Editorial: Chairman of the NJ State Commission of Investigation
Friday, 22 April 2005
Home-building report seeks to fix broken system W. Cary Edwards is chairman of the State Commission of Investigation The State Commission of Investigation, of which I am chairman, recently completed an inquiry into new-home construction and inspections in New Jersey, and the picture that emerged is not a pretty one. The final report of this unprecedented investigation sets forth a catalog of shoddy and deficient construction practices, lax regulatory oversight and poor remediation options that routinely plunge unsuspecting new-home purchasers into a quagmire of waste, fraud and abuse. And it's not just in one community, but all over the state — in single homes and housing developments, high-priced and affordable, in suburban and urban areas across New Jersey, particularly with regard to large-scale production builders.
ATTENTION:TEXAS COMMITTEE HEARING TO REGULATE HOMEBUILDERS
Saturday, 16 April 2005
TEXAS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING HB 3404Representative Jessica Farrar Relating to the regulation of and claims against residential home builders. CONTACT: If you can attend or wish to testify -
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Express News: TRCC faces reform
Saturday, 16 April 2005
Builders commision could face reforms Authored by state Rep. Jessica Farrar, D-Houston, House Bill 3404 contains provisions that, if passed, would give homeowners some relief in the state-administered dispute resolution process that critics charge is dominated by the construction industry... "One big concern of mine is that consumer rights are diminished in the current statute," Farrar said. "It is ridiculous that this statute actually regulates consumers (on behalf of) the home building industry."
The Dallas Morning News strongly endorses Becka family proposed Frisco Charter Revision to require builder disclosure before any money changes hands.
A Split Decision: Frisco voters should be leery of bonds for home builders in Prop 1, but they can still send a message with Prop 2
Prop 2 deserves support But make no mistake, the Beckas and TBYR are right about the need for Texas to come to the defense of home buyers. That is why we strongly recommend that voters in Frisco approve Proposition 2.
ATTENTION:TEXAS COMMITTEE HEARING TO REGULATE HOMEBUILDERS
Thursday, 14 April 2005
TEXAS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING HB 3404Representative Jessica Farrar Relating to the regulation of and claims against residential home builders. CONTACT: If you can attend or wish to testify -
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COMMITTEE: State Affairs TIME & DATE: 8:00AM, Monday, April 18, 2005 PLACE: Texas Capitol Committee Room: E2.010
New Jersey/Georgia Contractor turns FBI Informant
Thursday, 14 April 2005
A productive informant is spared jail
Crooked contractor's effusive apology and his history as FBI ally move judge to leniency Jerry Free, the Tennessee contractor who bribed officials statewide, then helped the FBI build cases against targets in New Jersey and Georgia, was sentenced yesterday to six months of house arrest and three years' probation... It was Free's cooperation after he left New Jersey that particularly impressed the judge. Free met with antitrust prosecutors in Philadelphia and Atlanta. And, working with the FBI in Georgia, Free posed as a corrupt contractor there willing to pay bribes for contracts. The ensuing chain of cases culminated last fall with the indictment of former Atlanta Mayor Bill Campbell on corruption charges...Free argued that the virus of graft that plagued New Jersey was active long before he arrived. "I was solicited all the time by e-mails, faxes, requests, things charged to me," he said. "These individuals, I did not have to give them the virus."
New Jersey - ExMayor, Bribes, Housing and Developers
Thursday, 14 April 2005
New Jersey EX-MARLBORO MAYOR: I TOOK $245K IN BRIBES Former Marlboro Mayor Matthew V. Scannapieco pleaded guilty Tuesday to accepting $245,000 in bribes from a developer in exchange for his support for housing and commercial developments opposed by many residents.
New Jersey officials recommend passage of a Home Lemon Law
Elimination of binding arbitration in homebuilder contracts, stricter licensing of construction supervisors, expanding the state Consumer Fraud Act, and more…
Homebuilder in federal prison plots to kill
Sunday, 10 April 2005
Man charged in plot to kill federal judge, prosecutor The indictment of Anthony "Tony" Erpenbeck Sr., 71, is just the latest twist in the legal troubles of the Erpenbeck clan and its failed building firm, Erpenbeck Co. The large Northern Kentucky home building company folded in 2002 in a $34 million fraud that victimized home buyers, subcontractors and almost three dozen banks.
Turnberry Homes Lemons.com Diary of a Lemon Owner “. . . virtually a stack of disparate building materials and components, few of which work in concert with others.
New Jersey Judiciary Committee to hold public hearing
Thursday, 07 April 2005
Senator calls corruption hearings in response to Monmouth scandal A state Senate committee will hold hearings next month to examine how to deter corruption by public officials.
Sen. John Adler (D-Camden), who chairs the Judiciary Committee, said he decided to hold public hearings in the wake of the recent federal probe in Monmouth County that has so far nabbed 14 elected officials, public employees and contractors on corruption charges. "When you have that many people in one county indicted, it suggests the problem is pervasive in every level of government and we have to find ways on a statewide basis to deter it," Adler said. "One way to deter this crime is to more effectively punish the corrupt officials that commit the crime. Another way is to catch them more often."
Some builders whine about results of State Investigation
Thursday, 07 April 2005
New Jersey Home Builder Investigation New Jersey's CSI damning report leaves builders spinning, while State's largest builder, K Havnanian Homes acknowledges problems and supports a Home Lemon Law.
Star-Ledger Builders defend work after SCI's negative report Joseph Riggs, group president of K. Hovnanian Homes, the state's largest residential builder, said he did not believe the SCI report was accurate but conceded there have been some problems..."Problems have arisen," Riggs said. "Most builders, us particularly, stand behind their houses. There have been times when we have responded (to complaints) more slowly than we should have." Riggs said his company could support a lemon law -- that it had, in fact, bought back houses from some owners they could not satisfy -- but he said extending the Consumer Fraud Act to new housing as the SCI also recommended could be nettlesome.
HOBB Board Member Jo Hayman - “Cheetum Custom Homes”
Monday, 04 April 2005
Home-building law has more than a few cracks ...Jo Hayman... She formed her company, Cheetum Custom Homes, to prove a point. She won't build a single house. Instead, the physical therapist wants to show how easy it is to get into the home-building business in Texas. All anyone has to do to build a home is pay a $125 fee and register with a new state agency, the Texas Residential Construction Commission, or TRCC. "It's absurd," says the Plano woman, now the Dallas-Fort Worth representative for HomeOwners for Better Building. "Almost anybody in this state can be a builder today, and there's no way to stop you unless you are a convicted felon." ... And under regulations set by TRCC's nine commissioners, most of whom have ties to the home-building industry, items that aren't covered after the first year include roofs, siding, windows, bricks, tile, carpet, flooring, doors, trim, drywall, plaster and stucco.
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