We signed our contract with united bilt homes July 27,2009&gave them the $10,000cash down payment.We were told that we would be contacted with every phase of the building process& that if we needed anything all we had to do was call. At first things were rolling fast. The foundation was poured(it seemed like it didnt dry enough before they started building),walls were done,with some bad boards so I had to question those,then the outside. Then it kinda all fell apart from there. No one ever contacted us on each phase of the construction.
There was huge messes left on our property and no trash bin like we were told there would be. When the roofers came in they left behinds hundreds of nails on the ground-1in which my son step on and it went through his shoe.We asked for the magnet to be ran and was told yes they would get them there to do that but they never did-we ended up picking them up bc we have livestock and couldnt run the chance of injury to anyone else or the animals.
The front porch posts were never straight up and down they were always tilted and whenever we complained about them they would hit them over and detach the railings attached to them from the house-the railings are still not fixed. Our door knobs and bolts continue to be the wrong colors,one set they put on we had to have a key to bolt them from the inside. They still are not right-we have now noticed that the knob is a different color than the lock bc the they are different brands.
The conrecte in the pantry and master bedroom had holes in them and we have told them and told them and finally they have patched them poorly but patched them. The kitchen cabinets when you close them some of them hit together. There is a warped edge on one of the corners of the cabinet at which they have tried to sand it down but sanding will not "fix" the problem.
Under the kithen sink the they "forgot" to wire in the dishwasher and disposal so they have an extra added plug that sticks out of the wall it is not flush to the wall and they have written on it in black marker- disposal and dishwasher. Underneth the other cabinet there is approx 1inch-2inch conduit wire that runs through the back of the cabinet to the end to another "forgotten" plug. It looks horrible not like a new construction home at all.
The dishwasher area there was a huge hole left and they finally came in put a piece of board up in the back of the that area to hide the hole! and I was told that I will have to cut my own hole to get to the horrible plug under the sink to connect the dishwasher even though it was their mistake for not making a plug in the wall behind the dishwasher its under the sink?
The doorbell was totally forgotten so after bringing it to their attention it was installed but oh my!! it was installed on a light switch panel!! The screws were stripped out and it was tilted as well. It has been corrected but it took weeks to get fixed.
The master bedroom lightswitchs was suppose to be a 3panel switch but they messed up and did a 2panel switch and realized it and then came back and added another single switch below the double switch!! This has been corrected after weeks of complaining!
The shelving in the closets &pantry were cut totally off there were huge gaps inbetween the walls with nails hanging down where they missed the board. They tried to fix the problem by caulking the inch gaps but it made it worse. They had to come back in and recut the boards. This is still a mess and there is still nails hanging down. I actually cut my finger on one of the nails bc I didnt know it was there.
The front door was painted deep red but when they painted it they got the inside of the door red as well. i was told that was my problem but if I had some kilz they would do it. They tried and it didnt fix the red. So when they cam back to take pics and look at all the problems again I complained and I was told they would kilz it again. Nope didnt work. These doors on the front door and back 2 doors are construction doors very cheap.
There is cracks in the drywall and I was told numerous times to just put some paint on it-.Hello paint dont fix these problems that we have!!!
Outside paint is peeling very bad but that issue continued to be overlooked.
The kitchen electric wasnt wired correctly and we continue to tell united bilt but we cant prove anything until the electric is pulled to the house. We have the electric meter there just needs to be pulled to the house.
The breaker box was put on the outside of the house and on the west side of the house after we had told united bilt before construction had started on our home that the electricity had to come in from the east side. We have tried the entire time our house was being built tell them that the electricity is wrong and we will not pay for their mistakes. We told them after the breaker box was done it needed to be moved to the east side and they have ignore us. Now they refuse to pull the electric to our house. The construction supervisor even texted me that they will pull the electric to our house. I have the text where he said that. Then he changed his mind.
We had to pay for the septic system to be put in bc united bilt did not budget correctly for it. After it was done one of united bilts handy mans decided to rewire the septic system guys work and tell us it was wrong. He was not an electrician. We had to call the septic guys back out and when they fixed what he messed up they told us he rerouted around the direct cutoff so if there was a problem with the septic it would not alarm or shut off!! The same handyman guy also messed with the wiring in our house and told us he did, after he told us that the electrician had not been back out to our house.
Funny thing to me our final construction plans dont even include the extra door, the doorbell, and some other verbal things that we agreed upon that I ended up getting in our house. And no we didnt do any change orders.
We are so tired of empty promises and the run around. We get told one thing from one guy and another thing from another guy. If united bilt would be honest and up front in the first place we wouldnt have these problems. We were never informed of any phase of our house. We can never reach them by phone so I text them seems to be the only way to reach anyone. No inspections have ever been done except on the septic that we had done.
WE are fed up with united bilt. Sherman Texas office is a joke!!!!
What can be done? attorney general? any help is greatly appreciated!! our first months mortgage is due in february and we arent even in yet. All of our appliances are on hold the store keeps calling wanting to know when we are coming to get them.
