Outstanding article from Off the Kuff |
Friday, 04 February 2005 |
Off the Kuff Building influence Here's an interesting article from the This Week section of the Chron regarding an acrimonious and public battle between a disgruntled homebuyer named Jordan Fogal and the builder who constructed her house, Tremont Homes... Let's start with the baseless attack on civil juries, something that I've noted before. Just once, I'd like to see a reporter ask someone who offers such an opinion if they hold similar feelings about juries in criminal trials... Attacking juries like this is cynical, dishonest, and really quite insulting, since after all everyone reading this is a potential juror. That this now seems to be a standard talking point for the homebuilding industry certainly doesn't give me any faith in their preferred system of arbitration...But what really gets me is the last quoted sentence. The lawyer for the builders is also an arbitrator for the AAA, which is the group used to rule on these builder/buyer disputes. |
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Illinois Attorney General takes action |
Tuesday, 01 February 2005 |
Illinois Attorney General Madigan Seeks Temporary Restraining Order Against Home Repair And Remodeling Company And Owner 31 Consumers Allegedly Bilked For Approximately $2.1 Million January 28, 2005 -- Chicago â With an avalanche of consumer complaints piling up and at the request of the office of Attorney General Lisa Madigan, Cook County Judge Peter Flynn this afternoon entered a temporary restraining order (TRO) against a Cook County construction and home repair company and its president after they allegedly bilked 31 consumers out of approximately $2.1 million. |
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Tuesday, 01 February 2005 |
News 3 Las Vegas Beazer Homes Ripped Apart To Support Defect Claims "There have been concerns all throughout the neighborhood where houses have been tested and had a lot of mold⦠The invasive testing going on at Mary Fiel's house and 13 others in Vista Del Oro is part of a construction defect lawsuit filed about a year ago against Beazer Homes⦠Jewel White is another Vista Del Oro homeowner. "This was my retirement dream, which has turned into a nightmare." The lawsuit, which is pending clearance for class action status, alleges Beazer knew about the defects and in many cases, failed to act. "Nobody wanted to sue them. We asked them time and time again to fix things and they wouldn't do it." Things like water leaks, plumbing and electrical problems and mold. "You buy a house with the hope that it's going to be done right, and it's not." Must See: Beazer Homes Lawsuits |
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Sunday, 30 January 2005 |
Cincinnati Enquirer Hammer home-builder fraud Two pairs of local white-collar criminals are prison-bound for similar fraud schemes that ripped off banks and home buyers. Bankers John Finnan and Marc Menne were sentenced Tuesday in federal court in Covington to 63 and 54 months respectively for their roles in the $30 million Erpenbeck home-building fraud. Eleven days earlier, Fairfield home builder Chester Calkins and his wife, Antonette, pleaded guilty to a similar $5 million scam. |
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Former Cincinnati Home Builders Association President Convicted of Fraud |
Friday, 28 January 2005 |
Cincinnati Enquirer Builder awaits fraud sentence Calkins case reminds many of Erpenbeck A Fairfield home builder is awaiting sentencing for bank fraud in a case reminiscent of the Erpenbeck scandal that rocked the region. Federal prosecutors say Chester Calkins and his wife, Antonette, did not pay off construction loans on 47 condominiums purchased with cash⦠It is unclear what sent Chester Calkins, who was president of the Greater Cincinnati Home Builders Association in 2000, into financial collapse. The company is in bankruptcy, and Calkins has been convicted of writing bad checks in Ohio. |
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Take Back Your Right in the News |
Friday, 28 January 2005 |
Frisco Enterprise Attorneys for city and TBYR volley legalities "The Beckas hereby make a formal legal demand that at the next city council meeting, on or before Feb. 8, 2005, that you officially place the two Take Back Your Rights charter amendments on the May 2005 election ballot," wrote Fred Lewis, an Austin-based attorney representing the group headed by Frisco orthodontist Dr. David Becka. "The law is clear that you are required to put the amendments on the May 2005 ballot and failure to do so is a violation of your non-discretionary duties," Lewis wrote. Lewis is the leader of government watchdog groups called "Campaign for the People and "Clean Up Texas Politics." He said he is offering his services to TBYR pro bono, free of charge. |
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AAA & Tremont Homes poor building practices in the news again |
Thursday, 27 January 2005 |
Houston Chronicle Owners, builder in standoff over home Couple wants house bought back, plus cash payment; company says 'no'
When Jordan and Bob Fogal purchased a $360,000 town home in Hyde Park Crescent in April 2002, they thought they were making a sound investment... "The first night we were there, my husband took a bath on the third floor and water leaked all the way down to the first floor," she said. As the months passed, she said, the home continued to deteriorate. The stucco on the outside walls began to crack, the kitchen leaked badly and the house began to smell... Tremont is forcing the fogal's into binding arbitration which Jordan describes in this article as: "You've got people blindly walking into arbitration, hoping to get a fair deal, but they're not going to. It's like a drunk driver suing you for denting his car with your head." |
