The Builder’s Definition of Wealth

Commission is counted at the end of the month. A builder who means to keep what he builds counts over decades, and that changes which choices look expensive.

Take the foundations and the damp-proof course of a small block of rental flats. A contractor paid per job has every reason to do only what the inspector will pass, because cracks and rising damp tend to appear long after the final payment. The owner who plans to keep the building and rent it out for many years sees the same choice differently. A proper damp-proof layer, good drainage away from the walls, decent waterproofing on the roof: each one costs more today and saves repair bills, tenant complaints and vacant months for as long as the building stands.

That is what wealth looks like from the builder's side of the table. It is a building that keeps earning without constantly eating its own income, owned by someone with enough room in the budget to turn down a bad tenant or refuse a rushed sale. Options and time count for more than one big month.

Counted the first way, building properly looks like losing money. Counted the second way, it is the only version that makes sense, and the difference between the two comes down to how long someone intends to stay.