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We bought a $310k house in McDonough in May of 2008. We recently found out that there is a workman's lien on our property and we have had several expensive issues arise. Our builder has disconnected his number, gone out of business and has refused to get back to us. What rights do I have as a consumer and how do I get this lien removed. It was for an order our builder placed BEFORE we closed on the house.
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Posted: Jan 14, 2009 at 8:24 PM
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Mark N
Property Manager
McDonough, GA
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You can do several things.
1. If you purchased title insurance. You can deal with the lein. Your title policy states you bought a house that had a clear title. Clear means no leins and one else has claim to it or they (title company)have to rectify it.
2. The builder has a reputation and is probably working somewhere. You can find him, either by word of mouth or a private detective. The builder has an obilgation to rectify the situation. Who was he and what wasnt right? i want to know so I dont deal with him. Tell the world.
3.Did you buy the house from the builder or the builders company or both? If you bought it from the builder he is liable. Check your paperwork.
4.Has this happened to the builders clients before? If it has happened and he is just switchng names and using companies to hold the liability he may have broken his corporate shield. It may be a federal offense. Check after you find him. Look him up on the internet. If he had a web page go but it is no longer up, go to the wayback machine and get his old webpage. Myspace, Google, Yellowpages, Whitepages, public records, Twitter, facebook, etc.
5.The nightly news may want to know (to make sure it doesn't happen again to others) and he may not want the publicity if he ever intends to build again in Georgia or any of his realatives intend to build again..
6.Did he put the assets of his company into a new company? Are you sure he is completely out of business in all parts of the industry? If not you may talk to him at his new place of business.
7. Do you have home owners insurance? Check your policy for any thing that went wrong the policy may cover. This insurance and or a Home Warrantee Policy (if he gave you one or you bought one at time of purchase) has coverage for a lot of issues.
8. A good Real Estate Atty can help you solve the legal mess. I use Jay Hodges in Stockbridge. He is a great Real Estate Atty. 770-389-7110. Im not an Atty so, I dont give legal advice. Jay can give legal advice and he is very good and complete.
9. I dont know what the issues with your house are and were but you have to have permits to build a house. You might want to check and see that the builder built it to code and had the required permits. If it passed inspection or there was no inspection or didnt have the proper permits it may be a county issue. The county court house and the public records act allow you to look it up. If the building inspector didnt do his job or looked the other way there are issues to discuss.
10. Were there any undisclosed defects at the time you bought the home? If the defects were there but not disclosed , did you get a home inspection before you purchased? Who did the home inspection? What did he guarrantee?
These are just a few of my suggestions to check on. We buy and sell a lot of houses. You always have to use the thinking buyer beware. Just becauuse it is new doesnt mean it is right. Used houses are proven houses. New is great but not all people are great.
Mark from www.granddadbuyshouses.com
May 27, 2009 at 9:02 PM
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if the builder is formally out of the business, and he made no other arrangements, no one stands behind the warranty.
the lien is a different issue...you may have recourse to the title policy. a decent real estate attorney should have this answer readily at hand. dig out your preliminary report and reconcile it to the dates on the mechanics lien(s). an offer in compromise to the lienholder is a possibility...every builder and material supplier i know is bleeding from the ears. even 20 cents on the dollar for a lien that may never pay off is better than nothing.
this brings up the importance of title insurance to the deal...AND raises the issue of arms length dealings between the builders and their "preferred" insurers. listing agents get all exercised about who writes the policy, but you can see here how, as an agent, you'd want NOTHING to do with the chosen title insurer...and how they got chosen. if the lawsuits fly the agent who named them as the vendor will surely get a summons.
Feb 20, 2009 at 12:09 PM
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Lisa,
What type of warranty information was provided when you closed? I know there was a mountain of paperwork but your answer may be stashed in there. As Kristal mentioned, many builders use 3rd party warranty companies.
Keep us informed!
Thank you and best of luck.
Howard Tennyson
www.acehomeinspection.biz
Feb 15, 2009 at 5:06 PM
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Ouch! That is not good news. I wish I could give you an answer, but the best advise would be for you to contact an attorney. The laws in each state are different with regard to builder liens.
The home warranty might be serviced by a third party and not the builder. In my area most warranties are purchased through and serviced by a warranty company. This too depends on what the builder may have provided for the home at closing.
Good luck.
Jan 15, 2009 at 11:32 AM
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