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New Jersey Supreme Court Rule to Hold Builder Accountable |
Wednesday, 26 January 2005 |
Star-Ledger Staff Justices hold builders liable years after sale Ruling is a victory for new home buyers Giving homeowners a powerful new set of allies, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled yesterday that municipal construction officials can fine builders for faulty craftsmanship years after the house is completed and sold. |
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Texas New Substandard Standards |
Wednesday, 26 January 2005 |
Houston Chronicle Getting it in writing Texas has put in place standards for home construction, but builders and consumer activists disagree on their fairness First it cracked. Then it buckled. Finally the kitchen tile in Debbie and Rick Gannaway's Katy home popped off the floor. But their builder, Houston-based Trendmaker Homes, won't fix it because their one-year warranty on workmanship and materials has expired. |
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Donor cash tilts state laws |
Wednesday, 26 January 2005 |
Star-Telegram Austin Bureau Watchdogs: Donor cash tilts state laws It's supposed to be the American dream, but owning a home can be a nightmare in Texas because builders have used millions in campaign cash to tilt state laws in their favor, a coalition of watchdog groups said Monday. At issue is a 2003 law that established the Texas Residential Construction Commission, strongly supported by home-building interests, which contributed some $9 million to state candidates and political entities between 2001 and 2004â¦
HOBB Commentary: Donât you just love the Texas Assoc. of Builders comments on TRCC? Isn't this like putting expensive lipstick on a pig. See the comments by Kristi Sutterfield , director of the Texas Association of Builders, attempting to defend the builderâs slaughter of home buyer protection and rights. Sutterfield said, â the law actually enhances homeowner protections by setting a uniform, state-imposed warranty... She also said the residential construction commission is resolving complaints quicklyâ¦â The homebuilding industry can continue to fool the people with shoddy building practices most of the time but not all of the people, no matter the shade of the lipstick on TRCC. Bad will be bad, no matter the cosmetic fix. |
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Big Money and Shoddy Construction |
Tuesday, 25 January 2005 |
Big Money and Shoddy Construction: Texas Home Buyers Left Out in the Cold Monday, January 24, 2005, Homeowners for Better Building and Campaigns for People held a press conference to release a report on homebuildersâ mammoth campaign contributions and the 2003 Texas Legislatureâs passage of laws that stripped homebuyers of most of their rights against homebuilders for shoddy construction.
See Report: http://www.cleanuptexaspolitics.com/images/Homeowners.doc |
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Tuesday, 25 January 2005 |
Dallas Morning News: Special Report Home buyers wary of agency Some consumer groups, others say TRCC doesn't aid consumers enough Since its creation in September 2003, unhappy homeowners and consumer groups have criticized the agency for doing little to help buyers, because it can't force builders to make repairs. And they say the agency's passage this month of new building standards allows for shoddy construction, not a guarantee of quality work... Consumer groups say the agency is biased toward the building industry because commissioners and most agency leaders have backgrounds in construction or real estate. They say builders have won their influence in the Legislature from both parties by blanketing them with political donations. |
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Highlights Monday from the Texas Legislature |
Tuesday, 25 January 2005 |
Associated Press: Highlights Monday from the Texas Legislature Homebuilders contributed at least $8.9 million the past four years to state leaders and legislators and along the way won passage in 2003 of a bill that diminishes homeowners' rights, two watchdog groups said Monday. |
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Just Who Is Watching Out For Texas Homeowners? |
Tuesday, 25 January 2005 |
San Antonio Express-News Carlos Guerra: In Austin, Just Who Is Watching Out For Texas Homeowners? A study released Monday by a campaign finance reform group and three homeowner groups underscores why Texas' pay-to-play politics must be stopped. The damning report by Homeowners for Better Building, Homeowners Against Deficient Dwellings, Take Back Your Rights and Campaigns for People is appropriately titled: "Big Money and Shoddy Construction: Texas Homeowners Left Out In the Cold." |
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Homebuilders' campaign donations rapped |
Tuesday, 25 January 2005 |
San Antonio Express-News: Homebuilders' campaign donations rapped AUSTIN â Advocates of campaign finance reform and homeowners' rights joined Monday to spotlight almost $9 million in campaign contributions from homebuilder interests over a nearly four-year period that included passage of a law the groups say hurt homebuyers.
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