Main Street Homes

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
I appreciate Main Street’s response to my complaint.  However, Main Street and [redacted] response does not adequately close or resolve my complaint.  I will address the two matters in more detail below.
 
I understand lawn care is the responsibility of the home owner (in this case my husband and I). However, there is a difference between “lawn care” and having to re-do our entire side yard due to the
lack of consideration and several errors by Main Street Homes.  My husband and I water our lawn in accordance with the schedule set by [redacted] (the irrigation Company MSH utilizes) during the Spring activation session.  I can submit my water bill to evidence that we are in fact watering our lawn and show [redacted] our irrigation meter.  We did have a landscaping professional come out and look at our lawn.  He suggested not watering the yard during the middle of the day and to maintain a morning and evening watering schedule set by Stockners.  Therefore, depending on what time [redacted] looked at our yard, I would expect it to be dry if it was in between the morning and evening watering sessions.  [redacted] and MSH prove the point that the irrigation system we paid for is inadequate given that we do water our lawn based on the guidelines
by stating our lawn was dry. Therefore, this should cause us to revise our requested solution to re-doing our irrigation system and re-laying sod that was damaged by the inadequate irrigation. I would also like to note that I was on a neighborhood walk the other day and saw a home that was recently sold and closed.  The home does not have any sod laid in the yard because now is not a good time to lay sod that you want to be able to survive and establish roots.  This is the same timing we closed on our home in 2013.  It is frustrating that our request to lay sod was not honored, but now Main Street follows a different protocol because they know laying sod during the hot summer months would cause the sod to die and not establish roots. In addition, MSH now follows the guidelines in the Home Warranty binder.  This states, "In areas with high clay content, prepare the soil before installing your grass. FIrst, cover the soil with 2 inches of sand and 1 inch of manure that is treated and odorless. Rototill this into the soil to a depth of 6 inches. Whether you use seed or sod, this preparation helps your lawn to retain mositure and require less water.  Installing a lawn over hard soil permits water to run off with little or no penetration and your lawn will derive minimal benefit from watering or rain."  These guidelines were not followed on our lawn by MSH even though it is communicated to homeowners to follow.  With respect to the other homes in the neighborhood that used the same sod company, it is appropriate to mention that we were the only home that had sod laid in June.  All other homes on our street were closed and had sod laid in either spring or late summer.  Finally, with respect to getting a lawn service, this is something my husband and I have already met with several lawn service companies that we plan to hire in the fall. However, it is difficult to have a lawn service when the sod is all dead at the responsibility of MSH.
There is damage between the driveway and the driveway apron that was identified prior to closing and promised to be resolved that was not addressed by Main Street in their response.  I am happy to provide pictures if necessary. However, in an effort to meet Main Street halfway in resolving these two disputes, my husband and I are willing to close this portion of the complaint and take responsibility for the cost of the driveway apron repairs if Main Street takes appropriate responsibility for the sod. If not, both complaints remain open.
Looking forward to receiving a fair proposed solution from Main Street Homes and [redacted].
Regards,
[redacted]

Mr. and Mrs. [redacted],We apologize that your experience with our third-party warranty partnerhas not been a good experience.  We knowit is frustrating as a homeowner to not get resolution on warranty items in atimely fashion and is something we pride ourselves in...

doing.  As discussed with you yesterday, it wouldseem that the issues with the windows were a miscommunication between thesupplier and our warranty team.  Theoriginal window sashes installed had an incorrect grid pattern on two of yourwindows, your new sashes were delivered to your house yesterday and we willhave a warranty technician (a Main Street Homes employee) onsite this next weekto install them for you and inspect the window sill in question.  As you explained yesterday the issues withmold were with some left over construction debris in your crawl space thatshould have been removed, our technician will also make sure any remainingpieces are removed and verify that there are no issues with mold.As for the ability to grow grass in your yard.  We acknowledge that growing grass is atedious and laborious process.  Asexplained, we bring in soil as needed to provide proper drainage on theindividual homesites and to build up the landscaping beds next to the house,but rely on the existing top soil on the homesite for the remaining 2+ acre area.  We do offer irrigation and sod packages, butneither were chosen during your design process. As evidenced by your signature on the county Letter of PermanentStabilization you acknowledged that it would be your responsibility to replacethe seed and straw, present on the land at closing, until permanent stabilizationwas established.  We make it very clearin our sales contract that we cannot guarantee grass growth and encourage ourhomebuyers to hire a professional lawn care company to help with theestablishment of their lawns.  Starting anew lawn is definitely a labor of love and while it can be a daunting task inthe first few years, we hope you can enjoy your home and yard for many years tocome.

Review: A new home. Builder subbed the asphalt driveway paving to [redacted]. To meet the closing deadline, the paving was done during harsh weather conditions:

- freezing ground and air temperatures, well below recommended 40 F.

- wet subgrade from melting snow, recommended firm and dry.

- final asphalt temperature < 175 F.

Resulting is a portion of the pavement to begin spalling immediately; loosing aggregate continually going on for 15 months now.

Builder and sub refuse repair or replace.

Builder refuses to advocate for me.Desired Settlement: Smooth, firm, attractive driveway.

Business

Response:

We have been in communication with this homeowner to help resolve their concerns regarding their driveway. Asphalt driveways are not covered under our warranty program and the original installer had indicated to the homeowner that seal coating the driveway would be recommended. To help resolve the issue for our customer we have agreed to help pay for the sealing of the driveway and the homeowner seemed fairly pleased with the solution.Thank you.

Consumer

Response:

[A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's offer. If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]

I have reviewed the offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and consider this complaint resolved.

The business finally acknowledged the driveway is of inferior quality,

and made a token $250 gift to help pay for the seal coat which may help prevent further raveling damage.

