vBEscrow Service?

[yinyang]

i was curious to know everyone's input on a service for vbulletin. this idea, which is not new, would help alleviate some of the problems coders have with clients not paying and for clients who pay and have the coders disappear.

the service itself, tentatively called "fifty50" would be set up as a bonafide 501(c)(3) tax-exempt corporation. The corporation would serve as an escrow company for coders and clients.

fifty50 should solve the problem of this "chicken and the egg" dilemma in client/coding services.

a) when a Client (someone who needs coding) and Coder agree on terms, they sign a contract and agreement.
b) the sum of money then gets deposited into a client account designated by "fifty50.net".
c) When the funds are received, fifty50 contacts the coder and coder begins his work.
d) when coder finishes his job, he delivers his project and upon satisfactory receipt ("as outlined and defined in their agreement") of the coding project by the Client, fifty50 releases the funds to the Coder.

now there are obviously some bugs and kinks to work out. the fee for this would be 1% of the contracted amount (maybe with a floor and ceiling) and will come out of the escrow account and the balance will be transferred to the Coder.

since fifty50.net would be a non-profit, the Coder can apply the 1% fee they paid as a legitimate charitable tax-deduction.

under this model, this would be a Coder driven business, i.e., the Coders pay for it. However, it could easily be reworked where the Clients may also have to pay some additional fees as well... but again, these fees are to a 501(c)(3) non-profit and thus the Client can claim those fees as a charitable tax-deduction.

well, i'm curious to know your thoughts on something like this.