Keystone Custom Homes, Inc

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the responseIf no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]
Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because:
1) Contrary to the statement in point #1, the deck was NOT built to applicable building codes in effect at that time All fasteners used in mounting the ledger board and the joist hangers are incorrect.2) No complaints were made because it wasn't until recently that we noticed the rotted-out posts; prior to that we had no clue that the deck was, in fact, unsafe.3) We had every expectation that the deck would last at least for the warranty period, and it could have been so-constructed originally.4) Appropriate maintenance and repairs were routinely completed.5) We have no responsibility to provide routine maintenance documentation to anybody; the only maintenance that was required and performed until now was cleaning, sealing, leveling some deck boards, and tightening railing boltsIf reporting of maintenance were necessary for honoring the warranty, Keystone could have requested it.6) It is our contention that the deck was never inspected by anybody, and that the use of incorrect fasteners would have caused it to fail inspection with certainty There is no record of any inspection ever having been conducted
Regards,
*** ***

[A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response. If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me I spoke with Brian today and decided to schedule the work to be done on the 26thThank you.
Regards,
*** ***

Keystone has done nothing to address my complaint

Great I am meeting with Jeff this morning to review the release Please make sure *** understands that Keystone will only reimburse the landscaper up to the dollar amount offered ($200.00) for the repair to his landscaping. Tom

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Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, Keystone has been in contact with me and has agreed to redo the drivewayThe driveway was repaired on 10/19/Thank you
*** ***

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Revdex.com:
That's fine, if "at this point the only thing KCH is willing to do is dig up the exterior drain and connect it to another daylight drain." KCH is welcome to come to our house and try again to dig up the exterior drain, but I don't think they will find any exterior drains because none was ever installed. Please let us know when KCH will come to dig so we can make arrangements.Sincerely,*** & *** ***

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the responseIf no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]
Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because:As I have stated numerous times before Keystones response is incorrect and falseAs the pictures enclosed show Keystone builds homes leaving the yard a mess and with huge water problemsThe pictures were long before any fence or pool was installedYes, the land was there long ago, and I'm not saying Keystone had any thing to do with that, but regardless of what ever their engineers say such as the land is fine, would they build a home in water, or with huge water problems, because that is exactlly what they are doing?The pictures show exactly how keystone leaves the land and then makes excuse after excuseNo I do not except their answers, because they are wrong in building without correcting water problems 1st, instead of rushing to build a home as fast as possible and than use the excuse you closed, its your problem now, or using the excuse the pool, the fenceSo what's their excuse for the pictures enclosed which clearly was before any of their excusesSimple complete fact, the land may have been there, no contest in that, but you don't built with huge water problems until they are fixed, regardless whether developer or townshipYou just do not build and than walk away or make excusesRevdex.com please make sure the pictures and my response are posted, as new people dealing with this company need to know and protect them selvesThank you-***
Regards,
*** ***

Keystone Custom Homes (KCH) is by far the worst organization/company I have ever dealt with in my entire life Between the backroom deals, advertising, price gauging, horrible customer service, and overall relationship I have no idea why anyone would purchase a home from KCH I could go on and on for days I have only been in my house for five months at this point

7/18/- The legal department at Keystone Custom Homes, Inc. ("KCH") was notified about the situation that occurred (i.elosing the $9,cashiers check)The legal department prepared an Affidavit verifying that the $9,check was lost and never cashed to give to ***
*** Bank in order to release the funds back to *** ***This affidavit was given to *** *** to give to the bank7/21/- The legal department was notified that *** *** Bank required KCH to fill out their form (i.ePayee Affidavit of Lost Bank Check)The form was filled out, executed and sent overnight to *** *** Bank*** *** explained that his account would be frozen for 60-days due to KCH losing his check*** ***, Vice President of Sales, contacted *** *** at *** *** Bank to see if he would release the funds to KCH, so that KCH could write a check out to *** *** for $9,immediately and avoid having *** ***'s account frozen*** explained to *** that the bank account would not be frozen once they received the signed Affidavit from KCH7/23/- The legal department received notification from *** *** Bank that the Affidavit they received had been notarized, but not stampedThe Bank forwarded a scanned version of the Affidavit to *** requesting that it be stamped and emailed back to themThe legal department stamped the Affidavit and returned it to the Bank's attention as requested7/24/- The legal department received an email from *** explaining that his operations group needed an original Affidavit in order to proceed with releasing the fundsThe legal department filled out a new Affidavit, had it executed and sent it overnight mail to *** *** Bank to the attention of *** ***

