Independent profile — not affiliated with D.R. Horton
D.R. Horton
D.R. Horton is America's largest homebuilder by volume, founded in 1978 in Fort Worth, Texas by Donald R. Horton and publicly traded as NYSE: DHI. In fiscal year 2025 it closed 84,863 homes for $31.5 billion in homebuilding revenue. It carries a BBB A+ rating but is not BBB-accredited, and its corporate BBB profile logged 716 complaints in the last 3 years, mostly over service and repair issues after closing. D.R. Horton purchase contracts are widely reported to include mandatory arbitration clauses, and the company's name is attached to a landmark 2018 US Supreme Court labor-law ruling (Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis) upholding class-action-waiver arbitration agreements. The company paid $800,000 to settle a 2024 federal Clean Water Act enforcement action over stormwater violations at building sites in three states, its mortgage subsidiary DHI Mortgage paid $180,000 in 2016 to resolve a HUD finding of false certifications on FHA-insured loans, and it was fined $16.3 million in 2016 by a federal bankruptcy court over a mismanaged homeowners' association in Florida. As of 2025-2026, D.R. Horton and its mortgage subsidiary face active federal lawsuits alleging a scheme to artificially suppress advertised monthly mortgage payments.
Complaints & Reviews on USAComplaints
USAComplaints currently maintains 63 historical complaints about D.R. Horton, published between 2000 and 2013. No approved complaints have been published on this site during the last three years. For a current reputation snapshot, see the independent sources below.
- Worst home builder ever, shoddy roofing, shoddy paneling, shoddy dry wall, shoddy... Everything
- Consumer Report
- Consumer Report
- Verl low quality Builders in AZ
- They over charge us every month and they can charge us whatever they feel like it
- Very Non Professional Worst Customer Services Unorganized And Poor Construction Material Used
- Shoddy workmanship causes major concrete slab problems
- Stay away
- Haphazard, Unprofessional, simply not a quality organization
- Beware Haphazard, Unprofessional, simply not a quality organization
- Sold it to me but won't support me
- Use cheap sub contractors
- Over charging in their services
- Does not handle
- D.R. Horton fails to resolve
- Bad service
- Be careful
- Do not buy from them
- D.R. Horton Warranty It is never their responsibility or fault... Sorry you WANT something to be wrong with your house
- Warranty Issues
Complaint Themes
Independent Sources
Shown for context — not merged with USAComplaints' own numbers.
Contacts
- Official website: https://www.drhorton.com
Locations
| Type | Address |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | 1341 Horton Cir Arlington TX 76011-4310 |
What D.R. Horton Does
D.R. Horton, Inc. is the largest homebuilder in the United States by volume, founded in 1978 in Fort Worth, Texas by Donald R. Horton and publicly traded on the NYSE under ticker DHI. In fiscal year 2025 (ended September 30, 2025), the company closed 84,863 homes at an average closing price of $370,400, generating $31.5 billion in homebuilding revenue and $34.3 billion in consolidated revenue, per its FY2025 annual report. Beyond its flagship brand, D.R. Horton builds under several sub-brands targeting different price tiers: Express Homes (entry-level, first-time buyers), Freedom Homes (active-adult), Emerald Homes (move-up/luxury), and Crown Communities (acquired in 2014 for roughly $209.6 million, operating mainly in Georgia, South Carolina, and eastern Alabama). Its mortgage arm, DHI Mortgage Company, Ltd., finances a substantial share of buyers' home purchases. Founder Donald R. Horton died suddenly on May 16, 2024 at age 74; Paul J. Romanowski has served as President and CEO since October 1, 2023.
Is D.R. Horton Legitimate?
D.R. Horton is unquestionably a real, large, publicly-traded company (NYSE: DHI) -- "legitimacy" in the scam sense is not in question. The more relevant question for a prospective buyer is complaint volume and contract terms. D.R. Horton's corporate Better Business Bureau profile carries an A+ rating but the company is not a BBB Accredited Business, and the profile shows 716 complaints in the last 3 years (147 closed in the last 12 months) -- the large majority (629 of 716) categorized as Service or Repair Issues, consistent with post-closing warranty and construction-quality disputes. Note that D.R. Horton also has numerous separate regional BBB profiles by market, which were not individually pulled for this figure; the corporate/national profile above is the most consolidated count available.
