I will put this out here for what it's worth and hope it helps some of you. When a bill becomes 30 days late (ie. 60 days from date of service), I send the company an invoice by certified mail (directly to the owner or the head of accounting), including a note that gives them a deadline and states that, if the payment is not received by the deadline, I will notify the lender. Only once have I had a company take me seriously and pay up. I will tell though that every single time the deadline has passed, I have contacted the lender. Without fail. I send a letter directly to the CEO and, if I don't get a response, I call them. I have always, and I do mean ALWAYS, had good luck with this approach even with large companies like Countrywide. I ask the CEO to contact the company and instruct them to pay me. I include all proof that I have in my possession that I had a contract with the compnay, that I completed the job, etc., including a copy of the HUD so that the lender has the loan number. I also ask the lender not to use that company again. There are thousands of companies in this country in our business, the majority of them are good companies. Lenders don't need to deal with the bummers. You may say, "Well, I have one company that always pays me, but they're always late. I don't want to call the lender on them." For these types of companies, I would suggest that you charge them an up-front late fee. Make it part of the fee you quote them. If they want to be late, make it financially worth your while. However, I will point out this: These types of companies could never get away with paying their employees  late. The feds would never allow it. If you are being paid consistently late by a company, you are being abused. At some point in time, you will need to let go of them and spend your time working with other companies that value your service more. Don't be scared by companies that call you and scream, "You called the lender on me. I'm going to tell everyone I know not to use you." If you provide quality work, your record will stand for itself.

Ronda Roaring