Regards,

Review: I am filling a complaint against Home Street Homes. I had a home built in October 2012 and I closed in March 2013. Prior to closing on the house everything was done to my satisfaction. However, after physically moving into the house, I have had problems with the ceilings in every room on the second floor of the house located in 4 bedrooms and the bonus room. I called the point of contact [redacted] for two weeks straight, left messages with no returned calls from [redacted]. Finally, made contact with [redacted], she informed me it was part of the house natural settling. I informed her it was poor workmanship from the builder. After a week or so, finally someone came to take a look at the ceilings, and he agreed it was a poor job on the builder. Another week had went by with no response from MSH. Contacted [redacted], a week or so latter she sent another representative to evaluate the issue with the ceilings and he would in turn schedule someone to correct the problem with the ceilings. A week had elapse, and no one from Main Street Homes has made contact with me in regards to getting issue with the ceilings fixed. I paid over $300,000 purchase price for this house and it is still under warranty. I understand MSH has won numerous awards and builder of the year. I fell MSH is blowing me off and hiding beyond their awards.I am sure this type of customer service that has been displayed to me is not how they won their awards. Worst customer service I have had in over 10 years.Desired Settlement: I want the ceilings to be repaired.

Business

Response:

Main Street Homes has worked with the client to resolve his issues with his ceilings. There were some delays in responding on the front-end due to vacation schedules, but as soon as the issue was identified the proper sub-contractor was called in to correct their work. The homeowner has indicated that he is pleased with the response at this time.

Thank you.

Review: I purchased a new home from Main Street Homes in 2012. The home was advertised in the MLS as having [redacted] siding. The warranty information delivered to me by the builder was for [redacted] siding. The siding is currently failing (cracking, chipping, warping, de-laminating). When the problem was brought to the builder he revealed that the siding was not [redacted] but actually a different product made by a different manufacturer. The builder is unwilling to take any accountability or offer any solutions. He has told me to take the matter up with the manufacturer of the siding. I believe the builder should be accountable since the home was advertised as having [redacted] brand siding. [redacted] is a registered trade mark of the [redacted] Corporation not just a type of siding as the builder claims.Desired Settlement: My desire is to have the failing siding currently on the home replaced with Hardieplank brand siding as originally advertised.

Business

Response:

Main Street Homes has indicated to the homeowner that we are willing to help him with his warranty claim. The homeowner purchased a completed home constructed with a quality cement siding exterior. Main Street Homes passes through to all of its homeowners the warranties offered by the manufacturer of the products used in our homes. The warranty on the siding is still in effect (a 15 year warranty), but the homeowner must take action to apply for a remedy through the manufacturer. He indicated he was going to make a warranty claim when he first brought this issue to Main Street Homes’ attention earlier this year. Once the manufacturer has had an opportunity to respond to the homeowners warranty claim, Main Street Homes will gladly re-evaluate our response.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

[Provide details of why you are not satisfied with this resolution.]The warranty is not the issue, the issue is misrepresentation. . The home was advertised with having [redacted] siding and this is not the siding that was placed on the home. The siding that was placed on the home by [redacted] no longer offers a warranty, it has been turned over to a class action lawsuit. The class action lawsuit only covers the damaged planks and does not cover any labor costs involved in replacing the siding.

Regards,

Business

Response:

The following is in response to the complaint by Mr. Henry (complaint ID [redacted]).Mr. Henry’s statement that the original warranty from [redacted] is no longer offered due to the class action settlement is incorrect. [redacted] to this response are copies of specific answers to questions from the settlement website stating that the settlement does not have any effect on the 50-year warranty or the 2 year [redacted] protection (which may provide labor coverage as well). A cursory review of the claim website makes this clear. In addition to these documents, we have included a copy of the 50-year warranty that applies to the product installed on the customer’s house, which is in addition to the 15-year [redacted] warranty. To the best of our information, [redacted] continues to be a strong and solvent company that continues to manufacture many building products. It has now, however sold its fiber cement siding division. The homeowner’s time delay to move forward with the class action settlement and warranty claims could lengthen the resolution of any issues he may have.We are now aware that the MLS listing placed by the listing real estate company stated the siding was “[redacted]” (which was incorrect). The siding is technically fiber cement manufactured by [redacted]. Main Street Homes did not see this listing until it was presented to us by Mr. Henry after his complaint. As disclaimed on the MLS site, the information in the MLS listing is “not guaranteed.” At the time this home was built Main Street Homes had been building homes with both the [redacted] and [redacted] siding products. On the recommendation of our local supplier (due to quality and supply/production concerns), Main Street Homes switched to the [redacted] siding believing it was a better product with better supply availability for our customers. This home was built as an inventory home and offered for sale. Main Street Homes’ contract clearly states that we have the right to substitute materials of similar pattern, design, or quality at our sole discretion when product supply is a concern. We regret the delivery of the incorrect warranty brochure following the sale and have sent the correct warranty information.Main Street Homes stands behind its statement that it will help the homeowner in making their warranty claim, but only the homeowner can submit a claim at this point in time.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.Main Street Homes continues to avoid the actual complaint. The complaint is centered around a bait and switch tactic, the home was advertised on the MLS as having [redacted] brand siding and at closing warranty information for [redacted] brand siding was provided to the buyer. In regards to substitution of materials clause, substitution of materials is only authorized when the specified materials, in this case [redacted] brand siding is unavailable. The siding was not substituted due to unavailability of [redacted] brand but rather to save cost by using a less expensive and inferior product.Even though the [redacted] is not the issue of complaint, Main Street Homes is failing to tell the details of the class action lawsuit and warranty being offered. The warranty only cover defects at a very defined magnitude. For example cracks and gaps must be 3/8" wide to qualify. Currently the siding has many cracks some of which are 3/8" but many are less than 3/8" but will continue to grow as the siding shrinks. The defect with the [redacted] siding is shrinkage, the siding is only 3 years old and will continue to shrink, cracks will grow and new ones develop. The warranty does not cover labor which is the majority of the cost for the repairs. The siding is discontinued and replacement materials of the same color and grain are not available. Basically the warranty or class action lawsuit will provide material that is not the same color or grain.

Regards,

Review: In late 2013 we selected a local company to build our home. We thought that by selecting Main Street Homes a local builder, we would be helping our local economy and in return we should get a great product.

We had a lot of issues with MSH from the beginning, such as no electricity, poor craftsmanship, and lack of attention to detail, just to name a few.