At this time, Keystone is willing to provide contact information for its tankless hot water supplier to this customer. If this customer is interested, Keystone would work with the vendor to extend its volume pricing to this customer. The hot water heater installed was
sized appropriately for the home per industry standards. If the customer desires the capability to use higher than usual hot water volumes for extended periods of time, then other options, such as tankless hot water, are available for an additional cost. Keystone does not install higher-end hot water solutions in its pre-built homes

Hi ***,
Thank you for the call back this morning. Attached to this email is the agreement Keystone expects me to sign. After consulting with my lawyer, he too agrees this agreement is not fair and it was never agreed upon in the written agreement back in December I made with Keystone. The agreement is one sided and hypocritical in the fact that they (Keystone) will not agree to their own terms and refuse to put any wording in the agreement that would protect me should Keystone not follow through on their end. What I find comical is that they continue to drag this along as if they are trying to help us. They mentioned several times through email that they would have a check cut for the electric bill while we figure out the remaining balance. Then in their response they said they would have a check cut for the electric next week. If it were THAT easy, after sending them the bill and information in mid-January why am I a month and a half into this with them if it were just that easy? They themselves are making it impossible to work with them to find a mutual conclusion because they aren't agreeing to what we have in writing with MrC*** of Keystone saying to send everything over to him when we get the bill and he will get the check to us. This is very cut and dry and there were never any terms in our agreement that we would have to sign an agreement drafted up by their lawyer. The fact that they got their lawyer involved I consider a threat and because of it I now have to pay my lawyer to get involved and look over the "agreement paperwork" that was never mentioned prior that we would have to sign until a month after I submitted everything over to Keystone to pay and reimburse me. Below are the things we need changed in the agreement to make it fair for all parties and protect us as well. I already sent this to the Keystone attorney weeks ago and they refused to work with me and make changes to the agreement with the terms below#on the agreement: We want included in this section that payment to us must be made in full in the amount of $1,within (7) days of *** signing and sending the agreement. Violation of this provision will void the terms of this agreement and *** can take legal action against KEYSTONE and *** in which all costs incurred, including attorney fees will be paid by KEYSTONE and ***#on the agreement: We want included in this section that the repairs done to ***'* property must be approved with full satisfaction by *** after completion of blending, repairing, and reseeding. Seeds must take, grow, and must match ***'* current grass color The yards must also be blended and look naturalIf not, KEYSTONE must come back to fix the property until *** gives their approval and satisfaction. Violation of this provision will void terms of this agreement and *** can take legal action against KEYSTONE and *** in which all costs incurred, including attorney fees will be paid by KEYSTONE and ***#on the agreement: You MUST also agree to your own terms put in place for me. Therefore you must also add to this section that KEYSTONE and *** likewise agree that violation of this provision by KEYSTONE and *** shall void this agreement and *** can take legal action against KEYSTONE and *** in which all costs incurred, including attorney fees will be paid by KEYSTONE and ***
*** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***

In response to the ***s recent rejection, Keystone has never had the intention to charge them "rent without a lease" or "put more money in their pockets"The request for a monthly payment was sent out nearly three months after the ***s moved into the home without a secured mortgageThe requested payment is simply asking for the ***s to have a financial interest in the home until their mortgage is approvedKeystone chose not to engage the ***s in a lease, due to the fact that their mortgage is in the final stages of being approvedThey are simply taking the stance from a business standpoint to make sure that the ***s are taking financial responsibility for the home while they are living thereThe ***s currently are living in the home with a long expired Presettlement Occupancy Agreement, and yes, they are paying for the utilities they are using, but they are not paying anything toward the home itselfThe other alternative to Keystone's decision would be to ask the ***s to vacate the premises until they could secure their mortgage, but that of course is not the action we would ever take in such a situationAny payment made on the home while the ***s are living there would of course be applied to their mortgage at settlementAs stated above, the request for a monthly payment was never a ploy to put more money in our pocketsIt was simply a request for a monthly payment to be made on a home they have been living inIn any case, the appraisal for the ***s' home has been ordered and Keystone is currently waiting for it to come back so that we may proceed to settlementIn the interim, if the ***s have any questions or concerns, they are invited to contact our legal department at ###-###-#### Ext*** and speak to MsSarah Y***, Land Paralegal AdministratorMsY*** would be happy to field their questions and get them a prompt response
It is and has always been Keystone's mission to provide all of our customer with the best home buying experience possible and we sincerely apologize for any dissatisfaction they have experienced

