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| Register Your Builder Complaint |
Please let us know what has happened to you, and let us know if you would like to help us make buying new houses safer.
Tell us your story.
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Christine Blum
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posted 13 September 2006 16:05 CET
My husband, AJ, and I purchased a brand new DR Horton home located in the Spring area, on June 25, 2004. We have had a water intrusion issue (originally thought to be a simple roof repair) for over 2 YEARS now! We have repeatedly give them opporutnity after opportunity (I think we are up to 9 attempted repairs now) to locate and repair the issue. We have had to retain legal counsel (as of Feb '06), and have been very amicable in attempting to find a resonable resolution (hello, fix it buy it back, or trade for another...they are building a lot of cimmunities in our area). As of today, their lawyer told our lawyer that they would not pay for an additnional, more specialized inspector to assist in locating the problem. Further, they have come to the conclusion the WE are be UNREASONABLE!!!!! We are sending out paperwork (and $250 fee) to the Texas Residential Construction Commission, as we cannot pursue further litigation until we have complied with that requirement - IF they even say we qualify. Our lawyer is behind us 110%, but we will only be able to afford his service for so long, as we are just the 'average joe' couple. If anyone can, PLEASE HELP!!!!
Thank you, Christine Blum |
steven recupero
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posted 2 September 2006 15:24 CET
WE BOUGHT OUR GEMCRAFT HOME IN HUNTER CREEK SUBDIVISION IN YORK, PA IN DEC-05. SINCE THEN, WE HAD CLOGGED TOILETS; WATER LEAKING FROM UPSTAIRS MASTER BATH TUB INTO THE DOWNSTAIRS LIVING ROOM; SEVERE CEILING DRYWALL WATER DAMAGE FROM LEAKING WATER COMING FROM THE ROOF.
EVERY TIME WE CALL THE BUILDER FOR REPAIRS WE ALWAYS GET VOICEMAILS AND WHEN THEY DECIDE TO CALL US BACK IT ALWAYS SEEMS LIKE THEY THINK WE ARE LYING OR SOMETHING. SO FAR THEY HAVE FIXED SOME OF THE PROBLEMS EXCEPT THE DRYWALL REPAIRS. THEY SAID THEY ONLY FIX DRYWALLS ONCE A YEAR.
MY MAJOR CONCERN IS THAT WHEN OUR WARRANTY EXPIRES, WE WILL STILL BE FACED WITH THE SAME OR MORE PROBLEMS. |
Janet Ahmad
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posted 2 September 2006 14:38 CET
Michaelynn Huber:
You should contact the following:
MY ROTTLUND HOME.COM -
http://www.myrottlundhome.com
Cracks begin appearing where walls meet ceiling in garage - chunks of plaster begin falling out...Horizontal cracks begin appearing on back porch steps, cracks appear in garage floor...
Janet Ahmad |
Michaelynn Huber
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posted 23 August 2006 10:27 CET
My home was built by Rottlund Homes-David Bernard in Hugo MN. I've lived in my town home for almost two years. I've had many issues since I've moved in. The most serious of them invloves my roof.. It's leaking! I'm extremely unhappy with the quality of my home, the Rottlund staff and the sublet contractors. Is there anyone else on here who has a home built by Rottlund? Have you had issues? Please let me know. Thanks in advance for your help. |
bbudd1023@hotmail.com
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posted 20 August 2006 08:00 CET
I live in a fox and jacobs home we have lived here 2 years and our fence is already falling dowm. I contacted fox and jacobs and they will do nothing about it. My neighbors in the entire neighborhoods fences are the same way, several in our alley have already been replaced. I refuse to pay 3000 to replace my fence when they should of put up a better quality fence. A fence contractor said they have done many short cuts on our fence one being instead of taking a two by four and cutting it in half to be used for the picekets they divided intp thirds. they only used one screw per fence picket to attch to the main posts and also used lawn timbers instead of using real fence posts. Not only do we have to pay to replace the fence we also have to pay to have the new fence restained. I will never buy a fox and jacobs home again.
Brandy Adams
2926 Sheridan lane
wylie, tx 75098
972-575-8863 |
Jay Hirata
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posted 15 August 2006 04:41 CET
My wife and I purchased this new home in the EMERALD FOREST subdivision in the north central San Antonio, Texas area. We are a military family, I am currently a Colonel in the Army and my wife recently retired as a Lieutenant Colonel in the Army as well. We were stationed in San Antonio in June 2004 and we purchased this home due to its great location and beautiful area.
