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Canada, Sandra Bullock & Texas |
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Sunday, 28 August 2005 |
Hollywood star's court win a victory for homeowners
"A victory for Sandra Bullock brings to an end a long, grueling trial that sends a loud message to lawmakers, the home-building industry and a message of hope for homebuyers of defective homes across the nation,'' said Jane Ahmad, president of Home Owners For Better Building, based in San Antonio, Texas. |
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DR Horton - Beware of New Home Contracts |
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Sunday, 28 August 2005 |
Home, late, home
As thousands of new houses rise in western Chatham County, some buyers are discovering - the hard way - that contracts can be weighted heavily toward the builder..."They're all about limiting the builders' liability," said Janet Ahmad, president of Homeowners for Better Building, a nonprofit advocacy group. "And if you've limited your liability, what gives you the incentive to even build the foundation right?" |
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Thursday, 18 August 2005 |
MSN Money
Insurers Keep A Secret History Of Your Home
A huge database not only tracks claims, it also looks for risks such as toxic mold. That's why homeowners with even minor water damage are being canceled -- and are sometimes unable to sell.
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New York Times - That Hissing Sound |
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Tuesday, 16 August 2005 |
That Hissing Sound
ABSTRACT - Paul Krugman Op-Ed column on signs that United States housing bubble has started to deflate. Housing prices move much more slowly than stock prices. There are no Black Mondays, when prices fall 23 percent in a day. In fact, prices often keep rising for a while even after a housing boom goes bust. So the news that the U.S. housing bubble is over won't come in the form of plunging prices; it will come in the form of falling sales and rising inventory, as sellers try to get prices that buyers are no longer willing to pay. And the process may already have started. |
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Tuesday, 16 August 2005 |
Monday Morning Mold August 15, 2005
In tracking mold stories over the last three years, I've realized that the job with the highest percentage of documented mold exposure is being a Governor of a state. To date, 8% of all governors (Texas, North Carolina, South Carolina and Louisianna) have had to be relocated from their Governor's Mansions because of mold. |
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FTC - Facts for Consumers |
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Sunday, 07 August 2005 |
FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
Warranties for Newly Built Homes: Know Your Options
For many people, a home is the most expensive purchase they ever make. It’s no wonder, then, that buyers of newly built homes are interested in warranties, which promise to repair or replace certain elements of the home, if necessary, within a certain time. According to the Federal Trade Commission, the nation’s consumer protection agency, if you’re considering a home warranty it’s important to understand what it covers, how to make a claim, and the process for resolving disputes that may arise between you and the builder or warranty company.
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Scott Sullan Settles DR Horton Case |
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Thursday, 28 July 2005 |
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Builder OKs $39 million to end suit
Texas-based homebuilder D.R. Horton has agreed to pay owners of a condominium complex in Superior $39.5 million, the largest settlement of a residential construction-defects lawsuit in Colorado history, said Scott Sullan , a Denver lawyer who represented the homeowners. Owners of the 246-unit Summit at Rock Creek complex filed suit in 2003, two months before the enactment of a state law that limits the damages homeowners may collect for construction defects. |
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Arizona Registrar of Contractors' Recovery Fund pays record $5.14 million |
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Tuesday, 19 July 2005 |
Contractor fund pays $5 mil for poor work
Payouts for poor or incomplete construction work by licensed contractors hit a record $5.14 million in fiscal year 2005. The payouts increased for the second year in a row because of record construction activity, increased claim limits and public awareness of the Arizona Registrar of Contractors' Residential Contractors Recovery Fund... Complaints against licensed contractors for workmanship and incomplete work increased 9.1 percent to 9,903 in fiscal 2005, which ended June 30. |
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Texas Monthly - Home Buyer Beware |
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Friday, 15 July 2005 |
How a new state agency of the builders, by the builders, and for the builders makes it harder for you to sue, yes, your builder.