A recurring, well-documented feature of D.R. Horton's home-purchase contracts is a mandatory arbitration clause requiring buyers to waive their right to sue in court, typically initialed separately at signing. Several lawsuits reviewed for this profile include homeowner allegations that sales agents described this clause informally (e.g., as just a deposit/reservation agreement) rather than clearly as an arbitration waiver; D.R. Horton has denied such characterizations in at least one reported case. D.R. Horton's name is also attached to a landmark labor-arbitration dispute: the company's own employee arbitration agreement was the subject of the case that the U.S. Supreme Court ultimately resolved in 2018 as Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, upholding the enforceability of class-action-waiver arbitration clauses nationwide (see the related case entry below).
Regulatory and Legal Actions
D.R. Horton's scale means it has accumulated a substantial regulatory and litigation record even by large-homebuilder standards. Notable confirmed actions include: a 2024 federal Clean Water Act consent decree (Northern District of Alabama) resolving stormwater violations at 16 building sites across Alabama and the Carolinas, for roughly $800,000 combined in penalties and a supplemental environmental project; a 2016 federal bankruptcy court judgment of $16.3 million (later settled on appeal around 2017 for roughly $11 million, per business-press reporting) over the mismanaged Majorca Isles homeowners' association in Miami Gardens, FL; and a 2016 HUD Office of Inspector General settlement in which D.R. Horton's mortgage subsidiary, DHI Mortgage, paid $180,000 to resolve findings of false certifications on 168 FHA-insured loans. As of late 2025 and into 2026, D.R. Horton and DHI Mortgage face an active federal lawsuit (Robinson v. D.R. Horton, District of Nevada, filed December 2025) alleging a coordinated scheme to advertise artificially low monthly mortgage payments to buyers by understating escrowed tax and insurance costs; an earlier, similarly-themed case (Santiago v. D.R. Horton, Middle District of Florida) was voluntarily dismissed around the same time Robinson was filed.
Separately, homeowners in multiple states have pursued construction-defect litigation, including a class-action settlement of roughly $16.1 million (preliminary approval around September 2023) covering the Rose Hill subdivision in Easley, South Carolina -- about 220 homes built 2012-2017, with alleged defects including roofing, siding/water-resistive-barrier problems, and water intrusion (this profile previously misattributed this settlement to Louisiana; corrected here). Louisiana has separate, ongoing litigation over alleged mold, humidity, and undersized/improperly-designed HVAC systems in its homes (a Louisiana appellate court has held at least one such dispute belongs in court rather than arbitration), a strap-tie corrosion investigation tied to Hawaii homes (litigation ongoing for years, with one settlement referenced in secondary reporting at roughly $35 million for a repair program plus fees), and ongoing local reporting in 2024-2026 (Louisiana, South Carolina, Georgia, Texas) describing homeowners' association turnover disputes and construction-quality complaints, including a 2024-2026 Georgia news report on more than a dozen homeowners alleging defective plumbing. This research did not find any active securities-fraud class action or SEC enforcement action against D.R. Horton.
What Complainants Allege
Across BBB complaints and dozens of buyer reports submitted to USAComplaints over many years, a consistent set of themes recurs: post-closing warranty requests that go unresolved or are denied outright (foundation cracks, water intrusion, HVAC undersized for the home, drywall and roofing defects); subcontractor workmanship described as rushed or inconsistent, particularly in fast-building subdivisions; disputes over homeowners' association fees and the timing/condition of HOA turnover from the builder to residents; and, in a number of accounts, allegations that sales staff downplayed or mischaracterized the mandatory arbitration clause in the purchase contract at signing. Complaints about mortgage-related issues -- unclear closing costs, financing/appraisal timeline pressure -- also appear, consistent with the more recent monthly-payment-suppression lawsuits described above. D.R. Horton is a large, geographically dispersed builder operating under many regional divisions, so experiences (and how a given division responds to a warranty claim) can vary significantly by market and are not necessarily representative of every D.R. Horton division nationwide.
