Paul Vavra
 |
posted 20 August 2007 19:23 CET
I bought a house for investment purposes in Dallas. The builder was supposed to sell me the home at 11% below appraised value. Instead he sold it to me at the appraised value and still owes me the 11% and does not return my calls. What can I do? |
Pam Duimstra
|
posted 18 August 2007 18:27 CET
J.T.D. Design in Snowflake, Arizona had us sign a contract with them to build our home 21 May 2006. All we have to this date is a shell and the builder is out of money. Our contract for $283,000 is over $300,000 and Jay Yordt wants more to finish both the inside and outside. Our roof was done 4 times due to leaks which we still have. Sky lights blew off due to heavy winds and have not been replaced.
Cabinets for the entire home look as if they were made by the reminents of three different jobs and are not the color we ordered. Other complaints are too numberous to list. Rework and lack of supervision by the owner have caused so many problems we were forced to hire an attorney. Please advise as to how I can make a web page to display pictures of the shoddy work and warn others of this contractor. |
Marcy Bergman
|
posted 18 August 2007 15:21 CET
Please do not buy a home from Premier Homebuilders or 5 Star Homebuilders. They have not given us our money back for a foundation problem that happened in October of 2006. The plumber and builder had two different floor plans which led our house to having the master bathroom in the middle of our master bedroom. They said they could fix it and they began jackhammering out the foundation only to jackhammer through the post-tension. We are still hoping to get our money back... seems as if they are a very shady company. You can't get in touch with anyone and not a single person will return your phone call. DON'T BUY FROM THEM!!! |
Marcy Bergman
|
posted 18 August 2007 15:20 CET
Please do not buy a home from Premier Homebuilders or 5 Star Homebuilders. They have not given us our money bad for a foundation problem that happened in October of 2006. The plumber and builder had two different floor plans which led our house to having the master bathroom in the middle of our master bedroom. They said they could fix it and they began jackhammering out the foundation only to jackhammer through the post-tension. We are still hoping to get our money back... seems as if they are a very shady company. You can't get in touch with anyone and not a single person will return your phone call. DON'T BUY FROM THEM!!! |
Jeanne L Osteen-Hayter
|
posted 16 August 2007 13:52 CET
My husband and I just closed on our newly constructed home on Tuesday, August 14, 2007. Our builder was Across Texas Custom Homes. On Wednesday, August 15, 2007, my husband discovered 2 invoices for overcharges that the builder "forgot" to include in the price!! Across Texas Custom Homes of Ft Worth refuses to answer phone calls regarding warranty work that needs to be completed. Across Texas Custom Homes also claimed to have hydromulched our front yard. The front yard looks barren and full of weeds. The owner had repeatedly informed my husband that he had a gun in his truck in case my husband "got out of line". My husband is 6'9" and 300 lbs and apparently looks somewhat intimidating. Work was never done right the first time. We basically oversaw all the work and had to have the contractors correct NUMEROUS mistakes that we caught. Across Texas Custom Homes was only involved in paying the contractors and never bothered to oversee any of the work. We are quite dissatisfied with the experience we had with this particular builder and wish to spare anyone else the same headaches and stress that we had. |
Jason G. Brown
|
posted 15 August 2007 17:14 CET
I have a complaint to log against Ryland Homes. Our home is only a year and a half old and we have had to have numerous cracks in the drywall fixed repeatedly. I believe we have foundation issues, but Ryand is mum about it and withholding any information concerning our house. They came out to take soil samples again last week and I have heard nothing of the results. I just want to know if I have foundation issues and what my rights are. |
Armando Gil
|
posted 15 August 2007 15:15 CET
ARMANDO AND GUADALUPE GIL
104 STAR OF TEXAS DR.
KYLE, TEXAS 78640
I am enclosing a short version of a dream house coming apart. In September 2005 we purchased a new Centex home in Kyle, Texas. It is located in the Silverado Subdivision at 104 Star of Texas Dr.
In January of 2007 after we got our first rain we started noticing water flowing out from our yard onto the street. Approximately one week after the rain had stopped the water was still flowing. Since our house is located at the entry of the Silverado Subdivision several persons stopped by our house to notify us that we had a water leak, some even called the city. Our neighbors across the street were even concerned. We called the City Water Department and notified them of our possible water leak. After investigation by the city, they notified us that it wasn't a water leak but the water could be from an underground spring in the area of our home. We also noticed several cracks on the interior of our drywall. Centex had made repairs on our drywall before this incident but when they were called to make repairs on the most recent we were told by their field representative Barrett Larkey that this would be a one time deal and they would not repair them again. I was told to buy me a calking gun and repair them my self.
