Letting Clients Handle Paperwork Planning Process
When I first started out, I would offer clients the option of me billing my time to handle the paperwork flow through planning to recording or them handling it their self. If they wanted to do it for their self, I had a short step by step process I would print out and include when they got their paperwork. For reference planning in my home county is pretty straightforward and almost never any issue.
Once I found that some people were intentionally not following the process, I stopped making it optional and just take everything through the process and charge for it.
I used to also provide a metes and bounds description because so many local attorneys and banks could not seem to fathom a referent description. It was just easier to give the metes and bounds than trying to get them on board with the simplified process.
I ended up stopping that as well because it was just such a waste of time.
A few days ago, I had a call from a realtor all in a bustle because she’s trying to close and the current attorney can’t finalize the title paperwork until they record my subdivision plat from 12 years ago on a lot split where neighbors were splitting a lot between them. Turns out it was one I left with the client to walk through planning. One year after I did the work, the state standards of practice changed (minor changes, but some text blocks are different). Six years after I did the work, some minor changes to the planning regulations. Eight years after I did the work, they finally did something and just transferred by description – not recording the minor subdivision plat. It has changed hands several times since then using the metes and bounds descriptions.
Fortunately, all the people involved understand that this is a new project, new survey, new minor subdivision plat, etc…
What is your process for divisions going through your local planning jurisdiction? Do you allow clients to handle the process or is it just too questionable for comfort that they will follow through?
- 9 Replies
I have to advise against giving the client an option to take care of a procedure that is mine by rule or statute instead of paying for me to complete the job that was commissioned. IMHO, that is very fast way to have a complaint filed with the board for being negligent of my duties.
That is my $0.02
What is your process for divisions going through your local planning jurisdiction? Do you allow clients to handle the process or is it just too questionable for comfort that they will follow through?
I not only allow it, I encourage it. Strongly. I hate doing that part of the process, and my clients are always appalled at how many billable hours it can consume, especially since the back-and-forth with the public agency often involves decisions that the owner has to make anyway. It’s a paper-pushing time sink, and I’d rather be surveying.
Do you allow clients to handle the process or is it just too questionable for comfort that they will follow through?
Almost never – I have given my detailed step-by-step process to many people I thought were intelligent enough to handle it, but almost all have proven that it really is rocket science, and far too difficult for them to accomplish. This knowledge allows me to bill them handsomely and not miss sleep over doing so.
I saw a few things before I was licensed that made me decide to do it all or not at all. In twenty years I haven’t let more than five run their own maps for signatures and recording. The few times I’ve allowed it were repeat clients where there was a certain level of trust and I was unavailable to do it myself in a timely fashion.
I do let clients attend the planning commission meetings, board of zoning appeals meetings, etc. if the job is straight forward and they are comfortable doing so.
Generally in Tennessee (a couple of counties are different) we have what we refer to as the “Five Acre Law”. This defines any division that creates a parcel or leaves a remainder less than five acres or requires new public roads or utilities as a “Subdivision”. Subdivisions are subject to planning and all the fun that goes with it. If you hand a map to John & Susie Homeowner with instructions of how to record it after you’ve run it through the planning process you’ll eventually get a call like the OP and find out that John & Susie never bothered to record the plat but instead ran down to the local Title Attorney and had a deed written with your name all over it. This makes it look like you did a survey and helped them circumvent the planning law.
I also found that I can generally do the work quicker than I can field the fifty confused phone calls asking “Now where do I go and who do I ask for and what day and time will they be available”.
The standard answer, it depends. I also hate the paperwork chasing shuffle and would rather be out in the woods. If it is simple and the client is intelligent and motivated, I let them run it through. One county near me requires signatures from more than a half dozen “authorities” that really should not be involved at all in a simple lot split. Most of the “authorities” are part timers and can only be found at their full time jobs or at the parts store or at a fishing hole. Getting the plat through involves chasing each one of these people down for a signature. In that county, I absolutely insist that the client do that. Actually, I have tried very hard to not work in that county.
I know of several line adjustments that were never recorded because the clients thought that after all the rigamarole of approvals and signatures, stamps, and seals that the final official product in their hand was the event. In fact, nothing happens here until it is recorded in a deed.
I’ve found that by trying to let clients handle any portion of the process, it usually either messes up a lot of the hard work that I have done already or it ends up costing me time that I can’t get compensated for by repeatedly having to field their calls and questions or tell the review agent what the client was actually trying to accomplish. As others have said, some just try to skip out on certain things completely. There are a few select clients that I know have decades of honest development experience and who know the deal – occasionally I’ll let them handle something as I trust them but 99% no they aren’t allowed to. I’ve had several new clients or prospective clients immediately suggest they’d just circumvent the regulations which puts me as a PE/PLS at risk – so yea no thanks and I typically send them calling somebody else.
The couple times I kept clients CC’d to all emails that I have had to do for permits and planning, it led to them realizing there wasn’t any BS’ing in the billed time listed in their invoices as I’d explain the emails were just the tip of the iceberg when those agencies also wanted both electronic copies uploaded and hard copies delivered with the permit review fees. I’d then print out the entire submittal for the client to see just how thick of an envelope was delivered so they’d better understand how much material & effort goes into a submission on their behalf. Usually this helps a skeptical but sensible client gain a greater appreciation of the work done
It depends, there are some items that the client can save money by doing it themselves. I have one client who’s an engineer and I’m dumping all the contacts with the Water, fire, County road approvals on him. I have a realtor who I gave all the consents to and he got them all signed which is a rare occurrence. I have some that want to make the contacts with the local post office, PUD boards, utilities, ect.
There is no rule who has to fill up the checklist for a subdivision review. It’s secretarial work. But for anything that’s truly surveying I do all that.
For instance, there is a need for a Certificate of Title, a form filled out and a plat sent to a ditch company and a signature authority document to finalize a subdivision. The signature authority document had to come from the client (although I could have got it done through his attorney), but he also ordered and picked up the COT and sent over the plat and filled out the form for the ditch company, so it freed me up from those tasks.
I haven’t done a plat for anyone yet, but I’m working on a parcel consolidation which has a short application process. I was planning to have the client do it but after talking with a fellow PLS they said the client usually screws something up. So, I’ve decided I’m going to handle it myself to keep things as simple as possible. As long as you charge for this time I think the potential headache savings will make it well worth it.
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