MSH has a warrantee department, that prior to closing encouraged us to submit via email a ticket if any problem were to arise. A ticket was submitted for plumbing issue and they came out and patched the issue, but soon after we had the same leak. We finally hired a professional and they came out and fixed the issue, by replacing the damage part.

MSH installed the wrong windows in one of our rooms and a plank divided in 3 pieces for windowsill that’s being

held together by a sealant, I think they got the plank from a dumpster from one of the other builder near us. We submitted a ticket and they closed it, Scooter the head of the warrantee department told us that “That’s what you signed for”. The sad thing is that they are looking at someone else home blueprint, after several calls they agreed that we had the wrong windows but the issue has not been rectified for over 3 months.

Late June 2014 we closed. MSH stated that the property was top soiled seeded and strawed. New Kent County kept coming and giving us failing notices for failing to grow grass and warned us that if we keep failing we would have to pay a monthly penalty. We hired [redacted] and they came out to give us an estimate. [redacted] agreed that the property was seeded and strawed, but informed us that no top soil was laid initially. I was informed that top soil needed to be laid prior to seeding, especially in clay soil like ours. I have spent over $2k in soil, grass seed and other required minerals in order to have some type of grass.

Mold in the crawl space, scooter initially stated that some mold is normal, but it looks like a harry rug.Desired Settlement: Window and windowsill: Needs to be fix as per contract.

No grass/top soil:

I would like MSH to give us some type of compensation or at least give us topsoil for the rest of the back of the property to upset our expense that should have initially been taken care by MSH as they stated in contract.

Mold issue:

Mold in the crawl space, scooter initially stated that some mold is normal, but it looks like a harry rug. I was initially informed that MSH treated the wood, but it doesn’t appear they did.

Business

Response:

Mr. and Mrs. [redacted],We apologize that your experience with our third-party warranty partnerhas not been a good experience. We knowit is frustrating as a homeowner to not get resolution on warranty items in atimely fashion and is something we pride ourselves in doing. As discussed with you yesterday, it wouldseem that the issues with the windows were a miscommunication between thesupplier and our warranty team. Theoriginal window sashes installed had an incorrect grid pattern on two of yourwindows, your new sashes were delivered to your house yesterday and we willhave a warranty technician (a Main Street Homes employee) onsite this next weekto install them for you and inspect the window sill in question. As you explained yesterday the issues withmold were with some left over construction debris in your crawl space thatshould have been removed, our technician will also make sure any remainingpieces are removed and verify that there are no issues with mold.As for the ability to grow grass in your yard. We acknowledge that growing grass is atedious and laborious process. Asexplained, we bring in soil as needed to provide proper drainage on theindividual homesites and to build up the landscaping beds next to the house,but rely on the existing top soil on the homesite for the remaining 2+ acre area. We do offer irrigation and sod packages, butneither were chosen during your design process. As evidenced by your signature on the county Letter of PermanentStabilization you acknowledged that it would be your responsibility to replacethe seed and straw, present on the land at closing, until permanent stabilizationwas established. We make it very clearin our sales contract that we cannot guarantee grass growth and encourage ourhomebuyers to hire a professional lawn care company to help with theestablishment of their lawns. Starting anew lawn is definitely a labor of love and while it can be a daunting task inthe first few years, we hope you can enjoy your home and yard for many years tocome.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the offer and/or response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

[Provide details of why you are not satisfied with this resolution.]

Regards,

Review: This has been the WORST EXPERIENCE I ever had, buying this new home. I choose Main Street Homes (MSH) because it was supposed to be about quality homes. Their representatives and website state how wonderful a quality MSH is. How MSH wins quality awards for their homes. Well, my question is “What happened to my MSH?” “Who was responsible for the quality control of my MSH?” To begin with my home was NOT CLEANED and all of the discrepancies that were supposed to be completed prior to closing were not. When I contacted MSH, the construction manager met with me; he was upset, stated that something came up and he would take care of the issues. THAT NEVER HAPPENED!! And all the MSH warranty Rep. states is that his hands are tied or that it is not under warranty. Here are the main issues MSH needs to be resolve, fix and/or provide me a full or partial refund; 1: The window in the master bedroom-I’m been waiting six months for the wrong window to be changed out. 2: The damaged faucet in the kitchen-It’s been on order in addition to the missing screws for the bathroom sinks 3: I paid for 3 flood lights and only 2 were installed. 4: I paid for an extra permanent shower head-a handheld showerhead was installed. I don’t believe that handheld showerhead cost $360 which was the cost of that option. 5: Mole on the deck; at the 6 month mark there were so much mole on the deck it looked like the deck had a black fur coat. Again, where is the quality control? Due to my respiratory issues, my cats and the fear of the mole infecting the house I had to remove the deck. MSH warranty Rep. stated that all wood gets mole; NOT A BRAND NEW DECK IN 6 MONTHS!!! 6: The staircase downstairs is cherry wood and upstairs is mahogany wood. MSH warranty Rep. stated MSH did their best and it’s not under warranty. 7. I am still waiting for fill dirt for the holes that developed after closing. I invite [redacted] of MSH to come out and determine if this MSH meets MSH’s standard of quality.Desired Settlement: First, I would like [redacted] to know that I DID NOT HAVE A POSITIVE MAIN STREET HOME EXPERIENCE! as stated on the website. Besides making it out of Afghanistan, nearly in one piece, closing on my piece of the American dream, my MSH, should have been a very happy occasion, IT WAS NOT! Secondly, I would like MSH to acknowledge that items/options were not done according to quality standards in my home and that the company is committed to fixing all the problems and/or issues. Furthermore, there should be some type of quality checks and balances, in place, so that no other new home owner experience the disappointment as well as the disbelief I experienced. Finally, I would also like partial refunds for the flood light that was not installed and the cost between the permanent showerhead and the handheld showerhead. I also would like some type of compensation for the deck. The deck should have not rotted that quick.

