home builder not finishing work, what are the rights

[rach]

Long story short, built a house, builder promised everything to be done 2 months ago, and still minor things have not been done,
ie ( cabinets adjustment, staaircase from deck etc)
is it worth to file a case from warranty or just waited itout?
been calling builder everyday but all they say is its coming soon.
want to bring this to public for opinions
thanks guys

[KPHMPH]

Are you currently living in the house or waiting for it to be finished ?

[Masked Bandit]

When was your possession? It can take up to a year for everything to be "done" and a warranty claim is only valid if there is a structural deficiency.

[88CRX]

Those are deficiencies not warranty items. New Home Warranty will tell you its not their issue to deal with deficiencies. Did those deficiencies get noted as such in your builder walkthrus?

You need to sort them out with the builder. Seasonal items always take way longer then they should but that is almost always the case. Who is your builder and don't they have processes in place for you to submit deficiency items to be fixed, then they schedules trade days and they get sorted out?

[jampack]

I am curious who the builder is. You do have a year for the deficiencies and it should be stated on your agreements with the builder. Other warranty stuff should also be stated in your warranty book you get from the builder.

[killramos]

This is why you hold back money with your lawyer. Amazing how quick things get done when they want their money.

[colinxx235]

Lol, good luck getting most home builders to sign a contract off that lets you withhold money once the keys are turned over. Then every home builder would have to jump through hoops and hunt down money through lawyers to complete the transaction. I would never in this world build a home with that hanging over your head.

[killramos]

Too each their own, worked well for me lol. Once they have their money good luck getting anything done out of the average sleezy moron who builds houses in Calgary.

I would personally be more worried about using the builders that REFUSE to accept holdbacks until deficiencies are dealt with. Why refuse if they never intended to deliver free of defects on closing date.

[gwill]

There's nothing wrong with a general hold back but to just throw out a random amount of cash to be held back over minor issues won't fly with any builder.

There are clauses in every contract In regards to buyers holding money back. Interest will typically start at 19.9 % for those who think theyll tell the builder what to do.

[Lex350]

The threat of a hold back worked for me too the last time I built a house. It was amazing how quickly things got done.

[revelations]

Having never bought a new home, I was under the impression that there was a sign off / acceptance process to go through?

I personally would not have signed off on anything, even with 'promises' from the builder to come back at a later date. Missing items should be pretty easy to spot.

No finish = no sign

[rach]

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Are you currently living in the house or waiting for it to be finished ?

al;ready moved in for few months

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Those are deficiencies not warranty items. New Home Warranty will tell you its not their issue to deal with deficiencies. Did those deficiencies get noted as such in your builder walkthrus?

You need to sort them out with the builder. Seasonal items always take way longer then they should but that is almost always the case. Who is your builder and don't they have processes in place for you to submit deficiency items to be fixed, then they schedules trade days and they get sorted out?

yes but they only scheduled driveways, landscapings, etc, big items are all done, just some touching ups in the house that needs to be done

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yes i have a warranty paper stating that everything "shall be": done before May 31st, (ie all the deficiencies, non completed items)
I dont want to disclose the builders are they are private , nothing compared to Jayman or cardel,

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This is why you hold back money with your lawyer. Amazing how quick things get done when they want their money.

I should have done that as lawyer told me to do that, but the builder refused to do it at pocession day, and i guess i have put too much trust into them

[bjstare]

The builder refused to let you hold your money back? The power to decide that is yours, not theirs. (not that it matters now)

[rach]

the reasoning they have is we never decide to hold back money until the pocession date (i guess thats my fault)??
and they said they have to pay back mortgages etc so cannot hold back anything.

[Kloubek]

It can take some time for everything to be completed. When we moved into our old house, it took 3 months for them to finish the stonework. Our current house needed the driveway and a few other things. Don't worry - it's normal. Just make sure it is documented these are outstanding.

[gwill]

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The builder refused to let you hold your money back? The power to decide that is yours, not theirs. (not that it matters now)

You can't hold back money from a builder unless they agree. For example if you said you wanted $10k held back over a minor paint issue the builder would tell you to get Bent.

There are clauses in the paperwork if you want to tell them what to do with the house they own... remember until possession the house is the property of the builder.

It's rather amusing to see people provide advice that would cost a home owner thousands of dollars. The contract one signed is very important.

[rach]

but on the contract, it says everything has to be done by May 31, doesnt that mean something to the builder?
the microwave has been sitting in the garage since <April, and nothing has been done
this is getting ridicoulous, i think,....when they asked for money, i cut them a cheque nextday, so i expect they do the same,
next time i will just buy a showhome FF>S

[gwill]

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but on the contract, it says everything has to be done by May 31, doesnt that mean something to the builder?
the microwave has been sitting in the garage since <April, and nothing has been done
this is getting ridicoulous, i think,....when they asked for money, i cut them a cheque nextday, so i expect they do the same,
next time i will just buy a showhome FF>S

You can't sweat the small stuff. Have you attempted to chat with your sales rep for the builder?? I think you would benefit from having a refresher on the builders processes.

I bought from a builder who was super slow to take care of deficiencies. Not the end of the world as they all eventually got fixed. Just on their schedule.

[suntan]

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You can't hold back money from a builder unless they agree.

You have like the worst knowledge of law ever.

The holdback is in escrow. So yes, the homeowner can definitely keep the money heldback. You can't get it yourself (really, it's the mortage lender's money), but you can keep it from the builder for essentially forever.

I did the same thing when I bought my house. The previous owners didn't bother to get a relaxation for their crappy patio, so I told my lawyer not to release the holdback until they got it done. They got the relaxation pretty fast after that.

[gwill]

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You have like the worst knowledge of law ever.

The holdback is in escrow. So yes, the homeowner can definitely keep the money heldback. You can't get it yourself (really, it's the mortage lender's money), but you can keep it from the builder for essentially forever.

I did the same thing when I bought my house. The previous owners didn't bother to get a relaxation for their crappy patio, so I told my lawyer not to release the holdback until they got it done. They got the relaxation pretty fast after that.

If you ignore the hundreds or close to a thousand new home contracts I've personally dealt with then yes I know nothing about contracts.

There are many legitimate reasons for a hold back but if a buyer pulls a number out of thin air and tells their lawyer not to release funds then the builders will use one of the many clauses in the paperwork to charge the home owner interest. This can be quite significant.

These clauses are there as some owners are not that reasonable or don't understand the new build process.