Davidson Communities

We entered into a contract to purchase a new home from Davidson Communities LLC in March 2017. We were told to expect approx 6 months from foundation pour to completion. That put us at the end of September 2017, so we quickly went through all the required loan app process and picking the finishes as per their request. We understand that some delays will probably come up but the finish date was moved out 4 times before any contact or explanation from Davidson was received. The date was then scheduled for Dec-Jan 2018 but quickly blew past that and a letter recieved in January indicated a new scheduled date for the end of February. It is now May and the end date has again been changed. We have been under contract for over 14 months. Communication has been the worst. The sales office has tried to keep our spirits up but they seem to be facing the same thing. All of these changes have been due to building issues: from miss-framing of the foundation, plumbing fixtures piped into doorways, wrong/broken windows and doors, lack of subcontractors and those who do show up leave behind a mess of food containers, cigarette butts and beer cans. After speaking with other (potential) neighbors I'm a little worried about what we may find if and when we ever move in. We don't know what we don't know. I can not, with any clear conscience, recommend this process with Davidson Communities unless you have lots of time to wait and money to spend.

Davidson built 72 homes in Santaluz between 2004 and 2006. Of these, at least 30 homeowners have sued Davidson for various defects. I am now in litigation with Davidson. Here are the issues I have dealt with:

1. Leak through attic within 1 month of ownership. Repaired, but no mold was done.

2. A/C leak, due to faulty installation of A/C condensation pan. Repaired, no mold report.

3. Leak in kitchen pipes, under sink. Repaired, no mold report.

4. Leak near 8 sets of french doors. These leaks were in the living room, dining room, kitchen, one bedroom and hall. Very shoddy repairs, Molding and travertine flooring was damaged during repairs and Davidson claims that the work was "good enough, as the home was still functional." One of the leaks (in the living room) has recurred and Davidson has been unresponsive. Mold report promised, but never completed.

5. Leak in roof, due to the fact that during construction a hole was made for an air vent, but the hole was forgotten and never closed. This leak caused major damage to the master closet and bath. Repairs were shoddy. Mold inspection was completed, but report was never received.

6. Cabinet facing started pealing within the first week. It was retouched by Davidson many times over the first year, and then they refused to fix it as it was "out of warranty".

7. Some of the windows, including windows in the french doors, are not sealed properly, and are foggy. Davidson gave home owners faulty information regarding window and door manufacturers, and subcontractors, corrected this information numerous times, but has not provided accurate information. With some windows, Davidson hired a new company to replace the defective windows. But this has not happened with all windows. Right now, I still have two french doors, and one window that are defective.After many years, and much help from independent handymen, I have been able to find out who the manufacturers are (Therma-Tru and Milgard), and I also learned that they are under warranty. But Davidson has not helped me to prove that the windows were purchased from them. I can show that I purchased the house from Davidson, but without Davidson's help, I cannot show that Davidson purchased the doors from Therma-Tru or the windows from Milgard. Both manufacturers refuse to honor the warranty without proof that the windows were properly purchased from them. They both state that the windows could have been purchased used or illegally. Without Davidson's assistance, I cannot proceed with my warranty claim.

8. Many, many other issues.