BBBandBadBuilder
United States of America#2Consumer Comment
Sun, June 19, 2011
United-Bilt Homes Employee
Shreveport,#3UPDATE Employee
Fri, July 16, 2010
United-Bilt Homes has been in business over 50 years and has over 30,000 happy homeowners. Regardless of the reason for misunderstandings it is our policy and intent to satisfy each of our homeowners. That was our goal in this situation. Homes are constructed with over 30,000 components and often times they can be damaged and require replacement or correction during the construction process. This is not unusual. United-Bilt Homes stands behind their agreement with their homebuyers and is committed to meet or exceed all of the applicable codes and performance standard guidelines. We provide onsite supervision of each of our homes at both a local and corporate level to insure this.
Part of what sets United-Bilt Homes apart is the flexibility of constructing homes with a line-item agreement. This flexibility allows the homebuyer to decide which items they want United-Bilt Homes to complete and which ones they are comfortable undertaking themselves. The agreement in this case did not include United-Bilt Homes providing many of the listed concerns. United-Bilt Homes has been to this home since the original report and corrected the last few remaining issues listed (that were in the original agreement). Any concerns that may come up in the future will also be addressed courteously, professionally and promptly. The signed agreement clearly states that there is no completion date because of the many uncontrollable variables involved. However, as noted in the report, United-Bilt Homes portion of this home was completed and the punch out concerns addressed and corrected as needed months before the first payment was due.
Construction creates a certain amount of debris during the process. United-Bilt Homes procedure is to get to a certain stage in the construction process and collect and remove the debris at those intervals. We request of our homebuyers that have untethered livestock in the construction zone to please fence off the home site prior to construction. This provides for the safety of the animals and the workers. This particular homeowner elected not to do that. That same livestock was photographed roaming around and through the home during construction. The damage caused to items, such as the pickets on the front porch, United-Bilt Homes repaired (and on more than one occurrence in some cases) at no expense to the homebuyer. This is confirmed in the original report.
The installation of electrical system in the house is also done by line-item to allow the flexibility of options and savings for the homeowner. The outlet under the sink is installed and marked as noted in the report so that if the homeowner elects to install a dishwasher and/or disposal they will know which socket in the duplex outlet is switched. The switch is to turn the disposal on or off and is recessed, as typically done, above the countertop backsplash. The outlet for the dishwasher is run in this manner so that the electrical connection can be accessed without having to unscrew and remove the entire dishwasher. This convenience feature was installed at no additional expense to the homeowner. The cabinets are custom designed and built specifically for this home. The minimum required number and spacing for electrical outlets sometimes makes it necessary to run the wiring in the back of the cabinet in a flexible conduit. This is a requirement of the prevailing electric code. It should be noted that this requirement is for outlets that are mounted in or on the side of the cabinets. The outlets and switches that are readily visible, above the backsplash of the countertop are flush mounted and the connecting wiring is enclosed by the sheetrock walls. Location of the main breaker panel is often dictated by the home design, where the main service line is being accessed on the property and ultimately the prevailing electrical code. When the homeowner does not take the proper steps to have the electrical service run to the property prior to construction, as was such in this report, the panel is located in the most likely spot. United-Bilt Homes stands behind the workmanship of the electrical system. United-Bilt Homes procedure is that once the homeowner has the meter installed, if there are any concerns, they are addressed promptly. The electrical system was hot tested prior to the meter installation with no issues. Subsequently when the meter is installed on the home any covered issues that arise will be promptly addressed. The doorbell is also an option that was not on the original agreement and United-Bilt Homes installed one as a gesture of goodwill at no expense to the homeowners. This too is noted in the original report. All other electrical concerns were addressed as confirmed by the author of the original report.
Typically custom cabinets require that the cabinet doors and drawers be adjusted and aligned after the surfaces are stained or the finish applied. This homeowner requested that they be allowed to finish the cabinets themselves. They also requested that the adjustments be made prior to the finishing and United-Bilt Homes has complied. The nail that was not readily visible under the pantry shelf has also been remedied. The original agreement states that the concrete for the slab is not prepared as a finished surface and the imperfections and holes were addressed in accordance with the performance guidelines. The homeowner agreed that they wanted to complete the final floor covering and any necessary prep work. This was not United-Bilt Homes responsibility. The exterior colors including the door colors were the choice of the homebuyer. United-Bilt Homes agreed to paint the exterior and has already addressed the concerns in the report and again stands behind the work. The septic system was not in the original agreement nor was it charged for. The homeowner agreed that installation and all servicing is their responsibility not United-Bilt Homes
In summary; United-Bilt Homes stands behind their portion of the construction as originally agreed upon. Even though at the time of this report there were a few items that may have been perceived to be delayed in completion, those and all subsequent items have been addressed. Should any new concerns arise United-Bilt Homes will inspect and address them as necessary too. Our goal is to have satisfied and happy homeowners and we will continue to strive for that.