Nowhere but Texas
The Sunday Page One article "Owners stuck with flawed homes/Families' costs mount, but state, builder give scant help, files show" is reporting at its finest and an outrage. If I could change but one thing, it would be a more appropriate title, such as "Texas law protects homebuilders and regulates homebuyers," with the subtitle "Unregulated and unscrupulous builders operate with confidence."
Nowhere has special interest money been more powerful and evident as in Texas, where builders freely build substandard homes, confident they will not be held accountable. Nowhere but Texas has builder political power influenced legislation so profoundly. In fact, a Texas new home warranty is not a warranty but a deceptive false sense of security for even basic items.
It has been nearly six long years since "Bob the Builder" Perry and his builder friends bought, built and now operate the Texas Residential Construction Commission (TRCC). The state agency offers no help for aggrieved homebuyers; instead, its process forces homeowners into costly protracted legal disputes ending in abusive, binding mandatory arbitration that most cannot afford.
What is amazing is that despite the years of overwhelming condemnation and negative news reporting of the scandalous TRCC "Builder Protection Agency," the state Legislature once again acquiesced to homebuilders last year.
There is far too much blame to go around. It is our obligation as victims to fight for our basic rights that the building industry has systematically taken from us. No one group or group of organizations can possibly stop this madness, which will continue to devastate families unless more become actively involved.
JANET AHMAD
president, HomeOwners for Better Building, San Antonio
Bias disappoints
In response to the article "Owners stuck with flawed homes," the Texas Association of Builders is disappointed with the bias the story exhibited. To claim that Texas laws do not offer enough recourse to homeowners who allege construction defects in their homes without mentioning the Texas Residential Construction Commission Act and amendments, and the resulting agency actions and rules is, to say the least, irresponsible and misleading.
In 2003 the Texas Legislature created the Texas Residential Construction Commission to address construction defect concerns between homeowners and homebuilders. In 2007, in response to various concerns identified in the original act, the Legislature substantially increased the TRCC's enforcement powers. These changes authorized the agency to go after "bad" builders and to impose severe administrative and civil penalties against builders who do not comply with state law, i.e. failing to register as a builder, failure to obtain a building permit.
The TRCC provides a database on its Web site of all registered builders and information of any defect history for interested parties to peruse. We encourage consumers to utilize this tool and do their homework before hiring or contracting with any builder or remodeler.
ANDY HUTCHISON
president, Texas Association of Builders, Lubbock
Election, laws linked
Regarding the article "Owners stuck with flawed homes": Until the citizens of the state of Texas realize the direct correlation between their elected officials and the state laws that make or break us, nothing will ever change.
I, too, have a home that was new, filled with defects and code violations. I did every-thing I could to protect myself, including using the Better Business Bureau to find the builder and having my own inspector, and I still ended up with a lemon. I continue to fight today.
Twelve hours of testimony at the House State Affairs Committee last year, inclusive of victims from all over Texas, did little or nothing to move our elected officials.
Shoddy construction does not discriminate. It destroys people emotionally, physically and financially.
We are in an election year unlike anything I have ever seen. People who never had an interest in politics are now vol-unteering for the candidates of their choice. We must not ignore the importance of state and local elections. We need elected officals who will pass fair and just laws. We need officials to help constituents when they knock on their doors. It is time for a change, and this is the year to do it.
MARCIA KUSHNER
Houston
Responses:
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Washington Post
And yet the Republicans will vote a straight ticket in November and nothing will change. Craddick and Company will be back to business as usual in January. The Republicans will go to the polls in November waving their flags and blaming the Democrats. And in this case, they are partially right. Bob Perry had a Democrat introduce the original bill that created the TRCC. Of course the Republicans passed it. But the Democrats are to blame. That's the battle cry for November. The Democrats have destroyed the country. Return the Republicans to power. The problem is in Texas the Republicans have been in power. Not the Democrats.
When people stop buying the homes, the homebuilders will go out of business and that will solve the problem. Until then, don't expect anything to change. The Republicans in Texas love things just the way they are.
What is irresponsible is a state legislature that protects the best interests of homebuilders instead of protecting the interests of the homebuyers and what is misleading is your assertion that the TRCC Act protects homebuyers. It protects the homebuilders only.
"These changes authorized the agency to go after "bad" builders and to impose severe administrative and civil penalties against builders who do not comply with state law, i.e. failing to register as a builder, failure to obtain a building permit."
The reality is the agency does nothing to protect the homebuyer and in the rare cases where an arbitrator has awarded damages to a homebuyer over "alleged" defects the agency looks the other way when the homebuilder doesn't pay what was awarded and in some cases reincorporates to avoid collection of the damages through legal means.
The reality is that homebuilders in Texas have garnered the worst reputation in the country as a result of TRCC and it is a reputation the homebuilders seem quite proud of. Only a fool buys a new home in Texas at this point.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/editorial/outlook/5740902.html