As someone who often interviews ‘Software Engineers’, I am in capable of suffering one more conversation where I am told that my existing code base is garbage and needs to be completely rewritten. Recently, I paid for a port from php to node.js, only to be told that the new node code is awful by someone trying to win updates and ongoing maintenance. I have read the code. Other than a complete lack of any comments, it is quite legible and supportable.
It is possible to market software engineering services without degrading all others in the field or over inflating the work estimate. It is possible to win a contract by admitting it will take some additional time and effort to become fluent with someone else’s earnest work product.