customer first before I do it.

I've got my own inground pool company. When I first started out I thought I had to be cheaper just to get the buisness.........come to find out though, the more I charged the busier I got. Bottom line..........never sell yourself short. I woulda guessed at minimum $1,000 to do all you did, not no $500 let alone $120.

I have been in this situation more than once. Just like you, I've had a hard time saying no. I learned. This guy asked you to do more work after the bid had already been given at a low rate, (I can't stand people that do that, I stopped letting that happen as well). Then he bitched. He didn't care about his property in the first place that's why it got so bad. He could care less bout those trees, he was hoping you would knock money off the total and he was successful. I learned to be very strict when people ask for more after the price has been given. They either pay more or they don't get the work done. I've also learned to be very strict on my bids. It's not an auction- it's a business. *****sorry for the rant, I've just been there and I feel your pain brother.

okay , now I feel a little better . I just underbid a job that took me far longer to do than expected and took a lot more work in 100+ degree heat index ...I feel for ya , I know how you feel ...

I wise old man told me many years ago, "There is some business that you cannot afford to have." And like you, I had to learn the meaning of those words the hard way.

Wow. Sorry this happened to you....chalk it up to experience and never let it happen again. I've been in the business 25 years and nothing surprises me about people anymore. I've also had customers refer to non-trees as trees so I can absolutely see how this could happen. Be careful doing those types of yards, too, as there's usually rocks, bricks or tools hidden from view under the tall grass. This could ruin very expensive equipment and cost you even more than your time.

I had the same issues last month with two former clients. Boy I'm glad I no longer have them. I've gained four extra clients since I let them go.

Always get it in writing what exactly what you are going to do and what the price is,even that sometimes is a challenge,I had one flaky customer say through her husband that we are not going to pay you,well i just said i will put back the 20 bags of yard waste back on your lawn! They paid real quick.

I won't cut a tree down unless it is either *very* clearly marked with spray paint or has a fluorescent ribbon tied around it. I won't plant a tree unless the spot is marked with fluorescent marking paint. Keeps confusion to a minimum.

Been in the business 36 years! I'm 51 now, I've had a couple of these people a year! Call the police! It works every time for me !!

im in a different kind of business but my mentor once told me the best job you get is the one you didnt get. dont be afraid to say no and dont work peanuts.

My son and I run a local mowing business and that kind of thing has happened to us too. The home owner says one thing then says another thing after usually to get out of paying for the work. We have been abused and threatened by some people because they don't want to pay afterwards..... My son was almost choked out over $5 Sometime you think why bother at all :(

This is the kind of yard I'd throw Kudzu seeds everywhere and it'll eventually engulf his whole property

whenever you hear that "i'm on a fixed income" crap you may as well forget it tell them to call someone else. i respond by saying "well since i am am not on a fixed income i need to earn a living. goodbye.".

Out of all the lawn business vids on this site, this is probably one of the most important. Yes, we have all had these yards (most of us anyway) and underbid to get the job. Not as bad when you're a solo operator or having one helper, but still bad and not recommended. Ever! As for the trees, another reason I get a signed estimate/bid of all the various services and pictures to back them up. Customers can say anything to get out of a deal. Hard truth but people do and will lie! Another reason to have liability insurance and a cash cushion set aside if it is your screw-up. Because if it is your screw-up, own up and make it right. What hurts in the short term will ease the pain in the long run.

Mowing with my dad when I was younger, and mowing on my own, I feel you man

I at first had that problem too, since I am a kid-pre-teen people think they can use me, but I use top notch equipment and do just a good of job as a lot of other lawncare companies in my opinion(not to be self-esteemed) and still I charge quite a bit less than them, but people don't seem to get it!!!

absolutely ridiculous. I don't landscape but I've had issues like this doing construction. I've learned the exact same lesson you did. sometimes it's better to just cut your losses and leave before things get worse. don't get discouraged honest people will always prevail. thanks for the video and good luck with your business in the future.

Hey man - thanks for being so honest and sharing your experience. It's really good of you to allow others to learn from what you went through. All the best for your business in the future.

Wow. This showed up in my suggestions. I remember watching this four years ago, one of the first videos of yours that I watched. Amazing to see your journey from this to where you are now.

That goes for other situations as well not just in lawn care. Good video and tip on life in general!

let me tell you guys mine it was my first season 5 years ago this guy was selling his house the backyard was pretty big he wanted the trees trimmed the grass bagged weed wacked edged debris raked up a hole clean up i bid $200 9hours later 30 trash bags and the guy said what about the alley and this other side area i was then told i would not be paid i was scared to bid it right $600 but in the end i lost a good weekly client who referd me to the cheapskate i guess my advise is bid a fair amount because in the end you can loose your ass and more clients than you had planned

Thank you. This video has lessons in it that reach past lawn care.

