Home builders resist reconstructing rookie agency Buyers no better off in resolving disputes, say proponents of strengthening regulator this session The fledgling Texas Residential Construction Commission was created two years ago to provide new performance standards for builders and a formal dispute resolution process between buyers and builders. A remodeling of the commission is necessary, some consumer advocacy groups say, because it was created solely with the interests of home builders in mind, leaving buyers worse off than before. The law establishing the agency was written by the lawyer for Houston home builder Bob Perry, who gives more Republican campaign contributions than anyone else in Texas. "Builders don't have to do anything differently than before the commission was created," said Janet Ahmad, president of the consumer advocacy group HomeOwners for Better Building. "This is pushing people to lawsuits; that's what the problem is." The current dispute resolution process has no teeth, Ahmad said, because it doesn't require the builder to settle with the buyer if the commission finds in favor of the homeowner.
Foreclosures High-The housing bubble is bound to pop
Sunday, 08 May 2005
Economist frets over bubble If prices go poof across the nation, area will feel pain So when's it going to happen? University of Houston economics professor Barton Smith believes the bubble is bound to pop,... But ominous signs are looming, Smith said. Foreclosures, for example, are as high today as they were in 1991. And builders in Houston are putting up single-family homes faster than they can be sold. In the past year, 42,000 single-family home permits were issued, but the area gained only 15,000 households. Related article: Prices flat here as housing in U.S. booms
FEDS ARREST MARLBORO DEVELOPER AT EX-WIFE'S HOLMDEL HOME: Faces four counts of giving Scannapieco, Larrison a total of $143,500 in bribes Federal agents rousted Spalliero, 62, from bed at 6:30 a.m. at the palatial home of his ex-wife in Holmdel. He was handcuffed and taken to FBI offices in Tinton Falls for processing and then driven by federal agents to U.S. District Court in Newark.
FREE? See announcement and schedule – 22 cities Texas Residential Construction Commission Announcement Free Warranty and Building and Performance Standards Seminars The commission will be holding seminars designed to answer questions from homeowners and other interested parties about the recently adopted warranties and building and performance standards that go into effect on June 1, 2005… Learn how “Crack House†takes on a how new meaning.Warranty and Performance Standards allow builders to legally build new homes with unlimited numbers of cracks. See how: Standards tarnishing the image of a fine University
The Partington Story - TRCC More Harm Than Good
Tuesday, 03 May 2005
Complaints against builder illustrate agency's problems Video: Byron Harris reports In one particular instance, people are angry at one homebuilder, Robert Tidwell...It was supposed to be their dream house. More than four years ago, the Partingtons hired Tidwell to build it. They signed over their lot to him; he took months to build a little, then quit. They sued him and won $65,000, but Tidwell never paid them, and they lost everything - the lot and their partially-finished house, where someone else now lives... "This was everything we had, this was everything," Lisa Partington said. "This was our life savings." Three bills to change the TRCC went before the Legislature this session; they all died. One reason might be that the homebuilding industry spent nearly $9 million lobbying in Austin over the last four years. Related Article: The First Cheetum Mark of Distinction, Hall of Shame Award Goes To.... Robert Tidwell. Related article: Cheetum Builder Hall of Shame Award
Frisco - People vs. Goliath. Vote “Yes” on Proposition 1 and 2!
Friday, 29 April 2005
Must Read: The Texas Observer The Exurb Rebellion Immediately after moving in, the Beckas say they began to have serious problems with their $318,000 home. Pipes burst behind walls and in the foundation, causing persistent flooding; an uncapped gas line leaked gas into the house; toilet water poured from the ceiling into the kitchen. The water damage spawned fast-growing toxic black mold. For more than five years, the Beckas put up with these problems and what they say were Huntington’s band-aid fixes...In January 2004, the Beckas approached the Council for help with a few commonsense ordinances...city officials did nothing...The Beckas warned their elected officials that if they did not cooperate, they would take the issue to the voters by collecting enough signatures to put amendments to the City Charter on the ballot...Take Back Your Rights presented the City Secretary with the fruits of six months of labor on the streets of Frisco—9,600 signatures, enough to force the City to put the amendments to a vote.
LARRISON CHARGED WITH TAKING BRIBES FEDS SAY EX-FREEHOLDER DIRECTOR TOOK CASH FROM DEVELOPERS FBI: Was to get $10,000 for help in Marlboro but received $8,500 Former Freeholder Director Harry W. Larrison Jr. — the patriarch of Monmouth County government for nearly four decades — was charged Wednesday with accepting at least $8,500 in bribes from two developers, the most stunning accusation yet in an ongoing FBI investigation of public corruption. Related Article: Ashbury Park Press - Prosecutors turn spotlight on Howell development project
State Affairs House Committee to regulate homebuilders Broadcasts of Live Coverage State Affairs hearing on HB3404 – 4/18/05 Advance to 4:52.
Of the 502 complaints officially filed with TRCC over the past 15 months – 206 filed for SIRP the dispute esolution however, only 137 were eligible. 365 could not use TRCC if they wanted to. Based on these figures clearly, TRCC is a $2.5 Million state agency that selectively serves a very small portion of the home buying public stuck with defective homes.
Consumers want homebuilder reforms "The TRCC was not created to help the consumers," consumer advocate John Cobarruvias said. "It was created for the builders; it was created by the builders." ...State Rep. Jessica Farrar, D-Houston, has filed a bill that would erase the fee the commission charges consumers to enter complaint resolution, increase builders' registration fees to $500 and require all builders to participate in the Texas Star Builder process to improve quality... There are now more than 18,000 builders registered to construct homes in Texas. The TRCC has denied just eight applications. Video:Byron Harris reports
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