Don Smith Centex Homeowner

MISSION STATEMENT This site is dedicated to describing the defects in my home built by Centex Homes. Don Smith Mr. Smith is a veteran with 26 years military service.  He is presently employed as a high school science teacher.

A representative  from Centex Homes met with Don Smith and Janet Ahmad on Saturday, December 9, 2000,  to discuss the defective exterior siding on Mr. Smith's home.  The meeting was held in Mr. Smith's back yard.

The Centex representative insisted that the siding on Mr. Smith's home is a good product, and is not defective.  He did not seem to notice or care that water has penetrated through the siding.  He also had the audacity to tell Mr. Smith that it is the homeowner's responsibility to wash the entire exterior surface of his home with a toxic mixture of Clorox bleach, re-caulk the house, and  re-paint the house after the first year of occupancy.

Mr. Smith told the Centex representative that he tried to get a Centex Field Manager to come to his home over two years ago when damage to the siding first became noticeable.  The individual at the Centex office who spoke to Mr. Smith refused to visit his home, and told Mr. Smith that he would have to hire his own carpenter and make the repairs out of his own pocket.  If Centex had responded in a more positive, customer-oriented manner,  further damage to the siding could probably have been avoided.

When the Centex representative made an offer to replace the siding on Mr. Smith's home, Janet Ahmad asked him what replacement materials would be used.  The representative replied, "More of the same."   Mr. Smith refused to accept this offer because it would mean another cycle of moisture, warping, peeling, flaking, and fungal infestations.  He told
the Centex representative that he wanted the defective materials replaced with a weather-resistant siding such as Hardi-Plank.  The Centex representative refused to do this, and reacted as if Mr. Smith was an opportunist waiting to cash in on a better grade of siding at the expense of Centex.

Mr. Smith simply wants to get his home fixed.  All he requests is that the rotting, fungus-infested cardboard on the exterior of his home be removed and replaced with a lasting product such as Hardi-Plank.  The Centex representative, on the other hand, seems to think that homeowners ought to be grateful for another load of the same defective material.
Janet Ahmad pointed out to the Centex representative that this situation is directly analogous to the recent problems with Firestone tires.  If a car owner had Firestone tires on his or her car, Firestone would not be permitted to give the customer another set of defective Firestone tires.  Yet Centex sees nothing wrong with offering their customers "more of the same."   In fact, this analogy clearly upset the Centex representative.   Sadly, Centex is a corporation that has lost its moral and ethical compass.

When asked to summarize his feelings about Centex, Mr. Smith said, "In my opinion, Centex sold me a lemon.  I just want to get my home fixed. I want this material removed before it becomes a major health hazard to my family and my neighbors."