Before You Buy — and If You Have a Warranty Dispute
- Read the purchase contract's arbitration clause carefully before signing, and ask the sales agent in writing to confirm exactly what it means for your right to sue in court -- do not rely on a verbal characterization of it as merely a "deposit" or "reservation" agreement.
- Get a independent, licensed third-party home inspection before closing and again near the end of your builder's warranty period, rather than relying solely on the builder's own punch-list process.
- Document every warranty request in writing (email, not just phone calls) with dates, and keep photos of any defect as soon as you notice it.
- If your subdivision's homeowners' association is still builder-controlled, ask specifically when HOA control is contractually required to transfer to residents, and review HOA financial statements once it does.
- If a warranty or contract dispute goes unresolved, you can file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau, your state's home-builder licensing board or Attorney General consumer-protection office, and, for financing-related concerns, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
Court & Public Records
| Case | Authority | Dates | Type | Outcome | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States, State of Alabama, and South Carolina DHEC v. D.R. Horton, Inc. and D.R. Horton, Inc. - Birmingham | U.S. District Court, Northern District of Alabama | Settled | Settled Consent decree lodged April 8, 2024 resolving federal Clean Water Act stormwater-discharge violations at 16 residential construction sites across Alabama, and North and South Carolina. D.R. Horton agreed to pay $400,000 in civil penalties, fund a Supplemental Environmental Project of at least $400,000 (roughly $800,000 total), and implement a stormwater-control compliance program across its sites in EPA Region 4. | Source | |
| In re Majorca Isles Homeowners' Association (D.R. Horton-related bankruptcy proceeding) | U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of Florida (Judge A. Jay Cristol) | — | Judgment | Judgment entered D.R. Horton was found liable for $16.3 million (including $12.5 million in punitive damages) in an October 2016 judgment over its handling of the Majorca Isles condominium HOA in Miami Gardens, FL, a 355-unit project begun in 2006 of which only about half was ultimately built. The court found the company mismanaged HOA funds and cut services after the HOA fell into bankruptcy in 2012; Horton had transferred HOA control to residents in January 2011. D.R. Horton appealed, and per business-press reporting the parties reached a settlement around July 2017 (secondary sources cite roughly $11 million as the final settlement figure) -- this profile's characterization as simply a "$16.3 million fine" understates that this was a judgment later modified by settlement on appeal. | Source |
| HUD OIG review of DHI Mortgage Company, Ltd. FHA loan underwriting Docket 2016-LA-1802 | Administrative settlement (HUD Office of Inspector General), not litigated in court | — | Settled | Settled Two HUD OIG audits found DHI Mortgage Company, Ltd. (D.R. Horton's mortgage subsidiary) violated HUD requirements when underwriting FHA-insured loans, including prohibited restrictive addenda to sales contracts and false certifications on 168 loans. DHI Mortgage settled the findings for $180,000. This is separate from, and should not be confused with, an unrelated $52.4 million DOJ/HUD False Claims Act settlement reported in September 2016 involving a different, unnamed FHA lender -- that settlement's defendant was not confirmed to be DHI Mortgage in this research and is not attributed to D.R. Horton here. | Source |
| Robinson, et al. v. D.R. Horton, Inc. and DHI Mortgage Company, Ltd. Docket 2:25-cv-02394 | U.S. District Court, District of Nevada | Filed | Filed, no ruling yet Active proposed class action alleging D.R. Horton and DHI Mortgage ran a "monthly payment suppression scheme" that artificially lowered advertised monthly mortgage payments shown to buyers (allegedly by concealing full escrow/tax costs), asserting claims under RICO and state consumer-protection, negligence, and unjust-enrichment theories. A closely related earlier case, Santiago v. D.R. Horton, Inc. and DHI Mortgage Company, Ltd. (M.D. Florida, docket 6:25-cv-01904), alleged similar conduct but was voluntarily dismissed in December 2025, around the time Robinson was filed in Nevada -- this profile previously listed the Florida docket number in error; it has been corrected here. | Source | |