In 2003, after spreading around $9 million in campaign contributions, the powerful home builders’ lobby got the Legislature to agree with its contention that implied warranties were too darn vague and that the lawsuits they produced were too damaging to the industry. Instead, it asked lawmakers to create a new state agency to protect builders from legal retribution. It was one of the most blatant power plays in recent years, made possible by an anti-lawsuit fervor that swept through the new Republican-controlled Legislature and by the influence of two politically active builders: the biggest individual contributor, Bob Perry (no relation to Governor Rick Perry but lots of political ties), and the co-founder of Texans for Lawsuit Reform, Dick Weekley. Thus was born the Texas Residential Construction Commission (TRCC), which in its short life has served as the classic case study of what can happen when a public agency is captured by the industry it is supposed to regulate... Homeowner advocate Janet Ahmad points out that the agency refuses to hear cases involving incomplete construction, even though one of the most common complaints against homebuilders involves those who disappear and leave behind half-finished projects. Ahmad conducted telephone interviews and found overwhelmingly that the consumers who had “won†their cases at the agency felt it did no good because they still had to pursue action in court against their builders. |
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Ryland Homes Ceilings Collapsed & Update |
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Friday, 15 July 2005 |
City staff passes buck on ceiling problems
Ceilings collapsed in the bedrooms of two homes in Frederick's Overlook development in the last five years due to what city officials cite is faulty construction.City of Frederick staff knew about the collapses, but chose not to notify other homeowners in the development of the potential danger... |
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New York Times - New Jersey Officials Pleaded Guilty |
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Monday, 11 July 2005 |
Officials Pleaded Guilty, but Town Was Changed Forever
The price of corruption in this New Jersey town may best be seen in the many rooflines that snake down Woodcliff Boulevard at a uniform 25-foot setback from the curb. Or perhaps in the postmodern stylings of the luxury five- and six-bedroom homes in the planned community of Lexington Estates.
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Forclosures rise in 47 states |
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Sunday, 10 July 2005 |
A Bane Amid The Housing Boom: Rising Foreclosures
Foreclosure rates rose in 47 states in March, according to Foreclosure.com, an online foreclosure listing service. The rates in Florida, Texas and Colorado are more than twice the national average. Even in New York City and Boston, where real estate markets are white-hot, foreclosures are rising in working-class neighborhoods... many policymakers say the rise in foreclosures leads to a larger question: Is the push to boost homeownership -- successive presidential administrations have strongly promoted it -- backfiring? ..."We've had a national agenda that's putting people into homeownership who are not ready for it,"... |
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HUD - History Making KB Home Fine |
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Saturday, 09 July 2005 |
HUD ANNOUNCES $3.2 MILLION SETTLEMENT AGAINST KB HOME MORTGAGE COMPANY
Largest settlement in history of Mortgagee Review Board (HUD Press Release)
Washington-- The Department of Housing and Urban Development today announced it has reached a $3.2 million settlement with KB Home Mortgage Company in connection with a series of alleged violations of HUD requirements. The $3.2 million is the largest amount ever collected in the 30-year history of HUD's Mortgagee Review Board (MRB), which takes administrative actions against FHA-approved lenders... "This settlement sends a strong message that FHA will not tolerate violations of its requirements, especially when they can cause homeowners to default on their mortgages."...
Associated Press: KB Home also agreed to beef up its quality assurance practices as part of the deal, HUD officials said. See: Associated Press Brief and HUD Press Release |
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Better Business Bureau Takes Action |
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Thursday, 07 July 2005 |
Contractors From Hell…Not at the BBB!
Tremont failed to take the ethically correct route and chose to pursue their case through the AAA. Due process was followed at the BBB and they were ultimately revoked from the Bureau. The language on their BBB report reflects the same. Ms. Fogle continues to wage war with Tremont, only to find herself being personally sued for her troubles. Tremont has also sued another of their residents in Tremont Towers for painting lemons on her windows. Last report to this office indicated that the judge at that hearing commended her on her artwork. |
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House moving down the mountain |
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Saturday, 02 July 2005 |
Lawsuit filed over falling house in Gatlinburg
Soils engineers hired by the city later determined that the house foundation cracked and the house began to move down the mountain because it was partly located on unstable ground... Although the house is still standing, the foundation is cracked and the house has tilted. According to the city's soils engineer, it should be demolished or moved because movement of the slope is expected to continue.The city had condemned the house as being unsafe.
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