How to screen a new client before you take the job

Confirm who and where

Get the legal name, the service address, a billing address, and a phone number you have actually called. Mismatches between billing and service addresses on a large job are worth a question, not an assumption.

For commercial work, look up the entity in the state's business registry. Check that it is active, note the registered agent, and make sure the entity name on your contract matches the registry exactly — suing "Bob's Kitchens" when the party is "RSB Holdings LLC" wastes a filing.

Check public records that predict payment behavior

County court records often show prior collections suits, evictions, or contract disputes. County recorder records show liens and judgments against the property. For commercial clients, prior mechanics liens filed by other trades are a direct signal about how they treat vendors.

Most of this is searchable for free. Keep it to public sources; pulling a consumer credit report on an individual for a job quote generally requires a permissible purpose and consent under federal law, so do not improvise there.

Ask the questions that reveal risk

Three questions surface most trouble: Who else has quoted this, and what happened with the last contractor? Who signs the check and who approves the scope? What is your timeline and what happens if it slips?

Listen for a pattern of blaming every prior vendor, refusal to name the previous contractor, urgency without a reason, or resistance to any paperwork. None of these are disqualifying alone; together they are a pricing decision.

Watch the payment signals

Pushing back hard on a normal deposit, insisting on paying the full amount by card on a large job with no scope agreement, wanting the invoice in a different name, or asking you to bill a third party — each of these correlates with disputes later. So does a request to skip the written contract to "keep it simple".

Price the risk instead of just walking

You do not have to refuse a risky client. Raise the deposit, shorten the draw schedule, require milestone sign-offs, take payment by method that is harder to reverse for large amounts, and put nothing on credit. Where the risk is genuinely unmanageable, decline politely and in writing, without commentary.

Common questions

Is it legal to look up a customer before working for them?

Searching public records and business filings is ordinary due diligence. Consumer credit reports are regulated and generally require a permissible purpose and consent, so treat those differently.

What is the fastest single check?

The county court and recorder search on the property or entity. It takes minutes and surfaces prior disputes, liens, and judgments.

Should I refuse a client with a bad record?

Not necessarily. Most experienced businesses adjust terms instead — bigger deposit, tighter milestones, no discretionary credit — and reserve refusal for cases where no structure makes the job safe.

More guides

• How to fight a false chargeback as a service business
• Client is not paying the invoice: an escalation ladder that works
• Deposits, contracts, and the clauses that prevent disputes