Breach of Contract:
Foundation The foundation is included in the contract with HomeCrafters, Inc. HomeCrafters, Inc. Lowballed their proposal. When the bids that they requested from their subcontactors came in higher than our contract they refused to pay the subcontractors. We, the homeowners, had to pay again for the foundation which was to be installed by HomeCrafters Inc.
Crane Our contract with HomeCrafters, Inc.included setting the modular home by crane. Again, when they were billed by the crane comany and it was higher than the amount charged to us they refused to pay the crane company leaving us to pay to avoid a mechanics lien and in addition they did not refund the money that we paid them for the crane service.
Appliances They were included and paid for in our contract. They were never installed in the house, nine monthe later we are still waiting to be reimbursed.
HomeCrafters, Inc. Provided a one year complete warranty and a 10 year structural warranty. The house was set in September.
Following are defects and problems that we have encountered with the house, not necessarily in the order by severity. To date HomeCrafters, Inc. Has not repaired one defect or reimbursed us for the costs that we have incurred to repair and replace their defects. Please note that the list below does not address other contract breaches and issues that arose during the construction process:
General
The entire house was filthy, inside and out. One would expect that when they are given the keys to a new home, the house would be clean.
HomeCrafters states in it's website, as noted above, that their homes are built in a controlled setting not left exposed to rain and other elements of nature and theft. Our house was built outside, exposed to the elements and was actually left for weeks on the side of the road near Pueblo, Colorado and Questa, New Mexico, exposed to the elements and at risk of theft and vandalism while they tried to figure out how to get the two modules delivered to our home site.
Their website states that their sales representative would remain our primary contact throughout the process. Our sales representative has been out of the picture since making their last draw request. Calls and emails are never returned.
The Client Menu never did give a project schedule. There were only two sets of pictures posted to the site, one in February and one in March, early in the construction process. The site was virtually worthless.
Our contract called for rounded corners in the house. Square corners were installed.
Plumbing - The plastic pipes were not glued at the joints. Virtually every joint in the CPVC pipe had to be glued by local plumbers. Numerous other plumbing problems noted by the local plumber including a behind the wall leak in the main bathroom. Repairs resulted in a two foot by two foot hole cut in the sheetrock in the main coat closet to access the tub shower plumbing.
Interior Painting Very amateurish and substandard.
Television cabling, which was installed with out of date R-58 cable, was not labeled for location source. Dish satellite installers were unable to utilize any of the built in cables.
Exterior
Their construction trash was left on the corner of the lot for us to remove.
The fascia on the front of the house had so many nail holes that it gave the appearance of being strafed by machine gun fire. It would appear to be scrap lumber.
20 feet of base trim was left off the front of the house.
Numerous staples and nails were left protruding all around the exterior of the house.
Front exterior faucet leaked.
Water shut off in the crawl space is accessible only by a man door which is blocked by several feet of snow in the winter. We had to install a main shut off in the utility room to at least give us quick access to a water shut off.
The architecture is about as inspired as a double wide trailer, but we knew what we were getting before the house was built. The lack of gables over the exterior doors makes access in the winter extremely difficult. We will invest several thousand additional dollars to install a roof overhang and a porch to the front of the house.in back we have already had one window break due to falling ice from ice and snow build up on the roof. Several corrections will have to be made to the roof and eves before we go through another winter. Again, we saw the plans before the house was built. However, with their represented years of modular homebuilding experience and licensing in New Mexico we would have hoped that they as the builder could have foreseen some of the problems and made structural modifications to address some of those problems.
Roof - Roof leaks
Kitchen
Counter top not completed per plans. Triangle piece to the right of the stove was not installed.
Microwave oven was vented into the attic
Microwave filters not installed.
Partially complete and wholly inadequate Homeowner binder and manual left in drawer.
Appliances not provided.
Utility Room
Wall cracked above French doors
Doors Marked and Gouged
Electrical panel sheetrock damaged, clearly would expect better in a new home
Boiler Required Vent Damper not installed. Boiler was not functional. We have had to hire local contractors on three separate occasions to repair and make the boiler serviceable. Actually, per the Angel Fire Plumber contractor that we hired and the Gas Company representative, the 75,000 BTU boiler is too small for the house at the home site elevation.
Garage
Garage door opener not functional. We had to install the laser obstruction lights from parts left loose in the garage.
Wall mounted door opener not functional. Wiring appears to be incorrect new wall mount purchased and installed.
Two 2 x 4 corner studs missing. Written up by the building inspector.
Garage left filthy and full of trash.
Ceiling insulation bundles left in attic. Was the ceiling installation to be installed by HomeCrafters?
Master Bedroom Bath
Nail hole in ceiling
Manufacturer label stuck on shower wall
Hot and cold water lines on the lavatory were installed backward.
Vanity light not even close to being centered over vanity
As consistent with the rest of the house, left filthy.
Hand towel bar installed to low, had to be moved
Master Bedroom
Thermostat in Master Bedroom and Family Room wired backward. Had to rewire.
The strike plate on the door to the deck was to short. The door frame was left taped by masking tape to allow the door to shut properly. The door frame was damaged and written up by the building inspector.
Main Bathroom
As in the Master Bedroom Bath, vanity light not close to being centered over vanity
Bath faucet would not turn to the hot water position. Outside plumbing repair required.
Family Room
Fireplace inoperable. Even though they knew that the gas source was propane they installed a natural gas fireplace. We had to pay to install a propane adaptor.
Wall mounted fireplace switch not functional. They informed us after I asked about the switch that it was actually a dummy switch. We had to pay additional amount to install a remote control starter.
French doors to the deck covered with paint splatters and manufacturer labels.
Base board heaters scratched and covered with paint splatters.
Front door extremely difficult to open.
Dining Room
Baseboard heat pipe broke, flooded the dining room floor. Damaged Pergo floor. Again, we paid to repair.
Ceiling damaged around the dining room light
Coat Closet
Coat rack not usable as installed. To close to the door to actually be used to hang clothes.
Construction materials left in closet.
Needless to say, what HomeCrafters, Inc. Promised and what they delivered could not have been more polar opposite. If they had made good on the representations that they made to us verbally, in the contract and in their website, I would not be writing this complaint. Unfortunately, they were not even close.
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