A Texas family is left distraught after learning that their stunning newly built home is so poorly constructed that a gust of wind could topple it.
Laci Booker said she moved into her Seguin home in April 2023, but within weeks it became apparent that the remedial work was extensive, although the house appears fine from the outside.
“I feel very disappointed, I am angry,” she said. told News 4 San Antonio.
He said he hired his own home inspector, who noted nearly 80 problems.
These include inadequate interior and exterior wall supports.
“What this does is it makes the house more vulnerable to wind loads,” Mark Eberwine said. “And not even tornado wind loads, but high winds.”
The exterior of the Bookers’ home in Seguin, Texas, appears to be in good condition.
But the first problems Booker said she noticed in the two-story home were that the walls were not straight, which she said made it difficult to open and close doors.
“And then we started asking the warranty team to come in and take a look at things,” he said.
Then they encountered even more problems and their newly built home by Pulte Homes of Texas became a dangerous construction zone.
The drywall was removed, leaving the joists exposed throughout.
“You walk in and you’re greeted by studs and cut-out drywall,” Booker told the local news station.
“The harder they work, the more problems they encounter,” he added.
Laci Booker said she moved into her Seguin home in April 2023, but within weeks it became apparent that the remedial work was extensive.
The drywall has been removed from the interior of the house, leaving the beams exposed throughout.
As the problems became more severe, Booker said Pulte Group asked them to move into temporary housing at the company’s expense to allow for more extensive repairs without risking injury to her or her family.
“We’ll give them three weeks to take care of those problems and then we can go back to our home,” he said.
Both parties agreed to begin construction after the winter break in 2023, but the house is still undergoing repairs.
“I never expected to have to deal with something like this,” Booker said. “It’s been a huge emotional and mental strain on us.”
The kitchen is still trashed and covered in dust, and Booker said his living room “where my family used to hang out and relax together is now a regular construction zone.”
Home inspector Mark Eberwine said he expects there are even more problems lurking beneath the surface.
Pulte confirmed that repair work began in January and noted that the city of Seguin conducted its own inspection and resolved all of the issues identified in that report.
They are also working to address the issues outlined in their Eberwine report and the homebuilder said repairs were needed to the structure, which subsequently resulted in repairs to the drywall and interior finishes.
But Eberwine said he believes there are even more problems lurking beneath the surface.
“I’m absolutely certain that at this point, if you were to remove this drywall, you would find more structural integrity issues,” Eberwine told the local news station.
He said he believes that is why repairs have taken so long.
Pulte, however, claims that even though the family moved, repair crews were not always allowed in, a claim the Booker family denies.
“We are aware of the concerns raised by Mr and Mrs Booker and are addressing them, and repairs are already underway as planned,” a company spokesman said.
But because Booker involved lawyers, the repairs have been halted and the two sides are at an impasse.
PulteGroup Inc. was previously sued by eight other Texas homeowners. CEO Ryan Marshall is pictured here
Booker, however, says he just wants the company to take the house back “and let me get far, far away from them.”
Eberwine agreed, saying, “They need to buy the house back, plain and simple.”
Booker’s complaints come just a few years after the owners of eight homes in Converse, Texas, sued PulteGroup Inc., alleging their properties have numerous design and construction defects that have caused “unacceptable levels of cracking and warping” in the homes’ foundations.
That led to extensive interior damage, including broken tiles, cracked moldings and cracked wall boards that made the homes “unsafe, unsanitary or unfit for habitation,” the lawsuits claim. according to the San Antonio Express-News.
The homeowners sued Pulte Homes of Texas for fraud, negligent construction and breach of implied warranties.
Company spokesman Jim Zeumer said at the time that they “work hard to deliver exceptional build quality and overall customer experience.”
“We are reviewing the submissions, but we stand by our warranty and look forward to meeting with these owners to assess their concerns.”
The group also added in a legal filing that it is “not liable for normal wear and tear, deterioration or use,” nor is it responsible “for any percentage of damages caused by the plaintiff’s failure to take reasonable steps to mitigate the damages or maintain the residence.”