Hey man... Look at this way... When your standing up there at the pearly gate.... Show them the picture of this jungle!!!! LMAO. Someone's gonna step right up and hand you a cool beer! Thank goodness your guy didn't mow over a brick or block or Prius ... Hidden under that crap and smoke a blade or spindle or something that would have cost you even more!!!! I love the shot of the weedwacker actually weedwacking at like head height!!!! I was like what the hell am I seeing!!!! You're up for sainthood in my book.... Man. I pray you are rewarded in a large financial way for your kindness!

i love doing overgrown yards honestly

I've been there too. It only takes one or two of these to say no thanks. I sometimes wonder if the client ever plans on paying for the service in the first place.

Video record all transactions with a customer. Less hassle when the case goes to court.

I do this a lot. Thanks for posting this video. It really helps realize I could be making it a lot better if I'd stand my ground on my pricing sometimes.

I've found that low prices attract customers that expect too much & are never happy.

This is a more powerful video than some may think! There are about 10 times a season an old lady will call and want us to come cut the yard and its overgrown like this and you have to determine a line of being a nice human and being a business owner. I definantly have to work on that this year! Especially if your paying gas, labor and ruining a $10,000 piece of equipment. You handled it, by just leaving which is about all you can do if he doesn't have money!

you say get paid what your worth but then leave without getting paid that sounds like that guy did that on purpose so he wouldn't have to pay.

Been there done that. Your right the only reason I would ever do one of these again is if the buddy calls and has a friend that can not work in the yard. Feel for you Bud. These are the type that makes you want to quit.

Nice of you to keep calm, considerate & sorry for your loss buddy. I hope you gain 100 times more than what you lost but ethically.

The funny thing is you were mowing around a ride on mower collecting dust. i would have pulled up and took off once i saw the place

$120?!?!? I thought I was underbidding...I would of charged them 400-500....

Thank you for being the professional that you are.

I’ve made some mistakes like that. Every time I bid low or give a deal something goes wrong. You’re exactly right... don’t be afraid to walk away.

Been there... I have a hard time saying no too. somehow I still let this happen once a season

fixed income , elderly, people on hard times etc. yeah those situations, people wanting to pay less than what is right, I've came across one recently myself . didn't lose like the you did on this property but I see I'm not the only nice guy tryna run a bussiness. right on man . gotta say NO sometimes

From an ex-mowing professional, that's a crazy way to mow. You're placing too much strain on the machine doing it that way. Do a maximum of two laps around ejecting the clippings inwards (clockwise, to the right in the video) and then turn around and go anti-clockwise blowing the clippings outward. This ensures you aren't creating a bigger and bigger mound of clippings for your mower to run over and discharge. Otherwise you're running over not only the long grass, but also the ever-increasing pile of clippings and placing unnecessary strain on your engine by doing so (which also wastes fuel, which costs money).

I never thought a video about mowing lawns would give me such amazing advice! I’m a freelance photographer in STL! I shoot weddings mostly. My biggest thing I struggle with is pricing, I always undersell myself. I’m going to take to heart what you said! Thanks!

I had that done to me as well. You are very right, sometimes you have to say no...

Should have said a thousand bucks. That should've scared them away.

This is exactly why I dont do any sort of freebies unless its for a very loyal client who pays me well. It sucks when things like this happen.

You are a saint for not losing your cool. There are bad customers everywhere. You handled yourself very well. Lesson learned. God bless❤️

Yeah....I know what you mean..... I had to quit a yard on my first year. She only wanted to pay me $40 a month and she wanted me to scalp it. She wanted me to take out some small trees. I helped her out once but she wanted more and more.....all for $40...... I said I can't do all that you are asking me to do for $40 a month

couldn't the guy of used his tractor and brush hog?!

Jeffary with J&K Branching Out here, I agree 100% with you. Don't feel bad man. I think we've all been there. I know I have. It's the nature of a beast being a small business owner and trying to be a nice guy. I'm still a small business owner and I'm still a nice guy, but you're right. you've gotta learn when to say no and when the price of job right. Been there done that. Drop Customer because of it. Ps, Thanks for your videos. I use them and learn a lot and I'll put some up to eventually. Here in Stamford Connecticut, your friend. J&K Branching Out.

I totally hear ya man! Had a client who would purposely not answer the door for 15 minutes at a time and would constantly want extra add ons for no raise in price. Good thing you kept your cool!

Passed a tractor with a BUSH HOG.....LOL

A lot of that "lawn" was what I call brush hog status. I've actually had to brush hog a couple that were pretty overgrown. I had one that I call the nightmare property, because the brush was up to six plus feet high in many places. Not to mention there's this nice steep twenty plus degree mini hill, that the tractor couldn't make it up except for one spot... Then on top of that, there was junk buried everywhere in that tall brush. Umpteen five gallon buckets, a couple of "dead" toilets, a dishwasher, tub, logs, stumps, ditches etc... Oh, and, a comforter... Why? Why not... You name it, it was there. That property gave the term "white trash" an ENTIRELY new meaning... Just when you think it can't get any worse, it does... To top it all off, as I was backing down the hill, I very quickly went right into a big ditch. Well with 4x4 and even with the differential locked I still couldn't get out. But wait there's more... I kept getting deeper into the ditch and the tractor was now leaning extremely on the left side. So much so that without the seat belt, the seat interlock wouldn't be depressed and would shut off the engine... I had to support myself in the seat, with my left hand and foot against the ROPS and fender respectively, I think that tells you how bad it was... Well at this point nothing would work, the front end loader wouldn't help since it just kept slipping off the dirt. By now the 4x4 and diff lock was pretty much useless, since the right side of the tractor was up in the air... I had to unhitch my '91 F-350 4x4 (CC LB 7.3L IDI with an ATS turbo, ZF S5-42.) I call "The Beast", to come rescue the tractor. About thirty to forty five minutes later from getting stuck to unstuck... When that tractor got stuck, I think I said some cuss words I didn't even know I knew... I'm surprised I didn't even break a sheer bolt... Well that's my long winded story about a property I call the "nightmare property"... Moral of the story is, charge a lot or don't bother. I did charge the property management company somewhere around $700, which to be honest, may have been on the cheap side if you ask me...