Business

Response:

[redacted]Thank you for speaking with me yesterday and reviewing your concerns. First let me reiterate thatwe care very much about your entire home building “experience” and regret that we have not metyour expectation since you have moved in. As mentioned we have recently severed ourrelationship with the third-party warranty provider and will be handling your warranty concernsdirectly. Below is a recap of our conversation and Main Street Homes’ response to each item:1. Master Bedroom Window – The correct window is scheduled to be installed on 6/10/15. Thesub-contractor attempted to contact you yesterday and left a voicemail message (you mayhave already spoken with them). Once this is replaced, any interior work will be scheduledby our office.2. Kitchen Faucet and missing screws – The plumber has been speaking with you directly andshould have been onsite today (6/5), as scheduled, to replace the scratched piece on yourfaucet and address the other items.3. Missing Floodlight – As discussed, you only purchased one additional floodlight (for a total oftwo) for the rear of your home as evidenced on your Framing Walk-Thru Personal ChoiceRequest Form ([redacted]). Thus you received the proper number of lights that youpurchased.4. Master Shower Head – You did receive a hand-held shower fixture, in addition to yournormal shower head and should have received a “second” shower head. We regret this andwill be providing a full reimbursement of your $360 with no deduction for the fixturecurrently installed.5. Exterior Deck – As explained, mold and/or mildew growth on exterior decks is not unusualand can be treated with regular maintenance.6. Stairs – In our discussion you indicated that the color of the stair tread and the landingwere different tones. Upon review of our records AND visual inspection today we confirmedthat your stairs are carpeted, so we are unclear at to what you are referring to at this time.Further description and pictures to help us understand your concern would be appreciated.7. Fill Dirt – Our Customer Care Manager reviewed the settling behind your driveway, forwhich work orders had previously been completed, but obviously you still have somesettling. We will be issuing additional work orders to have the settling behind your drivewayfilled.Please let us know if you have any questions about the above response.Thank you.

Review: We built our house with Main Street Homes and closed June 30, 2014. The house was delivered in incomplete condition, with several items "on back order," damaged, or just done wrong to begin with. Our experience with Main Street started off wonderfully. The employees were helpful and accommodating throughout the entire planning process. As soon as our construction began the entire experience changed. We no longer had a say in anything, even after calling attention to lack of quality we were ignored, and shoddy work considered acceptable. There were countless mistakes and omissions that we had to point out as there seemed to be no quality control in place. The majority of the issues were quality related (attention to detail, short-cuts, work-arounds), and our construction manager played them off as adequate to industry standards, even while agreeing that the work was done as quickly and easily as possible. We paid $535,000 for our home and all our finishes were either equal to or better than their model, but you wouldn't know it since they were installed with no care. The model sold for $480,000 and even after being used as a model is in better condition than ours brand new. From our framing materials being left across a curb directly on the ground/street in puddles and rain warping; to expensive options being omitted in framing, to the unprofessional, lazy installation of our finishes we are completely and wholly dissatisfied with our Main Street Homes experience. I've listed SOME of these issues below, only those that continue to be problems. There are many, many more throughout the process, and we have pictures of all of them.

Exterior sheathing not nailed to window casings prior to window installation. This may prove to be a maintenance issue in the future.

Garage utility sink had to moved because stairs, panel, garage floor height poorly planned

Warped and damaged studs used throughout construction.

Warped supports used in stair construction

Both bay window wood faces are rough, dented, and gouged with uneven crooked joints, poor trim work and scraped up windows - $5800 EACH

Sloppy, overdone mortar on all brickwork.

Siding installed well but joints and nail holes left un-caulked. Square holes cut out of bottom of siding boards for spigost instead of drilling, foam insulating spray visible from outside. Oversized holes cut for AC lines and filled with massive amount of silicone. Chunk missing from siding behind heat pump, partially filled with caulk. - $15,000 OPTION

Sloppy finishing work on exterior door trim (multiple doors). Nail holes filled with clear silicone and covered with paint before cleaning or smoothing.

Corner of morning room roof – corner support cut too short, lengthened and secured with scrap. Builder assures us that this is structurally sound.

Driveway appears to be 4 different colors – was two (concrete pulled in two different directions), now four (repoured sections to correct cold joints were wrong color concrete - we spent over $1000 and 3 days staining to correct

Hardwood is scratched, dirty, gouged, dented, dinged and already separating at the joints. These were fixed before and after closing with wads of off color wax. When we refused to accept this the boards were replaced. We were sold by Main Street on these floors based off their durability but are sctratching, denting and damaging with minimal use. After 3 months in the house we have over a dozen damaged areas. These floors are an embarrassment. - $11,923 OPTION

Our exposed oak staircase was found to have nails sticking out of the treads from below. Drywallers secured 2x4s to the underside of the staircase by directly nailing them to the treads instead of on the sides to the frame. This was fixed with wax at first, then wood filler and spray paint. The paint has now worn off after 2 months. - $5,040 OPTION

Cabinets, doors, drawer fronts and bead board were severely abused in master bath and kitchen. The replaceable pieces have been replaced but the others had to be covered with extra pieces of molding. To date our light rail under the cabinets is still separating from cabinets, the underside of the cabinet above our vent hood is split from nailing, our vertical scribe molding is not long enough to reach the light rail (this gap was filled with silicone caulk). - $11,140 OPTION

Window in morning room was cracked and replaced during construction. The replacement sash has never fit correctly. The replacement of the replacement does not fit either. We now being told the window will need to be removed and reinstalled to correct the issue.

Tile in master bath floor and shower walls is uneven and poorly installed, some sunk under the grout lines - $1178 OPTION

Our backyard does not drain. Multiple areas are perpetually wet and muddy with sitting water. One of these spots was discovered with Main Street's lawn maintenance crew trashed the backyard when their mower sank and got stuck on the side of our hill. That same mud hole is still present and is deep and large enough that I have sunk to my knees and had a wheel barrow sink to the handles.

To begin with the grading was not done as promised. We were told we would have a smooth transition to our neighbors' lots, with only a slight dip to the grade. Instead they put in "swales" to "channel water the back." Even our neighbors on both sides were told the transitions and grading were to be completely different. Driving through our neighborhood, you can easily see that ours is the only house that is essentially build on a mound.

