Complaint Review: Keystone Custome Homes - Jeff Rutt

Keystone Custom Homes helped me out in a pinch. Even the original complaint here was resolved--an upstanding service to be sure!

My wife and I purchased a house from Keystone Custom Homes in 2009 and we have been extremely happy with the house and the experience with Jeff Rutt and his team.  We felt that the value of the home and the attention to detail that we received was so much better than our last experience we had with our home builder.

I was surprised to read the negative comments about Jeff Rutt and Keystone, as my experience with them has been wonderful.  I would recommend them to anyone looking to buy a home in the Lancaster area.

I recently recived a card in the mail from keystone custom homes advertising single family homes from 124k to 173k. Since i was in the market looking for a home i decided to check them out. I visited the website and saw a home called the monroe which was in the price range of 156k. I then called the phone number confirmed the price of the house and got some more details about the home and community. I also made an appointment to see a model home the very next day. On saturday i arrived at cameron woods and was sent to a tent where we waited for 45 mins. while waiting we noticed a sign that said "for every house we sell the house price goes up 1500. I said okay so the house i want will be 1500 buck higher no big deal. After touring the model home we then were taken to talk to Steve who asked us what we wanted in a home. After i mentioned how much i was approved for and what house i wanted he informed up that the house i saw advertised YESTERDAY had gone up over 20k and that prices were changing ever hour. I was stunned.Apparently they meant take 1500 dollars and multiply that by however many houses they sell. So in my case it was at least 20 houses.WOW.  The card and website said the sale of 15% off ended Dec31st.  I was then asked to consider a spruce home which was half the size and i would have to pay and additional 12k to add a basement to it. Keystone hypes up their 20 year warrenty, and 25 year warrenty on their roof as well as 100% satisfaction garuentee. IF they cant even honor their advertisements how will they honor their warrenties? In my opinion they pulled the old bait and switch! I would have bought the home had it not gone up 20k in less then 24 hours. Yes BEWARE of keystone, read the fine print and make sure you know how much your house is going to cost because they can change the price by the thousands every hour. Its a shame because i really liked their houses.

I recently recived a card in the mail from keystone custom homes advertising single family homes from 124k to 173k. Since i was in the market looking for a home i decided to check them out. I visited the website and saw a home called the monroe which was in the price range of 156k. I then called the phone number confirmed the price of the house and got some more details about the home and community. I also made an appointment to see a model home the very next day. On saturday i arrived at cameron woods and was sent to a tent where we waited for 45 mins. while waiting we noticed a sign that said "for every house we sell the house price goes up 1500. I said okay so the house i want will be 1500 buck higher no big deal. After touring the model home we then were taken to talk to Steve who asked us what we wanted in a home. After i mentioned how much i was approved for and what house i wanted he informed up that the house i saw advertised YESTERDAY had gone up over 20k and that prices were changing ever hour. I was stunned.Apparently they meant take 1500 dollars and multiply that by however many houses they sell. So in my case it was at least 20 houses.WOW.  The card and website said the sale of 15% off ended Dec31st.  I was then asked to consider a spruce home which was half the size and i would have to pay and additional 12k to add a basement to it. Keystone hypes up their 20 year warrenty, and 25 year warrenty on their roof as well as 100% satisfaction garuentee. IF they cant even honor their advertisements how will they honor their warrenties? In my opinion they pulled the old bait and switch! I would have bought the home had it not gone up 20k in less then 24 hours. Yes BEWARE of keystone, read the fine print and make sure you know how much your house is going to cost because they can change the price by the thousands every hour. Its a shame because i really liked their houses.

The previous update that states I disclaim that these statements are the truth, as I know it to be, based on the information that I have available to me at this time. WAS meant for the orginal report not the update. Keystone is working with a us for a resouloution.

I disclaim that these statements are the truth, as I know it to be, based on the information that I have available to me at this time.

Our house is not even eight years old we purchased it June 14, 2000 and we can not sell because Keystone Custom Homes will not replace our septic system. Our septic system hasn't worked properly since we moved in and the builder was informed by me right away. The builders solution was to come out early the next morning without permission and dig a hole in my back yard and install a check valve onto my septic system. When questioned why, they said so that sewage wouldn't come into my house. When asked where the sewage would go, never answered. About three years later(2003), they finally came out to my house with the soil people who did original testing and the health department and performed several test on the property and checked out the current drainage field, during a the drought and there was water in my system, the water doesn't drain properly due to compaction of soil !!! This is the day the builder walked away from us and wouldn't talk to us up until this time that acted like they were going to help us in fact they were paying to have other systems in the development fixed, about 6-8 that I know of. Yes, there have been others with septic problems of not having the proper systems installed for their properties. They paid to fix those systems and the did it the cheapest and most basic way available to them. Here we are about 8 years later, and way poorer, had to hire my own consultant, lawyer etc and we still do not have a new system. The builder has lead us by our noses acting like he was going to do the right thing, in fact once a permit was finally going to be issued, he designed the new system according to what the health department's specs but says that he will not install or pay to have installed. Their attorney is now saying that we need to go after the soil people, I didn't buy my brand new house from the soil companies, I bought my brand new house from Keystone Custom Builders. They are also saying that we have been using our system, and that systems aren't perpetual, that we should pay some of the cost to install a new system. Due to the problems with my property we only have one place for a new system and it is where the current drainage field is, so this needs to be called an experimental system and we had to pay to file paperwork in the county saying it is experimental! The new system that was finally approved to be installed will cost roughly around 30,000.00 and we can't afford this and we can't afford a legal battle, they all ready took our life's savings and our dreams and flushed them down the toilet. Be Aware; Do Not Buy a Home from Keystone Custom Builders. Dennis & lisa Lincoln University, Pennsylvania
U.S.A.

I have also had a "nightmare" experience with this builder. Unfortunately, after 5 years, $13,000.00 in attorney's fees, $6,500.00 in storage rental for all of my family's worldly posessions, and many other expenses for travel, lodging, etc., I still don't have a house from this builder! We contracted with this builder in March of 2004 to have a house built for us and still do not have a house to call our own because, unlike this builder, we upheld our end of the agreement and sold the house we owned at the time. We actually had to sue this builder to try and get this builder to honor its contract with us and sell us a house, as it promised, in March of 2004. We have even tried to settle with this builder, TWICE, only to have this builder either out and out renege, violate the agreement, or try to get out of the agreement on "technicalities" based on their perception of the facts.

Of course, because we are still in litigation and this builder has already threatened to sue the other person who made a report unfavorable to them, I must disclaim that these statements are the truth, as I know it to be, based on the information that I have available to me at this time.

If anyone else has had a similiar or other negative experience with this builder, or is interested in settting up a forum for other customers who are dissatisfied with this builder, please feel free to contact me via this website.