Holy hell! And I thought my yard was almost unsalvageable after a few months without mowing it... Respect for even taking on a job like this. My method of dealing with this would probably be something along the lines of waiting until it hasn't rained for awhile and the grass is all dry, then setting everything on fire right as a rainstorm is starting so it doesn't burn down my house!

If you lived closer I’d call you to come mow my lawn! You really are the best lawn care guy out here. Not cocky or condescending! Awesome work guy! Seriously!

ive worked so many jobs currently 25 and i wouldnt of done that he would had to pay me 1000 at LEAST older folks have money trust ✍ that crap looks like HELL

Lol captions at 0:23 said got to do some weed before we can even start cutting.

I been on the landscaping and lawn care for 10 year , and when I started I got couple customers like this , and I , like this guy could not say no, so I got taking couple times , but I did learn. now I look at the person and that job ,if they look hard to deal with , I over bid so if I end up getting the job , at least I get pay for my trouble, or I don't get the job , and move on to the next project , anyway you are a nice and a hard working man , and I know you are going to do just fine

Been there before. I pulled up to a yard like this, this year. Knee high field. I turned around. Its not worth it, and the customer won't pay what you want.

Nice guys finish last..... :/

The old man played ya.

You have come a long way since then. Be proud of what you do know. 🙂

I'm so sorry to hear that story man. You are an amazing guy. It is such a shame on that customer.

It's a real shame that this guy wanted you to help him out in time of desperate need on his part. You would of thought if he did not have any money he would of maybe even offered to barter with u. Seems like he was trying to sell a lot of junk out front. Maybe the truck but definitely the tractor would of been nice to fix up an restore for the business. Better luck next time

Anybody else wonder how they got here? Lol

We've all been there brother but these types of jobs shows your a good person and the universe will surly pay it forward.

Wow you’ve really grown since this video it’s an inspiration!

i been in the lawncare business for 13 years yards like this i wont touch... if you care to notice the home owner had junk mowers and trailers and vehicles in the yard..... in these cases theres a good chance you could hit an object and bend a blade or spindle on your mower...not to mention there could be tree stumps or anything else in that tall grass and weeds that you wouldnt see... the risk simply isnt worth the reward... finally i gotta say ...i would be very leery of hiring a lawn man filming my property ..... also mr top notch i would try to find a cheaper mower those big zero turns have put a lot of lawn guys out of business... ive seen plenty come and go over the years....it the fact you still have to make your payments in the winter ...of course ive seen a lot of guys start out with brand new everything.... those guys usually dont even make it a whole summer before something gets repossesed... best of luck to you mr. topnotch.... this summer was my last season ..so happy to be getting out of this line of work....

Also you were set-up... i would put a lien on his house for $500 just be be a dick XD but that's just me :P

I just subed to your channel sir thanks alot for your a advice! Im bearly starting my own lawn care business this helps out alot.

Sad to see stuff like this but you will always come out ahead with your positive attitude and work ethic! Great video thank you for sharing.

I learned how to be a not good person anymore... because people like this keep screwing me over... you always have to care about yourself first.

You got played for a sucka!

no good deed goes unpunished

Had the same problem with a job it was a 800+ job 5 rentals all waste high grass and weeds. I was new and my second job I ever bid on didn't have a clue about bidding at the time told him 200 and when I was done he made every excuse not to pay me and to this day haven't seen a dime. I always get those customers that claim to be on a fixed in come.

That's crazy that the guy only payed you 100 dollars. I would've charged 800 minimum.

Your biggest problem is that you thought 3 Rose of Sharon BUSHES (Hibiscus Syriacus) were trees!!!! The lesson here is actually....Don't get into a business in which you are not educated in. You are lucky, you did not get sued! Top-Notch..............MY-ASS!!!!!

hey you did a great job it's nice to see other people in the same buisness as my family alot of people don't know but it is a good buisness. Great Video!

There's no way to foresee these circumstances, all of us have all had at least one similar experience. I say you're a big man to put it out there on KZfaq.

Well, you deserve that for only paying your guy $10 an hr when you charge $100+

Some people are so cheap and yet demand other things after the price has been lowered.

This kinda stuff has happened in my plumbing business too...its tough but saying no is protecting yourself...good video

Hey man I’m really sorry that you had to go through that. I run a business of my own and I have been in situations that are EXACTLY like this. Just know you aren’t the only one.