Within the first few months, 2 Oct 2004, to be exact, we observed water penetration to one of our walls in the basement storage area. Again, this was the first time that we noticed this leakage, it may have occured prior to our purchase and during the 18 months that the house was unoccupied. It was only by chance that we we down in the basement where we maintain our empty boxes. We immediately contacted the SITTERLE CORPORATION and the defective basement leaked four additional times from three different walls before the company attempted to fix the problem. There is a strong musty odorous smell in the basement and the flooring is marked with water stains.
The SITTERLE CORP attempted to remedy the situation by applying Line-X to the foundation walls. This is the same solution applied to truck bed liners. We hired a lawyer once we found out their repair plan and brought in a structural engineer and foundation subject matter experts to determine the appropriate measures to prevent future water leakage/penetration. Of course, the SITTERLE CORP does not admit any fault and are unwilling to remedy the situation. They feel that the LINE-X, an unapproved substance, with no guarantees, is the fix.
During the deposition with the owner, Mr. Sitterle JR, he revealed that the company has built six basement homes in the same complex, EMERALD FOREST, to include our defective home. Of which, four basement homes have reported water penetration, 4/6, a 67% failure rate. In addition, they have revealed that they dug up the front yard due to water penetration prior to our purchase. They did not feel that they had to reveal this to the new homeowner, but the homeowner would have to reveal, by law, on the real estate disclosure report if they sold the home.
The blue print also revealed that the SITTERLE CORP did not follow their construction plan. Insulation was not installed in the basement walls and the french drains were not properly installed.
The SITTERLE CORP's quality assurance and quality control measures are suspect. We found out their Production Manager was fired during the construction of our home and we personally witnessed the unsupervision of their worker who painted on the Line-X on the foundation walls.
The TRCC ruled in our favor and we are disgruntled homeowner, we are the victims of shoddy construction and a company that is unwilling and unable to accept responsibility and accountability for this defective foundation and home. Their poor track record, 67% failure rate proves that they have major problems and issues in building basement homes.
Thank you for your time.
Jay and Joy Hirata |
Greg Cole
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posted 14 August 2006 12:17 CET
My builder is John Wieland Homes. We bought our new home in July of 2000. We have had structural issues from foundation, framing, roof leaks as well as doors and windows. Our new home is damaged with mold and has lead to severe health issues with my family. The builder is demanding arbitration with their own appointed arbritration company that does all of their cases! Go Figure! I have no chance with the arbitration. My home, family and life have been destroyed by this builder. I have been told that we must get out of our home and leave everything behind but the clothes on our back! Twenty two years of hard work has been destroyed by the buider. Why are our leaders letting this happen to hard working families? |
Rodney Washington
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posted 13 August 2006 21:42 CET
08/12/06
I called in to the David Yates show on WBAP 820 Dallas,Tx. Radio “The Home Show” the screener answering the call and asked who I was and I told her that I had talked to David Yates the week before and wanted to talk to him again about my ten year worthless warranty “Home Of Texas” warranty company that I have and TRCC issues. I was on hold for about 15 minutes the first time then I was hung up on. Then 35 minutes the second time hung up on. I then called back and told her that I did not appreciate them hanging up on me and that I would be calling back in on Monday morning talking to David’s superiors and told her thank you for your time and I hung up this time. After hanging up I then heard David say that he had lost my call on the air so I called back again telling the screener that I wanted to talk to him again, this time while I was on hold I heard him say that he was done covering the TRCC for the day with Janet Ahmad and he was not going to take any more phone calls on the air about the TRCC. I think that if he has a radio talk show inviting the public to come on and speak whatever they want to speak about, he should allow anyone to do that and not screen and pick and choose who and what he wants on the air ways. WHAT IN THE WORLD HAS HAPPENED TO THE FREEDOM OF THE PRESS????????? |
Chris Eaken
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posted 16 July 2006 17:31 CET
We purchased a David Weekly home based on promises and representations made by their sales staff, marketing materials, past awards and reputation in the Tampa, FL area.
Let me outline the list of problems that we have had or still have with what was to be our dream home. This list is by no means inclusive of our problems, but rather a mere sampling.
1) Told by sales staff on 3 occasions, there was a front porch across house. It doesn’t have one.