We have been contacting Main Street and [redacted] County for 4 months now to fix the grading and drainage issues with no resolution. We have quotes ranging from $5000-10,000 to fix their problems

Everything in this house was done as quickly and easily as possible with absolute minimal effort and thought. It is clear that none of Main Street's subcontractors (with the exception of Classic Granite), nor their construction managers, nor the owner have any care or respect for our house and have operated with a complete disregard for the future and now current owners. The place was completely built on autopilot. Main Street treated it as their inventory and construction site and have continued to treat it as a job-site post-closing. Never once has Main Street treated this as our home.Desired Settlement: We have tried to get Main Street to fix the issues on our own and even contacted [redacted] County to help with the drainage issues. They have fixed some of these but the major, expensive and labor intensive issues remain unresolved. We originally asked for a $5000 refund for the damage to the stairs, cabinets, poor flooring, and tile, as well as regrading and installing drainage for our lot. Main Street never responded on any of these. We are now asking for a $10,000 refund from Main Street. $5000 for the aforementioned damage and poor workmanship, and an additional $5000 so we can have our lot graded correctly, properly, and as ORIGINALLY promised. That is a 1.8% refund for Main Street (far, far less than the discount they offer every day) and a huge deal for a couple that just wants to have their house in the condition it should have originally been at closing.

Business

Response:

While it is the objective of Main Street Homes to have all our homeowners be raving fans, we realizethat this may not always be possible. While few in number, we take all complaints seriously and involveour team members to understand how we can improve.Main Street Homes’ representatives have met with this homeowner several times to address questionsraised during their home orientation (prior to closing) and several items added since this time. Withinthe past two weeks we completed a whole house review with the homeowner to identify any items stillto be addressed and will be addressing these once backordered items are received by our vendors. Onepoint of discontent by these homeowners is the final grading of their yard. Upon inspection, the yardhas a good stand of grass and appears to be in good shape. The home is built on a sloping home sitethat drains to a culvert in the back yard and had no standing water upon our visit, though this has beenan issue of concern by the homeowner. It has been explained that with the homeowner and neighborswatering their lawns this fall, it is understandable that the soil would be holding water. Now that theirrigation systems have been winterized, the lawn will be able to dry out. The homeowner indicates thatthey have been in contact with county inspectors, as has Main Street, and the county has indicated noconcerns with the grading of this home site.Main Street Homes is a local builder and our reputation for building a quality home is well known. Weregret that this homeowner has had any issues with their home, but feel confident that we haveaddressed or are addressing all issues that would affect the long-term enjoyment and value of theirhome.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

This offer does not address any of our complaints. It only tries to explain away a single one item, and concludes with a self-congratulatory claim to quality. Just because that is your reputation (which is why we chose Main Street to begin with) does not mean that this is the case in this home. As we told Main Street, our problems with the grading are not just the drainage issues. The grading was not done as promised by construction manager Glenn [redacted], the same employee that later admitted to us and our neighbors that the work that was done was not as he originally intended or promised. It leaves us with a mound around our house and multiple deep swales and swampy patches that are not useable. While there was no actual sitting water the morning they came out, the temperatures were well below freezing the night before and the ground was frozen. We did instead show them the sheets of ice we had forming where the sitting water had been for the 4 months prior when we initially called it to Main Street's attention. If these problems were only due to irrigation, they would be confined to these swales and not 15 feet up hill from them. They also would have disappeared when all irrigation was off for 3 weeks and our grass began to die. And if they are due to irrigation they will only be left to reappear every year in spring. We want our lot to be graded as it was originally promised with close to level grading between houses. We do not see why it is so difficult for Main Street to make good on [redacted] promise.Additionally, they do not give a plan to address any other issues or acknowledge our request for a refund. We are asking for a $5000 refund as compensation for the exceedingly poor experience we have received from Main Street, the complete lack of care for workmanship, the continued dismissal of ourselves and our complaints, the constant excuses, and the unexcusable level of stress Main Street has caused us. We are asking an additional $5000 so that we may correct the grading problems they refuse to acknowledge and constantly try to explain away. Simply put we received an incomplete house with $150k worth of upgraded items that were installed as quickly and easily as possible. We expect an offer that addresses each item, gives a plan for correction, and simply acknowledges that the work that was done was not acceptable. Acknowledgment and correction is all we asked for in the 3 months since we initially raised concerns. At this point we've been dismissed for so long that we are asking for a refund as we did not receive the product or service we paid for. If Main Street wants to correct each item that is wonderful but they'll have only delivered a house with extensive repairs in an attempt to bring it close to the condition originally expected in July. We will still ask to be compensated for our time and stress. If they were to only refund us we will be more than happy because we will be able to make sure the repairs and remedies are done to our standard with no more short cuts or excuses. At this point we feel cheated and taken advantage of in our $535,000 homebuying experience, both monetarily and emotionally.

Regards,

Business

Response:

