Review of county inspectors progresses slowly
County administrator Gary Kubic hired the firm in October to review the building codes department after learning that county inspectors had failed to spot faulty trusses in the roofs of more than 2,000 Sun City Hilton Head homes.

1,000 homeowners taking legal action
Owners of about 1,000 homes in Sun City Grand, one of Surprise's most affluent retirement communities, are seeking legal action against developer Pulte Homes to correct alleged construction defects. The sheer number of participants puts this among the largest such complaints in Arizona history, building experts say. "The homeowners relied on Del Webb and the promises they would use quality-control measures in connection with the construction, and they're terribly disappointed," said attorney Ken Kasdan."What they see is Del Webb walking away from responsibility in the community."

Poorly Built by Pulte Homes
Nearly two out of every three homeowners (66 percent) indicated that they have sought repairs under Pulte’s limited warranty. read the report.  Tracking Pulte- We will post the latest news as well as links to services across the country where unhappy homeowners can seek relief. Learn more about Pulte...

Developer to reshuffle board seats
Sun City Hilton Head's developer will soon re-gain a majority vote on the seven-member Community Association Board of Directors. Pulte Homes general manager Jon Cherry will announce at today's board of directors quarterly meeting that he will replace two resident board members with Pulte representatives, according to a letter he wrote and distributed to board members Tuesday. Cherry will be one of the new Pulte representatives, the letter said.

Pulte Homes pulling out of Kansas City
Pulte Homes, the metro's largest developer, confirmed they are withdrawing from Kansas City. Company spokesman John Conley says sluggish home sales are to blame. "Ultimately we were unable to achieve a consistent sales volume that would allow us to operate as profitably and efficiently as we would like to. So we are going to start redeploying capital to other markets," he explained. The phased withdrawal will being in about three weeks. It is expected to be complete in September of 2010.

Builders Eliminate Hurricane Clips 
 In 2004 Pulte Homes decided to stop installing hurricane clips on houses that they are building in Sun City Hilton Head, a hurricane-prone area located near the coast. Pulte has recently resumed installing hurricane clips on new houses that they're building here, but refuses to install them in the more than 2,000 houses they built in 2004, 2005, 2006 and early 2007 Read more...

County administrator acts quickly on trusses
I would like to thank Beaufort County administrator Gary Kubic for his quick and decisive work on the roof truss problems in Sun City Hilton Head. From the first call I made to him and through the repairs he required Pulte Homes to make to my home and several of my neighbors, he made himself accessible at all times. As for those who think that there are enough inspectors to check every single home before a certificate of occupancy is issued, you are living in a fantasy world. It's like expecting a police officer to be there the moment a crime occurs. It's not going to happen.

Questions continue on truss inspections
When will the systemic failure be addressed that allowed houses with previously noted deficiencies to be granted occupancy permits without those deficiencies being corrected? When will the systemic failure that allowed Pulte Homes to stop installing hurricane clips on valley truss connections in Sun City houses be addressed?  Why is Beaufort County's building code enforcement office seemingly unaware hurricane clips have been an industry standard since the mid-1960s and that the industry has determined toe-nailed connections should not be used in a hurricane-prone area?

Live in Sun City Hilton Head? Read this for a roof inspection update
Inspectors have ordered roof repairs in hundreds of Sun City Hilton Head homes, and some are set to receive a second round of repairs, according to an official with Pulte Homes, the developer of Sun City. Building inspectors have reviewed more than 1,270 attics since Beaufort County launched an investigation earlier this summer to check whether roof trusses in 2,600 homes were installed properly.