Submission #27

Submission Information
Form: Complaint Form
Submitted by Anonymous
Monday, November 23, 2009 - 13:03
76.106.180.206
First Name:
Last Name:
Address:
City: *
State: *
Zip Code: *
Home Phone:
Cell Phone:
Email:
Are You A Senior Citizen:
YES
Name of Builder: *
Approx. date home purchased:
Name of development or community:
What type of financing did you use:
Any Known code violations:
Yes
Unsure
Have You Contacted Builder in Writing?:
Yes
Have You Contacted an Attorney?:
Yes
Is warranty provided by builder or private 3rd party warranty company?:
Builder
Private Company
Both
Not Sure
If you have a private 3rd party company warranty, please provide the name of the warranty company:
Are You Still under warranty:
Yes
Not Sure
Date warranty ends or date ended:
Does contract/warranty require MEDIATION or ARBITRATION?:
Yes
Not Sure
Does contract/warranty name an arbitration service that must be used?:
Yes
Not Sure
Name of arbitration service that must be used::
LIST ALL KNOWN DEFECTS AND DESCRIBE YOUR SITUATION IN DETAIL:
Three years ago my family purchased a 3000 square foot home from Adams Homes of North East Florida. This was supposed to be a wonderful thing for me and my Family of Seven. We moved in and started having plumbing backups in toilets.

Builder sent out their Plumbers, Gunderson Plumbing company. The employees from Gunderson Plumbing advised my family that they didn't do the plumbing in my home and that the plumber that installed plumbing in home had been fired by the builder. They advised us that the plumbing was not ran according to the builders blueprints and that they had no idea where the plumbing pipes even were under the home, since they were not ran according to plan. They felt that the home had possible sag in line causing backups, but had no idea how it could be fixed.

We were told to wait to see what the builder would do, because Gunderson Plumbing was not liable, they didnt install the system. But, the builder seemed to be stalling us, we had difficulty getting them on the phone from then on. We ended up having another clog few weeks after the first. Gunderson Plumbing came back to home, this time they found toys in two of the toilets, small fisher price animals, but all three toilets had been clogged when they came to home. So they said they knew that the toys didn't cause the issue of the clog but the builder was stating that was the case and they refused to pay the plumber. I went ahead and wrote check, and Gunderson didn't even cash it after we spoke to owner. That was very kind of them.

From that visit on, the builder stated there is nothing wrong with the house. They say the issues were caused by toys. They refused to address the fact that the plumbing was ran in wrong direction, they refused to do anything for us.

So we got the Clay County Water Company to come and check the outside line running to the main sewer connection to make sure that their part of plumbing system was not defective. The water company ran a camera thru the outside line and found sags in the pipes that would cause backups into home. They gave me paperwork showing exactly where each sag was and how big they were. The main connection their part was fine.

At this point with proof that the home had defect, and Builder refusing to do anything I decided to picket Builders Model Home. I wore a wood sign, and painted My Adams Home is Defective on the front, and Adams Homes says to flush twice on the back. Cause that is what the builder said I needed to do to fix, just flush more then one time.

The Saleslady was angry about my protest and begain to turn the reclaimed water sprinkler system on everyday whenever I was there, she only turned on the station that I was standing by, and had the sprinkler heads turned to hit the sidewalk and me. This was their attempt to make me leave.

The Builder I guess got tired of me being up on sidewalk everyday, and called the Bonded Builder Warranty group into situation, the warranty group does not take over warrantys till after first year but we were being forced into meetings with them and builder instead. So I stopped protest to give them a chance to see if they would fix home.

The bonded builder came and told Builder to video the inside and outside lines to make sure they were properly installed. So the Builder hired a company to video the pipes, The warranty person Fred and the plumbing company came and videoed the house. When they tested the master bathroom toilet to see how the flow was they turned on the shower to assist in pushing toilet paper from the toilet to the outside line. So am I supposed to run shower every time I flush to make it work right?

The Bonded builder sent us a letter few weeks later stating that there was nothing wrong with home and issue was caused by the toys. I was so upset, how could that be, we already had paperwork from Water Company showing Sags in outside line. How did the Builder get past that in their video.

So I hired a outside plumbing company myself. I stood outside and watched him video the line, he showed me every sag he saw. He found the same ones the water company did on outside line, and he also found a 20 foot one in middle of my home in main line. So I knew then there was some sort of cover up going on, and builder was being deceptive. I got paperwork from plumbing comany and video.

So I decided to started back on my protest, cause I know my home had defect. I had a video now to back it up. But then we got a letter from Builder Stating if I didn't stop protesting them they would sue me for slander, cause there was nothing wrong with the home. So we had to go and hire an Attorney.