Revdex.com spoke with the business. The issue with the stairs and the master bathroom tile are scheduled to be taken car of on Monday January 26, 2015 and the kitchen cabinets are a custom order and are still on back order but once they come in they will be installing them.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.To date, Main Street Homes has done some work to fix the issues stated in our complaint. Following is status of each item:Both bay window wood faces are rough, dented, and gouged with uneven crooked joints, poor trim work and scraped up windows - some work has been done. They are still not in an acceptable condition.Sloppy, overdone mortar on all brickwork - has not been addressed or acknowledged. Siding installed well but joints and nail holes left un-caulked. Square holes cut out of bottom of siding boards for spigost instead of drilling, foam insulating spray visible from outside. Oversized holes cut for AC lines and filled with massive amount of silicone. Chunk missing from siding behind heat pump, partially filled with caulk. - Main Street sent the siding installer out who caulked and painted the nail holes, missing chunk, and utility holes. Cosmetically this fixes the appearance but does nothing for the actual damage or fact that the boards are face nailed against manufacturers installation instructions. This is a bare minimum fix, and if Main Street is going to hold us to the letter of what they must do as a builder, then we will hold them to the letter of a proper installation. They need to fix the actual damage and replace the siding per our conversation with [redacted] Melhorn.Sloppy finishing work on exterior door trim (multiple doors). Nail holes filled with clear silicone and covered with paint before cleaning or smoothing - The trim has been replaced.Driveway appears to be 4 different colors – was two (concrete pulled in two different directions), now four (repoured sections to correct cold joints were wrong color concrete - we spent over $1000 and 3 days staining to correct - Nothing can be done about this, part of the reason for our request for a refund.Hardwood is scratched, dirty, gouged, dented, dinged and already separating at the joints. These were fixed before and after closing with wads of off color wax. When we refused to accept this the boards were replaced. We were sold by Main Street on these floors based off their durability but are sctratching, denting and damaging with minimal use. After 3 months in the house we have over a dozen damaged areas. These floors are an embarrassment. - We've been told this is acceptable and industry standard. Main Street will only fix individual defective boards at year end. Another reason for our request for a refund.Our exposed oak staircase was found to have nails sticking out of the treads from below. Drywallers secured 2x4s to the underside of the staircase by directly nailing them to the treads instead of on the sides to the frame. This was fixed with wax at first, then wood filler and spray paint. The paint has now worn off after 2 months. - Main Street has set an appointment for the furniture repairer to come back out and repaint the patches. They are refusing to do any more than this. We paid $5,000 for a staircase that has been damaged time and time again by Main Street. This is a major reason for our request for a refund.Cabinets, doors, drawer fronts and bead board were severely abused in master bath and kitchen. The replaceable pieces have been replaced but the others had to be covered with extra pieces of molding. To date our light rail under the cabinets is still separating from cabinets, the underside of the cabinet above our vent hood is split from nailing, our /vertical scribe molding is not long enough to reach the light rail (this gap was filled with silicone caulk). - Better Kitchens has replaced many of the damaged items. We are waiting for parts to be ordered and shipped to fix a lot of the defective trim. Window in morning room was cracked and replaced during construction. The replacement sash has never fit correctly. The replacement of the replacement does not fit either. We now being told the window will need to be removed and reinstalled to correct the issue. - PlyJem fixed this issue.Tile in master bath floor and shower walls is uneven and poorly installed, some sunk under the grout lines - Main Street and Cut Above Tile have refused to acknowledge this as a problem. Although our floors and tiled walls are grossly uneven with high and low spots they refuse to make this right. The tiles were found to be cupped and not completely flat. They claim this as industry standard and just fine. They have agreed to replace one single tile that is improperly installed. While we understand now that the installer is not at fault here, Main Street sold and supplied poor tile. Had the tile shown in the showroom been warped like the ones we were supplied we never would have selected them. This issue will not be resolved until Main Street makes things right and gives us the floor we were promised in the showroom.Not included in our original complain is the fact that our catwalk floor was unlevel with a significant drop to one side, and the floor at the base of our back stair case had a great deal of rise to it making you feel like you were walking uphill. - These have both been fixed. It was found that the wall below the catwalk was framed incorrectly, and after cutting the top of the wall shorter and reattaching the second floor to it, the catwalk is now level. It was also found (by myself as the framers couldn't find anything wrong) that the header supporting the base of the stairs was installed 1/2" too high which was pushing the subfloor up. The floor joists next to this were also found to be sagging. This has now been fixed as well.Our backyard does not drain. Multiple areas are perpetually wet and muddy with sitting water. One of these spots was discovered with Main Street's lawn maintenance crew trashed the backyard when their mower sank and got stuck on the side of our hill. That same mud hole is still present and is deep and large enough that I have sunk to my knees and had a wheel barrow sink to the handles. To begin with the grading was not done as promised. We were told we would have a smooth transition to our neighbors' lots, with only a slight dip to the grade. Instead they put in "swales" to "channel water the back." Even our neighbors on both sides were told the transitions and grading were to be completely different. Driving through our neighborhood, you can easily see that ours is the only house that is essentially build on a mound. We have been contacting Main Street and [redacted] County for 4 months now to fix the grading and drainage issues with no resolution. We have quotes ranging from $5000-10,000 to fix their problems - Main Street has refused to acknowledge this as an issue. Main Street clearly has no intentions to deliver on the grading plan promised by construction manager [redacted]. Regarding the drainage problems, we have been in contact with [redacted] County and have had several inspectors out to look, including [redacted] with Main Street Homes. The County has found that Main Street technically fills the minimum requirements for grading as all they have to show is movement of water no matter how slow. Although they meet this requirement Jeff Underwood with [redacted] County agrees that the final grading is not acceptable as "the right thing to do." We still have a 4ft deep mudhole in our backyard andwe have recently discovered the boundaries of which are much larger than we thought as a skidsteer got stuck in the ground while moving material for our retaining wall we are building. We have since contacted Main Street again as this is no longer just unsightly and an annoyance but also poses a safety hazard. In their response (which if have attached below) the president of Main Street, [redacted], blames the issue on the weather and a drainage pipe we installed in September. The thing is, we have had this issue since July, two months before that, and our neighbor has the same issue in their yard. Their home was completed well before ours, and we have watched as the hillside below their driveway turns to mud and slowly washes away. The other thing we have watched happen is the construction of a home for a Main Street employee. All work on her home was done with time and care. Following a rain storm that washed a little hay and topsoil down her yard Main Street was out the next day, handpicking the clay clumps and hay, regrading, reseeding, and relaying hay for her. Yet we've had major issues from day one and not once has Main Street done anything about it. In fact the president of Main Street dismisses this as crying out for his help with a yard project. This is far and away unfair, unprofessional and a major reason for our request for a refund. Main Street needs to start taking this seriously instead of dismissing, offending, and belittling us.[redacted]In response to your email.The grading done on behalf of Main Street Homes was done correctly, inspected and approved. The area from your pictures looks like the area off the lower right rear corner of your home. This is the area that the foundation drains and water moving from the corner of the home to the swale would travel. It is also the area that you may have previously disturbed when installing PVC pipe. Pieces of your pipe may be present in one of the attached photos. It is not surprising when working in this area during a wet time of the year that equipment would encounter soft ground conditions. I cannot help you with your project in your yard. Sincerely,[redacted]