When I told Barrett Larkey of the water problem and what the city had said, he stated that that problem was between me and the City. We made several attempts to contact Centex but our calls were not returned. Concerned about our home and Centex not willing to listen, we hired an Engineer to investigate the problem. The Engineer's report indicated that there was a water, structural and mold problem. We also hired a Professional Licensed mold company to investigate. Their report indicated there was mold on the exterior of the house, but that it was not the serious type. Their report indicated the mold on the exterior of our house was a "water indicator". After we started noticing several cracked bricks around the exterior and continued moister around the foundation and yard we decided to file a letter to Centex addressing all our defects. Centex Warranty Manager Ray Michael conducted an inspection of the house and stated by a letter, which he left between the front glass door and the main door of our house that all the defects were cosmetic and required no further action. He didn't even take the time to mail the letter which he indicated he would mail 10 days after the inspection. The letter was received 24 days after the inspection. We had to call him twice to get him to mail us the report. At this point we became aware that the builder had no concern for the alleged defects we brought to their attention. We then proceeded to file a request (as per contract) for a State Sponsored Inspection and Dispute Resolution (SIRP) with the Texas Residential Construction Commission. The request was accepted by the state and a third party inspector was assigned. The inspection date had been agreed by us the (homeowners) and the builder (Centex) through third party inspector Steve Barton from Dallas, Texas. Two working days prior to the inspection date we received a certified letter from TRCC indicating another inspector had been assigned at the request of Centex. I called Steve Barton, TRCC third party Inspector, and asked him what was going on. He stated that he had been contacted by the TRCC 2 days ago and had been notified that he was not doing the inspection at 104 Star of Texas, Kyle, Texas. I asked him if he knew what was going on. He said he didn’t have any idea what had happened.
The letter sent to us did not indicate as to why this action had taken place or that the scheduled inspection had been cancelled. Finally the third party inspection was conducted on July 18, 2007 by the newly appointed engineer from San Antonio, Texas named Jim Linehan. He indicated in his report to the TRCC that he found no defects on the house except poor workmanship on the mortar. Up to this date there are over 150 cracked bricks, bricks that are bulging from the wall, bricks that are uneven, mortar around the bricks is dissolving and holes have appeared between the mortar. The front and rear porch supports are leaning to the side, the wall by the garage is leaning forward, the air-conditioning unit pad has pushed away from the foundation and the soil around the yard and foundation is soaking wet at all times. This is a 22 month old home. Every effort has been made by us to try to get this matter resolved. We have spent over $5000.00 of our personal money to try to keep our house from falling apart. It appears that the system has failed. I have filed a request with the Texas Attorney General's Office to review and investigate this possible bias and corrupt state government agency. With the lack of rain and the expansive clay under our home, the home is starting to re-shift downward and creating extensive damage on the outer walls creating a life and safety issue. We have contacted the Better Business Bureau and our State Representative for their assistance in this matter. I have all the evidence in hand including photographs and videos to proof my allegations.
Armando and Guadalupe Gil
Homeowners
August 1, 2007 |
Jim Meadows
|
posted 9 August 2007 20:12 CET
Home was built by Design Tech Homes (San Antonio & Spring, TX) 5 years ago. Lots of quality defects started showing up in A/C and electrical after about a year. Tile work was terrible and Design Tech replace cracked tiles on three occasions during first year. Additional cracks have appeared since.
Latest problem is major plumbing problems, two leaks in slab and one overhead (defective copper pipe) in last six months. Design Tech turned my first request for help over to an attorney who denied all responsibility. The second leak they did send the original plumber out who replaced the defective pipe. The third leak they delayed until we couldn't live without water and had it fixed ourselves. |
ron kaiman
|
posted 9 August 2007 13:35 CET
I bought a home from Lennar in Florida. They had a printed site map and miniature model in the sales center. The Lennar salesman told us there would be nothing built on the Norther border of the development because it was a "natural preserve area." We later found out through public records that Lennar had signed an agreement years before agreeing to provide land for a major road on the north border, and that the county intended to build the road. The Lennar salesman lied and denied his statement, while Lennar claimed an unnamed border on the map and miniature indicated a road.
When we tried to sue - outside the mandatory arbitration - we were threatened with a countersuit that none of the homeowners could afford to fight. |
Amal Ray
|
posted 9 August 2007 09:05 CET
We recently purchased a new home located in Katy, TX. Partners in Building (PIB) was the builder. Poor planning and use of unskilled workers by PIB at different stages of construction caused many problems. At the planning stage many mistakes were made by their Architect. Lack of quality control and improper procedures at PIB failed to identify such problems. These mistakes were later discovered during the construction phase and required many changes and modifications. Many of the modifications were done by unqualified workers and were not properly completed. Their contractors were involved in covering up defects in many instances and when showed to PIB they did not take any responsibility and simply blamed these on the nature of the industry.
Plan materials were not adequately followed in some cases and PIB knowingly misrepresented facts in many occasions. They did not provide proper supervision at the construction site. Many of these problems were documented with photographs and were communicated to the management at PIB.
The project was significantly delayed and a number of problems were discovered after we moved in. The management was contacted on several occasions and problems were documented and demonstrated but they failed to show commitment and many of the problems were not properly resolved. Landing at the front walk way (not constructed according to the measurements on the plan) and improper load calculation at electrical service point (causes many lights to dim when small appliances and other circuits are being used) are just few of the examples. We have seen a consistent pattern of negligence, lack of proper procedures and quality control at PIB. They were given ample opportunity to rectify these problems but refused to show commitment to adequately address issues with their construction and have greatly inconvenienced us. The management showed complete disregard for goodwill and customer’s satisfaction. |
Home 
BusinessWeek Special Reports
