Class Action suit against home builder?

[goodstarr]

I live in development of 75 houses that we all built about 9-11 years ago. A few of the houses (close friends) have had leaks in their master bathrooms that required extensive repair. Of course, I also have a leak and am wondering if we have grounds for a lawsuit against the builder, since so many of us have had the same problem. Anyone ever been involved in this type of suit and any advice as to how we should begin to pursue this?

 

[ScarlettO]

Call your Homeowners Insurance Company. I had a burst pipe in the wall a couple months ago. My insurance paid for the pipe repair and sent a disaster team to dry the carpet and restretch it and gave me money for other repairs(fix hole in wall, paint etc.

 

[ducklite]

First you need to speak to a lawyer.

If insurance has paid out, it's possible you might not have a case.

It think it requires more than a handful of people to have a class action suit. You can all be named as plaintiffs on one suit without it being certified for class-action.

The bottom line answer is to talk to a lawyer. The one you used for your closing should be able to refer you to a decent trial attorney with some knowledge in this kind of law.

Anne

 

[IMGONNABE40!]

Most new homes are under warranty for a year. After that the builder is off the hook and you are out of luck.

 

[missypie]

Before you invest any more time in the idea of a lawsuit, make sure the builder is still in business...it needs to be the exact legal entity that built your home. Lots of the actual people who build homes will take one corporation into bankrupcty when they get too many claims against them, then immediately form a new company and build more homes. Only the exact entity that built your home would have any liabilty. Check your deed for the exact name of your seller, then call your secretary of state's office for info on the company.

 

[goodstarr]

Thank you all sooo much. I thought automatically that since about 5 homes had the exact same problem, we would be able to get the builder to pay for repairs if we filed a group suit. I will speak with an attorney but I want to poll the rest of the residents in our development to see what their experience has been.

 

[jel0511]

Actually, we've built a new home, and you're probably out of luck, unless the builder took out an extended warranty on the house. Builders aren't responsable for problems that could occur YEARS down the line, and are usually only responsible for a reasonable amount of time. Plumbing problems are usually only vaild for two years, major structural problems are for 10 years and this is WITH the extended warranty coverage. Even though it's the exact same problem that occured, you probably don't have any recourse.

 

[wdwfam]

I agree with Jel0511. If you didn't have the problem within the first year, how can you hold the builder accountable? Many problems with houses are due to neglect on the homeowner's part. To say that five people in a neigborhood had the same problem may be due to weather. If you did have the problem the first year and you didn't let the builder know, then that is your fault too. How can they possibly know if you didn't notify them? Roofing problems are really hard to blame on the builder if leaks didn't show up shortly after taking possession of the home. I guess I take a little offense as to why you automatically think you can sue the builder with a problem that shows up years after you moved in. Also, leaks usually start out as little leaks, not something that causes "extensive damage" unless the homeowner failed to address the problem right away. That's what people have insurance for. Unfortunately, a lot of insurance money is paid out for homeowner neglect. I am very familiar with this scenerio.

 

[goodstarr]

Wdwfam, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you or anyone. I thought that this problem could have been caused by builder error because 5 people have had the exact same problem and we all had our houses built around the same time by the same builder. I wanted to see what other homeowners in our development experienced before actually talking with an attorney. I guess when I hear about vehicles that have the same defect being recalled and replaced by the manufacturer, I assume that the same rules apply with builders. I thought that maybe there was a problem with the way the bathrooms were constructed. I am not someone who looks to sue people (I have never sued anyone-I don't even know any attorneys-or else I would be consulting the disboards on this ) I just saw a trend in our houses and thought that there may have been some fault in the building of them, that's all.