Heather, with regard to the above claim, Keystone is investigating internally its prior discussions with this customer in an effort to determine whether a prior agreement had been made regarding the stated concern Once this review is complete, Keystone will provide a further update as to this
complaint Thank you. Tom M***

[A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response. If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
Regards,
*** ***

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the responseIf no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]
Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because:
As I have stated numerous times before Keystones response is incorrect and falseAs the pictures enclosed show Keystone builds homes leaving the yard a mess and with huge water problemsThe pictures were long before any fence or pool was installedYes, the land was there long ago, and I'm not saying Keystone had any thing to do with that, but regardless of what ever their engineers say such as the land is fine, would they build a home in water, or with huge water problems, because that is exactlly what they are doing?
The pictures show exactly how keystone leaves the land and then makes excuse after excuseNo I do not except their answers, because they are wrong in building without correcting water problems 1st, instead of rushing to build a home as fast as possible and than use the excuse you closed, its your problem now, or using the excuse the pool, the fenceSo what's their excuse for the pictures enclosed which clearly was before any of their excusesSimple complete fact, the land may have been there, no contest in that, but you don't built with huge water problems until they are fixed, regardless whether developer or townshipYou just do not build and than walk away or make excusesRevdex.com please make sure the pictures and my response are posted, as new people dealing with this company need to know and protect them selvesThank you-***
Regards,
*** ***

The ***'s were given a presettlement
occupancy agreement which was fully executed on June 4, and was valid from June 4, to June 9, Keystone granted occupancy for this short period of time, because the ***'s did not have a mortgage, but were supposed to have
everything taken care of by June 9, It is, and has always been a policy of Keystone, that prospective home buyers utilize our lendersHomebuyers are informed of this prior to following through with purchasing a home, and they are given every opportunity to decide against it after being informed of our policiesThe ***'s decided to proceed with the purchase of their home after being made aware of our policiesOn September 16, 2014, over three months after moving into the house, our Vice President of Sales sent the ***'s a letter indicating that we will have to start charging rent on the house that they are living in and have been living in for the last three monthsThis invoice is for $due on October 1, The financing for the ***'s purchase of their home has taken several months now, which is a issue that is independent of the mortgage company usedIt is only fair that rent is paid on the house that they are living in until financing is issued, especially since Keystone, as the owner, is responsible for the maintenance of the home

Keystone is currently preparing payment to **and *** *** to reimburse them for their total electric cost in December as promised. A check should be mailed within the current week. When conditions allow, Keystone will repair, as promised, the disturbed area of **and
*** ***'s lawn in the immediate vicinity of the missing utility stubs for Keystone's lot. This repair will be completed once grading and blending of the two yards is completed in the Spring of 2015. Two landscaping options were offered to **and *** *** just prior to the filing of this complaint. If the *** could notify Keystone of which of the two options they would prefer, the appropriate planning could commence. Finally, Keystone will gladly begin processing the additional payment discussed for any inconvenience incurred by the *** during the approximately two (2) weeks in December when they allowed Keystone to access to the electric service at their home. However, as previously discussed with ***, this final payment will not be made by Keystone until such time as the Settlement Agreement & Release provided is signed by both **and *** *** and returned to Keystone. Kindly let us know if **and *** *** will sign the Settlement Agreement & Release, as well as which one of the two landscaping options they would prefer

