Covid-19 Crisis -We’ve Got Your Back

Covid-19 Crisis – An Open Letter to Our Clients, Friends and Community

Published April 7, 2020, this letter addressed the immediate uncertainty created by the COVID-19 crisis and the lockdowns that followed. Its central message was practical: a difficult cash-flow period should not by itself end a relationship built on trust.

The letter described a temporary policy for the balance of 2020: clients could pay what they could, when they could. That was a dated operating decision, rather than a standing promise. It sat alongside a broader commitment to keep a fee from becoming the only consideration when a client was working through a hard season.

For an established real-estate leader, the useful question is how that principle would work in the next disruption. Before pressure rises, decide which services must continue, how clients can raise a cash-flow concern, who owns each response and when temporary terms will be revisited. Write the arrangement plainly so the relationship is protected by shared expectations rather than goodwill alone.

Due to the COVID-19 crisis and associated lockdowns, for the balance of 2020 we will be adopting a “pay what you can, when you can” policy.

A resilient client policy also needs boundaries. Confirm the period covered, the services included, the person who can approve an exception and the date for a check-in. Keep a short record of the conversation. That makes care concrete while giving the business a way to plan.

The letter closed with encouragement about what difficult moments might make possible. Those possibilities are not guarantees. A leader can honor the same spirit by staying close to clients, naming constraints early and making decisions that can be sustained after the immediate crisis has passed.

The letter was signed by Chris Pollinger.

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