Finders Fee... how does it work? (Help with this debate!)

[RW1967GTA]

If you charge a finders fee for a service of providing leads to car collectors in the United States, does it make a difference whether the individual chooses to actually purchase one of the vehicles? Aren't you actually being paid for the information?

[DANIELGILL]

I would think a fee would be payable only if a transaction takes place.

real estate agents do not get paid for showing you a house but they do when a transaction happen.

the problem is protecting yourself once you give the info. If a transaction does not take place now but does 6 months down the road shoudl you still get paid

[RW1967GTA]

Thats the great debate. I only see this being fair if the person is paid for the info they provide, before the information is exchanged.

I see how a realestate agent wouldn't get paid for showing a home, but someone who charges a finders fee doesn't get a percentage of the car's cost either. They get paid for sharing information that leads to the purchase of a vehicle. I guess?

[DANIELGILL]

That makes sense as well, i guess it's all in the original agreement.

if someone in NH has somebody else do all kind of leg work to find them a california car then i would agree that the info should be paid for either the transaction happen or not if the find is an exact match to the search.

[JSHarvey]

It just depends on your contract. In a *perfect* world you wouldn't give crappy tips and the buyer wouldn't try to avoid paying by stalling the purchase or having a friend buy the car and then reselling it to him.

But of course the world *isn't* perfect so people make other arrangements. Paying only if there is a sale tends to increase the quality of the tips.

You could structure a contract to say that the potential buyer pays a bit up front for each tip, and then a good bit if and when they buy a car. It just depends on what you can negotiate.

John Harvey

It depends on if the person inspecting the car has been contracted to "find" a car or if they are simply doing an "inspection". If it's contracting to find a car, then the fee is paid when the right car is found. Otherwise, inspections should be paid time+expenses, no matter how many cars are looked at.