– day walk visit completed by CRM Steve A[redacted]
"list-style-type: disc;">
items of concern (except those not completed from zero form)
No
documentation re: issues with driveway
Late Fall – [redacted] notified Nicole F[redacted] of
water ponding on the driveway. Nicole
visited the home site ([redacted]) to assess the concern. Upon the initial site visit, the lot grading
on the left hand side of the driveway appeared to be approximately 3" higher
than the driveway. A clear mud stain was
visible on the driveway in the adjoining area.
At this time, Nicole discussed with the [redacted]'s it was too late in
the season to address the grade and/or the driveway. This would be re-assessed in spring
Late spring – CRM, Nicole F[redacted] had made numerous
visits to [redacted] to assess how long water would pondIt was evident that water would
pond on the drive, however within hours evaporate
– CRM, Nicole F[redacted] texted both [redacted] &
[redacted] stating, that weather pending [redacted] will begin seeding
the following weekIn addition, Nicole had submitted service orders to
[redacted] to cut the grade down slightly off the left hand side of their
driveway to allow water to drain and not pond
– [redacted] texted Nicole F[redacted] to thank her
for the update, asking if she was sure the issue was with the grade and not the
asphalt. Nicole explained that once it
was completed, they would validate that
Mid May - [redacted] Landscape was scheduled to cut down the
grade, install a swale and mat the disturbed area[redacted] phoned
Nicole F[redacted] and was hesitant to cut the grade since he did not believe this
to be the issue. He requested the paving
firm inspect the driveway and provide feedback.
– CRM, Nicole F[redacted], texted both [redacted] &
[redacted] that the paving rep would be inspecting their driveway on
and Nicole would follow up with them once complete
Mid June – [redacted] advised Nicole F[redacted] after
inspection stated the grade was too high on the left hand side of the driveway
– [redacted] emailed Nicole regarding the status
of water ponding on their driveway
– CRM, Nicole F[redacted] and Bryan B[redacted] met with
[redacted] to discuss elevated grade on left hand side of driveway. At this time, Bryan B[redacted] removed a shovel
full of ground from problem area and allowed water to drain off driveway. Nicole and Bryan discussed with **[redacted]
that we would have [redacted] Landscaping lower the grade on the left side of
the driveway via a 3' wide swaleIf problem still presented itself, Keystone
would take appropriate action
– [redacted] emailed Nicole F[redacted] to thank her
for coming out to assess the driveway
– [redacted] emailed Nicole photos of water
ponding on driveway
– [redacted] texted Nicole to ask about the
landscaper's schedule
– Nicole F[redacted] texted [redacted] that Strathmyer
Landscape was scheduled for later that week
(approx 4pm) – [redacted] Landscaping cut 3' swale off
the left hand side of the driveway to alleviate water from ponding
(9:37pm) – [redacted] emailed Nicole F[redacted] about
water still ponding on the driveway and asked her to stop by to assess again
& requested Keystone schedule drive repairs with Ivy Ridge Lot
– CRM, Nicole F[redacted] notified Hackman Paving about
water ponding on [redacted] and to discuss scope of work to be completed
[redacted] phoned CRM, Nicole F[redacted] to
discuss ponding on driveway and expressed her concerns. CRM, Nicole F[redacted] explained in detail that
although water ponding on the driveway is not a warrantable issue, Keystone was
taking appropriate steps to resolve the issue
– CRM, Nicole F[redacted] emailed both [redacted] &
[redacted], updating them that driveway repairs are scheduled for Friday
July 18th. In addition, Bryan
B[redacted] and Nicole F[redacted], would meet with them prior to the repair to discuss
scope of work and address any questions or concerns
– CRM, Nicole F[redacted] emailed both [redacted] &
[redacted], updating them that the stone base at [redacted]) is
too wet to pave, and as previously discussed, their driveway was to be repaired
when Keystone installed the driveway at [redacted].
In addition, Nicole advised paving was re-scheduled for
Wednesday/Thursday the following week (June 22nd/June 23rd). Additionally, that Bryan and Nicole F[redacted],
would meet with them the day of the repair
– Nicole F[redacted] was notified by the Production
team that [redacted] is being paved on Tuesday July 29th. The [redacted]'s have not yet be notified
month walk visit to be schedule on or around

Keystone reviews every home three (3) times at defined times during the first year of ownership.   A written checklist is completed to document all concerns that each customer states during each of these onsite reviews.  In this case, the customer did not even mention a problem or concern...

with their shingles.  Furthermore, this customer subsequently elected to install solar panels on their roof which were installed at an unknown date, by an unknown contractor.  All Keystone customers are provided with a copy of the manufacturer’s warranty for the shingles at the time of purchase should there ultimately prove to be a defect in the shingles that were selected and installed on their home.  As there has been intervening work done to this roof, Keystone would suggest that the customer contact the manufacturer of the shingles to determine whether they may have a warranty claim if the shingles have blown off subsequent to Keystone’s final review of their property several years ago.

Keystone is currently working with the applicable township regarding this matter.  A matter such as installation of a trail in a community is something that handled between a municipality and a developer, not with an individual homeowner in a...

community.  In this particular instance, it should also be noted that the party who filed this complaint is a former Keystone employee.  If there are questions regarding the installation of a trail in this community and/or who is responsible for installing such a trail, those questions are addressed by the applicable municipality and the developer, not by an individual party.  Sometimes, circumstances exist whereby a municipality does not desire such a trail to be installed in a community due to the ongoing upkeep cost......  Keystone requests that this complaint be closed out.