Texas officials plan to air problems with bad builders in public to shame them into mending their ways – and their crooked floorboards.
The Texas Residential Construction Commission will soon make available online reports about investigations of defects, homeowner complaints and fines, officials said.
Yet while the state is pushing for more disclosure, some builders are threatening defamation lawsuits against homeowners who speak out.
Commission executive director Duane Waddill said he hopes that if builders know disputes are public record – and easily found on the Web – the builders will make repairs rather than risk their reputations.
"If I'm a builder, do I really want up there, in public record, that I had a defect found in my house?" he said.
The Texas Association of Builders supports the commission's decision, as long as reports include builders who made repairs and inspections that revealed no defects, said Scott Norman, vice president of governmental affairs and general counsel.
A San Antonio builder filed a lawsuit earlier this month against a homeowner for posting complaints on the Web site of HomeOwners for Better Building, a consumer group.
The lawsuit alleges that owner Jay Hirata owes Sitterle Corp. $500,000 in damages for "misrepresentations of fact" that hurt the company's reputation. It states that Sitterle Corp. fixed the problems in the Hiratas' home, but the Web posting stated the company was "unwilling to remedy the situation."
As a result, Mr. Hirata canceled plans to speak before the San Antonio City Council and called off a news conference.
"Does this action ... send a message of fear to every new homebuyer that they, too, could be subjected to the wrath of a builder if they file a complaint?" said Janet Ahmad, president of HomeOwners for Better Building.
The builder's attorney, William H. Oliver, said that the TRCC and court information is public record but that "there's a difference between saying things in court testimony and administrative proceeding, and putting them out there in the street in a publication."
Investigative reports should be available soon on the commission's new Web site, www.trcc.state.tx.us.
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