| D.R. Horton, Inc. v. NLRB (culminating in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis) Docket 357 NLRB No. 184 | NLRB (357 NLRB No. 184, Jan. 3, 2012) -> 5th Circuit Court of Appeals (737 F.3d 344, Dec. 3, 2013) -> U.S. Supreme Court (Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, 584 U.S. 497, May 21, 2018) | — | Judgment | Judgment entered D.R. Horton's employment arbitration agreement -- which required employees to waive the right to bring class or collective claims -- became the namesake of a major, years-long labor-law fight. The NLRB ruled in 2012 that such class-waiver arbitration clauses violated the National Labor Relations Act; the 5th Circuit reversed in 2013. The dispute was ultimately resolved by the U.S. Supreme Court in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis (2018, consolidated with NLRB v. Murphy Oil USA and Ernst & Young LLP v. Morris), which ruled 5-4 that such arbitration agreements with class-action waivers are enforceable, rejecting the NLRB's position associated with the original D.R. Horton case. | Source |
Company Relationships
- Subsidiary of: DHI Mortgage Company, Ltd.
- Affiliated with: Express Homes
- Affiliated with: Freedom Homes
- Affiliated with: Emerald Homes
- Acquired by: Crown Communities
Frequently Asked Questions
Is D.R. Horton a legitimate homebuilder?
Yes -- D.R. Horton is the largest homebuilder in the US by volume and a publicly traded company (NYSE: DHI). It carries a BBB A+ rating but is not BBB-accredited, and has 716 BBB complaints in the last 3 years, mostly over post-closing service and repair issues. It has also settled or been fined in several federal regulatory actions (Clean Water Act, HUD/FHA lending, an HOA-mismanagement bankruptcy case).
Does D.R. Horton require arbitration instead of allowing lawsuits?
D.R. Horton's home-purchase contracts are widely reported to include a mandatory arbitration clause, separately initialed at signing, which limits a buyer's ability to sue in court. Several lawsuits reviewed for this profile include homeowner claims that sales staff did not clearly explain this clause; a Louisiana appellate court has ruled that at least one such dispute could proceed in court rather than arbitration. Read your specific contract's arbitration language carefully before signing.
What is D.R. Horton's connection to the Epic Systems Supreme Court case?
D.R. Horton's own employee arbitration agreement (requiring workers to waive class/collective claims) was the subject of a 2012 NLRB ruling and a 2013 5th Circuit reversal. That fight over class-waiver arbitration clauses was ultimately settled nationwide by the U.S. Supreme Court's 2018 decision in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, which upheld such clauses as enforceable -- a landmark labor-law ruling that carries the D.R. Horton case's legacy even though a different company's name appears in the final Supreme Court caption.
Has D.R. Horton faced regulatory fines or settlements?
Yes. Notable examples include an $800,000 combined penalty/environmental-project settlement in 2024 for Clean Water Act stormwater violations at 16 sites in Alabama and the Carolinas, a $180,000 HUD settlement in 2016 over its mortgage subsidiary's FHA loan certifications, and a $16.3 million bankruptcy-court fine in 2016 over a mismanaged Florida homeowners' association. As of 2025-2026 it also faces active lawsuits alleging a mortgage monthly-payment-suppression scheme.
What other home brands does D.R. Horton own?
D.R. Horton builds under several sub-brands targeting different buyer segments: Express Homes (entry-level), Freedom Homes (active-adult), Emerald Homes (luxury/move-up), and Crown Communities (acquired in 2014, operating mainly in Georgia, South Carolina, and eastern Alabama). Its mortgage financing arm is DHI Mortgage Company, Ltd.