[redacted]Main Street has only completed the simple fixes, and the fixes that would be paid for by their trade partners. They have shown no interest in doing the right thing, acknowledging that they have erred, or making things right with their customer. If we were able to buy a house as a retailer like [redacted] and received a product in the condition that Main Street has provided we would return or exchange it. As that is obviously not an option since we are talking about a house, we have asked for a refund and a very reasonable refund given the amount of money we have paid in upgrades, upgrades that Main Street has failed to provide as promised. What we now have is a refurbished product. We have watched as they have given superior service to their employees, offered $5,000 off closing costs to new customers, 50% off $50,000 basements, bought their employees $40,000 brand new [redacted], and all the while completely ignoring our request for a refund and quibbling over which issues are problems and which are acceptable by industry standards. In short, no we do not find this offer to be satisfactory. We will not find it satisfactory until every item is delivered as promised and Main Street has compensated us for the time lost and stress incurred having had to deal with their unprofessional antics.

Regards,

Review: I am filling a complaint against Home Street Homes. My husband and I signed a contract with Main Street around October 2012 and closed in June 2013 for over $400,000. We carefully selected Main Street to build our first home. To us they seemed different from other builders as we were going through the sales process. While they were obviously a business formed to make money, they seemed just as interested in having satisfied customers. The sales representatives were amazing and we really liked the project manager responsible for building our home. However, the [redacted] and the [redacted] quickly proved our initial perceptions wrong when there were issues identified with our home (we have issues with our sod as well as our driveway apron cracking). Once Main Street had our money, they became unresponsive on two items on our written action list. They turned very unresponsive to any e-mails requesting resolution of these matters. When they did respond, they said they would not do anything even though the home was under warranty.

To expand further on the two issues we have:

Sod – There are several issues with our sod that have caused us to have minimal grass in our side yard. First, our sod was laid in June. We probably can all agree that the heat of the summer is the worst time to lay sod. We requested that Main Street wait until fall to lay our sod, but were told it had to be laid prior to us closing. This is not true as several other homes on our street closed before sod was laid (straw was laid until better timing and the sod was then laid). Laying the sod in June set our sod up for failure. In addition, the warrant binder provides for specific instructions for laying sod (due to the clay in the soil). This protocol was not followed prior to laying our sod as our sod was laid directly on the clay without sand, manure or top soil. Overall, poor grade sod was laid. We had a landscaping professional look at our yard. He told us that the sod laid was the cheapest available and not native to Richmond, VA which is another reason the sod did not survive. Finally, we followed the watering guidelines per our Warranty binder. The final issue is sufficient sprinklers were not laid to adequately water our side yard.

Driveway apron – When we began the building process, we were told a construction grade driveway apron is laid to handle the heavy construction trucks. We were told this would be re-laid at the time when the driveway and walkway are laid. This never happened. Our driveway apron has several cracks and is missing pieces of concrete. This was identified with the Project Manager prior to closing on our home and we were specifically told that this would be repaired.

I e-mailed the [redacted], [redacted] various times about these two matters. Finally, she suggested I reach-out to the [redacted], [redacted]. I reached out to [redacted] on two separate occasions and never heard back – my e-mails were completely ignored. I followed-up several times with both [redacted] and [redacted]. I was finally able to get an answer from [redacted], [redacted] that “[redacted] came by and looked at the apron and yard and is not going to do anything further.” We paid over $400,000 to purchase this house and it is still under warranty. This is completely unacceptable that these matters were not appropriately resolved. Further, it is very inappropriate that we did not hear directly from [redacted] after numerous communications.Desired Settlement: In order to settle and close this complaint with Main Street, I want to receive treatment you would expect from an award winning builder. The same treatment we received prior to selecting MSH as the builder of our first home. An honest company that cares about their customers would re-lay the driveway apron that has cracks in it and re-lay sod that was incorrectly laid. Therefore, I would like both the driveway apron and sod to be replaced.

I anticipate Main Street will try to close this complaint with, “we issued them a credit.” This is not an acceptable settlement. Although Main Street did in fact offer and provide us a credit, it was to compensate us for the poor grading done on our right side yard – not because of the poor sod quality or cracks in the driveway apron. The poor grading issue has to do with the house next to us not being initially planned to have a basement. Main Street ended up building a home with a basement which resulted in us having a steep slope on our property and losing functionality of our side yard. I think we all would agree these are three very different separate issues and the credit issued for grading does not close the sod and driveway apron complaint.

Business

Response:

Main Street Homes warrants its homes and workmanship and provides guidance on home maintenance. Lawn care is the responsibility of the homeowner. The sod provided for this yard is a quality sod grown locally in King William County. Sod maintenance requires no less work than normal yard maintenance, and will require regular fertilizing, watering and mowing. During our inspection of this home site the yard was extremely dry to the point of dirt cracking and grass dying. The installed irrigation system did not appear to be on. During this inspection we also looked at other yards using the same local sod, installed using the same process, during the same time period which did not exhibit the same conditions as this yard. We have recommended that this homeowner hire a local lawn care company to help rehabilitate their yard.

The road, curb, and drive entrance has been inspected by VDOT and is under warranty. Main Street Homes will be repairing an area to the right of the drive entrance when instructed by VDOT. The drive entrance itself looks good and we do not see cracks. There are 2 small rough areas where the [redacted] entrance connects to the homeowners drive at the property line. These areas could be filled with epoxy when we finalize state acceptance of the street.

We regret that this homeowner’s overall positive experience with Main Street Homes has been marred by these two issues. While Mr. McClure, as owner of Main Street Homes, may not answer each email/request personally, he is kept abreast of all customer care issues. He relies on our team in our Customer Care department to individually address and communicate with our customers. All emails and requests are answered.

Thank you.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

I appreciate Main Street’s response to my complaint. However, Main Street and [redacted] response does not adequately close or resolve my complaint. I will address the two matters in more detail below.

