Wow - high traffic and quick for this thread.
For the same reason the answer to this question is easy to find in good times, it is much the same, maybe more so in tough times.
I am shopping much the same as they are, shopping for someone I can work with. And it goes without saying that that would be someone who thinks they can work with me. (and is perhaps looking for something unique that I can bring to the table) This is just paramount for me.
I can think of little worse than entering an arrangement with someone who may prove to be difficult to work with (as you know building is high stress for many, and tends to amplify their shortcomings) and has exemplified it from the beginning by showing their own lack of ethics by going tire-kicking with a design they have failed to pay for. Or worse yet, perhaps is using the recession to get someone to cut their frame for cost, because they are smart enough (and have the financial wherewithal in this credit driven downturn) to know there are many trades out there scrambling for anything to keep their people busy.
I do know I’ve lost potential work in the past just by asking the “Do you own this design” question. It has though, also gotten me work, (folks aren’t always aware of their faux pas) When we’ve used an uninteresting set of stock plans as a springboard to begin real conversation about what they really wish to build.
And I do find that most don't balk at the suggestion that they should expect to pay for good design and the time it takes.