The Attorney advised me not to picket anymore that he would help us from there in going thru the arbitration process with the Bonded builder. He submitted out video and paperwork from the Water Company to the Builder and Bonded Builder. I called the Bonded builder and requested a copy of the Video that Adams homes had done of my plumbing lines. I wanted to see why they thought there was nothing worng with plumbing, The bonded Builder informed me that they never viewed the video from Adams but, that after Adams Homes did the Video they called them and told them everything was fine and that it was the Toys that cause the issue. So now I knew why the Bonded builder said it was just toys, they never even looked at the video. Adams just called them on phone and said whatever they wanted to with no proof.

When we had our meeting with the Bounded builder , Adams homes , & our Attorney. They refused still to fix the home. Stating that all we had to do was flush more, that sags were acceptable, and that the large crack in our foundation that we found was just settling. The Bounded Builder that is supposed to be impartial, sided with the builder, even though we had by then 2 videos showing sags thru inside and outside pipes. We also had an Engineering report from an Engineer stating all the codes that were violated that caused the plumbing to sag and cracks in floors of home. So no resolution was made on my defects at meeting. They said they can't prove what is happening under the home, so they are not going to do anything.

So we durring this whole time we had been trying to get the Department of Professional Building Regulation to help us, and they looked at our proof and told us we had enough for them to investigate the issue. They are still working on it, have been for over 2 years.

A few months ago, We decided to try to put flooring in a few of the rooms that wouldn't be touched even if house was replumbed. I started to find large cracks in other areas of home. Then I kept thinking about what Bounded builer said at the meeting we don't know whats under the ground. So I spent 4 days rippping all the flooring out of my home to see how bad our situation really was. I found quarter inch cracks running many different directions thru the home.

We at this point called our homeowners insurance company, cause we realized maybe we were sitting on a sink hole or had ground issues causing plumbing problems and foundation issues.

State Farm came and agreed that there were not normal settling cracks, they set up a core ground testing and other test to make sure we were not on sink hole. When the test came back, ot proved that the ground was not compacted to code before home was built, and that the concreet was not reinforceed properly. We were not on a sink hole. It was an issue with the home not being built according to code by the Builder. A quality Craftsmanship issue.

So we with the help of a friend submitted the new Core ground testing to the Builder and the Bonded Builder, and the Bonded builder sent a representative out to look at cracks. He stated that they could patch the top of the cracks. But we already knew this wouldn't work cause there is another home in neighboorhood they did this to 2 years ago and she told me her cracks are back. This was only thinkgm he offered at that time, he stated that an engineer would be sent out to look further, he took photos and left.

We have started to get estimates for the repairs oursevles and also opinions on how to fix both plumbing issues and foundation issues.

The plumbing is going to be about 35k. That is the low estimate.

We had two foundation companies come out so far, both say that the patch will not work. They both had two different ideas on how to fix.

The first person said that she can fix but they will continue to possibly expand or we might get more cracking in future due to ground issues under home and further settling.

Second company drill holes in foundation and then he puts this liquid stuff under home that turns ground into hard surface like concreet, he then works on cracks and fixes. He said that should take care of it, for 35k as well.

Both companies could not guarantie the work.

Then to top it all off, we get a letter from Bounded Builder Stating that we are no longer covered for the cracks due to Builder Craftsmanship Warranty being expired. These are same cracks that were there in the first meeting, these are the same cracks that they said were just settling issues. So they blew us off then and tell us we have expired now? What happened to the Engineer that they were going to send out to decide how to fix? Now they are just refusing again to do anything. Just like before we are being blown off on a legitamite claim.

It is just crazy. The last three years have been so stressfull some days I don't even want to go on.

I am now living with a Adams Home, with sagging plumbing and severly cracked floors that I can't even put flooring over till it is fixed. And if I could even afford to try to fix it, there is no guarantie it wouldnt get worse or come back.

I can't sell it in this condition, and wouldn't want to even put this sort of thing on another person anyway. Even though the Builder sold it to me this way. They knew the plumbing was put in the wrong direction. But, they sold it to me that way without disclosing this information to me. They knew the cracks were bad, but they did nothing to try to find out why they were there, or try to fix the home. They sold it to me defective, and have done evrything possible to try to make me just go away. The only thing they have done is Blame the problem on me and my young autistic child. That is How Low Adams Homes will go to not have to fix one of their homes. They Will Blame an Disabled Child and his toys, instead of doing the right thing adn fixing the issue!

I want Adams Homes to buy back this Defective house they sold to me, then they can live with the cracks, and maybe I can acutally go find a real quality home, cause this is not it! 

Blog I set up with photos and this story:
http://adamshomes.blogspot.com/
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