I understand lawn care is the responsibility of the home owner (in this case my husband and I). However, there is a difference between “lawn care” and having to re-do our entire side yard due to the

lack of consideration and several errors by Main Street Homes. My husband and I water our lawn in accordance with the schedule set by [redacted] (the irrigation Company MSH utilizes) during the Spring activation session. I can submit my water bill to evidence that we are in fact watering our lawn and show [redacted] our irrigation meter. We did have a landscaping professional come out and look at our lawn. He suggested not watering the yard during the middle of the day and to maintain a morning and evening watering schedule set by Stockners. Therefore, depending on what time [redacted] looked at our yard, I would expect it to be dry if it was in between the morning and evening watering sessions. [redacted] and MSH prove the point that the irrigation system we paid for is inadequate given that we do water our lawn based on the guidelines

by stating our lawn was dry. Therefore, this should cause us to revise our requested solution to re-doing our irrigation system and re-laying sod that was damaged by the inadequate irrigation. I would also like to note that I was on a neighborhood walk the other day and saw a home that was recently sold and closed. The home does not have any sod laid in the yard because now is not a good time to lay sod that you want to be able to survive and establish roots. This is the same timing we closed on our home in 2013. It is frustrating that our request to lay sod was not honored, but now Main Street follows a different protocol because they know laying sod during the hot summer months would cause the sod to die and not establish roots. In addition, MSH now follows the guidelines in the Home Warranty binder. This states, "In areas with high clay content, prepare the soil before installing your grass. FIrst, cover the soil with 2 inches of sand and 1 inch of manure that is treated and odorless. Rototill this into the soil to a depth of 6 inches. Whether you use seed or sod, this preparation helps your lawn to retain mositure and require less water. Installing a lawn over hard soil permits water to run off with little or no penetration and your lawn will derive minimal benefit from watering or rain." These guidelines were not followed on our lawn by MSH even though it is communicated to homeowners to follow. With respect to the other homes in the neighborhood that used the same sod company, it is appropriate to mention that we were the only home that had sod laid in June. All other homes on our street were closed and had sod laid in either spring or late summer. Finally, with respect to getting a lawn service, this is something my husband and I have already met with several lawn service companies that we plan to hire in the fall. However, it is difficult to have a lawn service when the sod is all dead at the responsibility of MSH.

There is damage between the driveway and the driveway apron that was identified prior to closing and promised to be resolved that was not addressed by Main Street in their response. I am happy to provide pictures if necessary. However, in an effort to meet Main Street halfway in resolving these two disputes, my husband and I are willing to close this portion of the complaint and take responsibility for the cost of the driveway apron repairs if Main Street takes appropriate responsibility for the sod. If not, both complaints remain open.

Looking forward to receiving a fair proposed solution from Main Street Homes and [redacted].

Regards,

Business

Response:

[redacted] called from the business, he said that they do not typically time of putting the sod down for the homes. That is normally done at the schedule of the sod company, a company that is local to the area. The business has requested a work order for the irrigation system. This was requested on the 23rd of July and was sent a follow up on the 28th. This is an order placed to go and check the system and the heads to make sure none were covered by the sod and aren’t coming up like they should be doing.

In regards to the other repairs, those can be addressed by [redacted] at the end of the year in their review period, they tend to do that at the end year to address them all at the same time.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

I appreciate the BB's assistance in resolving this complaint. The complaint has two parts and I will discuss each complaint separately below.

1. Sod complaint. This complaint had two parts to it. First, poor quality sod was laid and it was laid incorrectly (poor time, not appropriately matching male and female sod sides to root together and was laid on clay instead of top soil). In the home warranty manual, MSH specifically provides instructions on how to lay sod given the clay ground and says if this protocol is not followed it will not grow. This protocol was not followed by MSH when laying our Sod. Also, when [redacted] came-out to look at our sod, he was unsure of where [redacted] got their sod - confirming the fact of a local landscaping profession's opinion that the sod laid in our yard was not local to Richmond and therefore, has a harder time surviving in the Richmond climate. I think the biggest indication that our sod was inadequate, is that MSH has since changed companies they use to lay sod at new homes. This is a clear indication that MSH was also unhappy with their sod subcontractor and switched sod companies. Main Street should take responsibility for the sub part subcontractor they used to lay sod at homes they sold. For these reasons, I am not satisfied with MSH's response to this complaint.

That being said, I have revised my original desired settlement for this issue. I think a fair resolution for both parties is for MSH to provide us a credit of $1,000. This will cover one year of lawn service as well as one round of aerating and seeding. We will take on the responsibility of continuing this after one year as we do understand lawn care is the homeowners responsibility. I would hope Main Street would accept this desired settlement because it is the right thing to do as a business to ensure satisfied customers (and would allow us to recommend MSH on a go forward basis) as well as something they should do given the situation.

Second, the irrigation system is inadequate. Andrew and I appreciate Main Street resolving the issue of them covering our irrigation heads during grading of the home next to ours as this was in fact a mistake made by MSH. If [redacted] (MSH subcontractor) resolves the covered irrigation heads as scheduled and an inspection is done to ensure no foundation damage occurred from us watering underground for a year, I will be satisfied with this complaint resolution.

2. Driveway apron repairs. If [redacted] does address the required repairs at the end of the year in their review period (as MSH mentioned in their latest response), I will be satisfied with the resolution to this complaint.

Looking forward to hearing a fair and reasonable response from MSH.

Regards,

Very Disappointing!
The people and service was great, they really sold us on their products and kept giving us all these reasons as to why they were top of the line. Our house was literally thrown together in 3 months. We appreciated the short time line but would have appreciated quality more than time. We have been in our home for 1 year and every day we find more and more wrong. The work was cheap and the house is cheap. Floors creak, the paint is crap (rubs off if u wipe it) a million and one nail pops, cracks in all the trim because it should have been painted before it went on the wall not after it was up. The deck is cracking so whatever treatment they claim to have used must not have been very good. Hardwood floors suck! The wood splits, cracks, breaks etc. There are many other things that we do not approve of. Everything is just cheap and for the price, we should definitely have better quality. The only thing in my house I love is my granite counter tops. I would not recommend Main Street Homes to anyone. Sadly, we regret the buying of this house and are looking to sell.