2) We were supposed to have a full lanai in back. After moving across country from California, we find out that 8 feet of our lanai houses two air conditioning units. We were not told this or formally notified of a design change until 3 months after we signed a contract. We were not given an option to have the units placed elsewhere. Several houses on the same street have units placed by master bedroom.
3) There are major structural issues with the house.
4) The roof trusses are jimmied in to fit, rather than flush.
5) The roof is so uneven that it looks like there are waves on our house.
6) The foundation is not level. In some spots, it is an inch higher than the surrounding area.
7) There are several large (1/4”-3/8”) cracks in the foundation
8) There are several major design problems. For example, the cabinet in one bathroom protrudes into the molding around door. The door was not placed far enough to one side to account for the cabinet. We were told all the Tyson units are designed this way.
9) We were told that we had a 3 car garage, yet the third space is taken up by air conditioner units.
10) There is not a straight wall in our house. Some walls bow in 1-2”.
11) There is not a molding in the house that is mitered correctly.
12) We have a severe erosion problem in the back yard.
13) Windows are so uneven that there are some windows that the top and bottom measurement differ by 1-2”.
14) We were told by a David Weekly employee that “green wood was used”, causing many of the problems, including the uneven walls and windows.
15) Interior walls were not placed correctly, resulting in several rooms that are off on one side by 2-3”.
16) Water softener plumber forgot to include a drain.
17) We never got a paint touch up set.
18) We still don’t have a listing of all the numbers to call for repairs, or a listing of our colors. We didn’t receive our homeowner portfolio until the day of closing.
19) The main wall in the Great Room was so uneven and bowed; the warranty department had to put crown molding to cover up fixes. We were originally told that David Weekly was going to put crown molding in the entire room, but when the fix occurred, it was only put in on the wall and let unpainted. So we had to pay to put it on the other walls and paint it.
20) Condenser units installed incorrectly.
So we go through the process with the warranty department. Nothing is ever fixed the first time. In many situations we have had to have work done on items 3-4 times. For example, the side porch, it took them 4 times to fix and it is still not right. Not to mentioned, during one of the fixes they splattered paint on our walls and our neighbor’s walls. This has yet to be repainted. Or the tile guy uses the wrong color grout so all the repairs are noticeable.
Employees spend more time blaming someone else than actually fixing the problem. For example, to repair the poor miter cuts in the molding, the painters were supposed to repair and repaint the molding. They repainted the molding but told us the carpenter had to fix the molding. The carpenter, of course says it is the painters responsibility.
To add insult to injury, we have had items stolen from our house by your employees. My husband is self-employed, so when he is there supervising their staff to ensure that the items get fixed and we are not robbed, he is loosing money. The few times when items were actually repaired, the repairman usually break something else in the process. For example, the molding guy damaged several of our tiles by throwing his power tool on the floor when putting up the crown molding in the great room and repairing the baseboards around the island in the kitchen.
Many others have had similiar experiences. It is time to take action.
We are not some picky homeowners, or as we were told by one of your employees “Boy, California must have good building codes, because the problems you have are nothing compared to what gets built in Florida”. All I wanted was a house constructed with appropriate materials and built by competent employees. I understand there are always going to be minor repairs and problems with a new house. Our problems are not minor.
I am trying to put together enough disgruntled David Weekley homeowners to file Class Action litigation against the company. Please email me at cleaken@yahoo.com if you are interested in joining. |
Steve
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posted 12 July 2006 08:45 CET
Hi, I placed a complaint in April with regard to American Pride Builders in Fort Myers Florida. Subsequent to my complaint I have worked out an arrangement with American Pride that is very fair and satisfactory to everyone involved from both a time and cost aspect. I want to commend the owner of the company, Sal Allan, for taking the iniative to contact me and work with me in a civil manner. |
Michael
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posted 10 July 2006 19:54 CET
I want to alert home owners in Northern New Jersey (Bergen/Passaic counties) as well as Rockland county in New York against a company called ValKis and its proprietor, Sergei Kislenko, of Fair Lawn NJ. He runs a small construction business. I hired him to perform a medium sized project. He quoted a price about 10% less than other contractors in the area, under the condition that payment should be made in cash. He charged me 40% upfront and started on the project. Soon thereafter he demanded another installment *for unforeseen difficulties*, which I paid, and started to rush the project. The quality was so bad that I demanded that he re-finish some of the work. At that point he informed me over the phone that he would not work on my site anymore and disappeared. He left me with half-done project in the middle of the summer and took about 75% of cash. I am planning to sue him. Please be aware of his activities if his name came across. |
cam
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posted 7 July 2006 21:00 CET
My Choice Home in Princeton, TX was closed on 2-24-05.
Starting before my home was even closed there were problems with it at the walk through
Problem was noted but all of them still have not been fixed.
The electrics wiring of the house has many code problems but was pass by the building inspectors
Complaints have been sent to the TRCC , TEXAS Dept of Licensing and Regulation
for the Electric work and the HVAC / HEATING also to the Home of Texas Warranty and the Texas Attorney General
along with the city of Princeton
The list of problems at this house to long to list here
now they are looking at commending the house |
j carpentier
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posted 6 July 2006 09:36 CET
MCDEVITT HOMES, In Minnesota
Is not the wonderfull builder that they make themselves out to be. We closed on our house 13 months ago and they will not return any of my calls for a 1 year walk through. They have refused to respond to any of the service request that we have had in the past 6 months. We have problems with our foundation,Windows, floors, siding, concrete, paint, and the list goes on.
We are not the only ones with this problem with McDevitt Homes. Our neighbors across the street were promised many things and they are getting the same treatment. They have had to fork out thousands of dollars to fix things on their own and these are things that the builder was supposed to take care of.
I have rcently voice mailed and emailed the owner Mike McDevitt and also the service manager. Still no response.......
does anyone else have anything to add about this builder? |
Daniel C. Bush
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posted 3 July 2006 17:51 CET
My complaint is about Grand Homes, who builds about 1100 homes/year, primarily in Dallas County. The leadership is corrupt and this is followed on down through the corporate level. Don't fall for their "Builder of the Year" bragging!
We bought our home in 2003 and just missed being able to sue them by 6 weeks. Our foundation has heaved over 8 inches since we bought it, all along the perimeter. We feel like we are living in a cereal bowl that has been through an earthquake. Every wall in our home has a crack in it, some big enough to put your finger through! It is STILL MOVING even now, due to the fact that they poured an on-ground post-tenson slab on what amounts to a big lump of dry clay (plasticity index of 45). Six certified engineers have all assessed the damage, and 2 recommend demolition as the best answer.
In January 2005 I wrote the president a letter asking them to rebuild, trade, or give me a cash settlement. I didn't even get the courtesy of a phone call, but instead got a legal letter telling me that I had activated the Texas RCLA, and demanding that they inspect the house (again) so that they could provide a remedy for repair. I do not want it REPAIRED; I want them to buy it back. It took 8 registered letters fo them to even answer the original request! They WILL NOT buy a house back unless they are forced to do it legally.
Incidentally, their "repair" involves placing 87 steel piers and raising the slab completely off the soil- essentially on "stilts"! We would have to be out of the house, along with all our furniture, for 3 months! I told them I was not buying a new "fixer-upper" and would not agree to their remedy. The house will never be the same, and they will only warranty the cosmetic repairs for 1 year; they defer to the foundation "lifetime" warranty which is very broadly pro-builder. In addition, they say that when everthing is fixed, it will not have lost ANY real estate value!
Now we are being forced into binding arbitration, which in Texas does not mean an immediate end. Grand Homes will certainly appeal if we win, and this can take from 6 months to 6 years to resolve! We are the ones at risk, not them; they have nothing to lose by dragging this on as long as possible. Other people around us are having the same problems, but they don't have any extra money to fight it (we had to borrow); so, they let them fix it. I maintain that the builder knew all along that there would be problems, but that they would be PROTECTED BY THE LAW! The neighborhood property values are, as you might expect, going DOWN!
My advice to anyone looking to buy a home is to buy a USED one; wouldn't hurt to take a soil boring as well! Our 3 day hearing is next week, and we had to pay $6000 IN ADVANCE; we don't know what the results will be, but we will lose either way. If our house is condemed, we are on our own; but the mortgage company still wants their money.
Anyone have any advice? The news media refuse to even call us back on this one; I'm beginning to believe they have been enticed to "back Off".... |
daisy
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posted 26 June 2006 13:48 CET
I am complaining about our builder Turner Dunn. They have ditched everyone here with half finished houses! They will not give us any information but I have found out that Their foremen have quit and the sales offices are no longer open. It has been 1 year and 3 months since we got our lot and still no house. my friends just closed on their house here and when they went to refi. they found they had a lien on their house from the builder! Turner Dunn homes steal money from good, hard working buyers like us. Our dream of qwning a home has been shattered. |
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