Hughston Homes

We are currently having a home built in Blue Ridge Subdivision in Bonaire, GA. The builder is working so fast that they went from foundation one weekend to having the walls and roof on the next weekend. We live in Florida, so we didn't have a chance to visit the site until this past weekend. We were disappointed to see that the media room upstairs that was supposed to have a vaulted ceiling was not vaulted. The two rooms on each side of it were vaulted though. The only other home that has been built with that floorplan (Milcrest) has a vaulted ceiling in the media room. My husband and I are over 6 foot tall, so the vaulted ceiling was one of the main reasons we chose that plan. Also, we were told by Ann, the builder's agent, that the builder was placing the stair entrance flush with the wall from now on so that they would not stick out into the foyer, but only if we agreed to give up square footage in the powder room and closet that are behind the stairwell. We agreed to this as we did not want the stairs in the foyer. During our visit, we found that the builders had not moved the stairs from the foyer area. They only moved it back one step (1 ft.) and added a perpendicular step on the landing, which was supposed to be flat (U-shaped staircase). They also took the space from the closet and powder room. No one contacted us or our agent to let us know that the stairs could not be moved as promised. We were not given a choice as to whether or not the space should be taken from the rooms to move back only one step. We would have said no to that. We definitely do not want a step on the landing as this is a safety hazard in our opinion. We would have chosen to keep the one stair in the foyer instead of on the landing. When our agent spoke with the builder's agent about these things, she said that the plans had been deleted from the builder's computer since it has been so "long" since they built that floor plan (it has been less than 2 months since the only other home with the same plan was completed), so that is why they messed up on the ceiling. They agreed to fix the ceiling. However, later the same day, the builder has his agent call our agent back to say that they could not fix it because the the wrong trusses were ordered and used on the roof (pre-fabbed) and they would have to take out the roof to vault that room. If they did that, they would compromise the structural integrity of the house. Regarding the stairs, they said they moved the stairs back a foot but couldn't move them any further than that because of some code about step sizes. They say there is nothing they can do to change the stairs. We asked that they at least get rid of the extra step on the landing, but they refused, saying there is nothing they can do. They offered to waive the $450 we owe for upgrades as compensation for both of these issues. We have requested a meeting with the builder, but our agent is not able to get any response. My husband has called the builder directly and left a message with the secretary, but has not gotten a response. Our agent has only been able to reach the builder's agents and has had no luck scheduling a meeting for us with the builder. Update on 02/18/13 The builder and his representatives have still refused to meet with us. I reported them to the Better Business Bureau. I sent a certified letter to the builder as well explaining our complaints about the house and expressing our frustration about not being able to meet with or getting straight answers from their representatives. Since they indicated that nothing could be done about the stairs or the media room, we requested that the builders cover the cost of items and allow changes to a room color that we felt were fair compensation. We asked that they install recessed lights in the media room so we would not have to use a light fixture that hangs down in a room with only an 8ft. ceiling. We also requested that they cover the cost of our fence ($7900) and paint the media room with our standard paint color instead of the darker accent color (we didn't want the room to look any smaller by using a dark color). If the recessed lights could not be added due to structural constraints, we asked that they cover the cost of a refrigerator instead. Below is the response that our agent received by email from the builder's agent: "Edgar Hughston Builder, Inc. has reviewed the letter from Raina Bagg dated February 13, 2013. After reviewing the specifics of the signed contract again and after seeking legal counsel, we have determined that the house as built conforms with the terms of the contract. The contract calls for building the Millcrest plan according to the standards being built in Blue Ridge. The Millcrest plan was built. There is no defect in construction. Therefore, Mrs. Bagg has an obligation to perform under the contract. Edgar Hughston Builder, Inc. rejects Mr. & Mrs. Bagg?s two proposals. The builder counteroffers the following: 1. Mr. and Mrs. Bagg perform under the contract by purchasing the house and paying for the upgrades. 2. The contract is terminated. Although pursuant to Paragraphs 11(B) and 15, Edgar Hughston Builder, Inc. would be entitled to payment of the earnest money and other damages allowed by law, the builder is willing to allow Mr. & Mrs. Bagg to receive the earnest money upon termination of the contract. Said termination will specifically state that both parties waive any claims that he or she has against the other party arising out of, relating to, or as a result of the contract. Please let me know as soon as possible Mr. and Mrs. Bagg?s decision." We have requested several times to see the floorplan for this subdivision to verify that it is different from the other subdivision but have not received a response. My agent was told by their agent that the builder was very angry about being reported to the BBB. As you can see, they made no mention of their agent's previous offer to cover the $450 we owe for upgrades. The builder has not yet responded through the BBB. This review will be updated if we stay under contract. Update 03/07/2013 After our agent inquired about the initial offer to cover the $455 for our extras, they agreed to do so. We are very disappointed with such a small offer. We looked at several homes currently on the market, but did not find anything that meets our needs. It is too close to our moving date to have another builder build a home for us. Because we don't really have any other choice, we decided to stay in our contract with Hughston Homes. I will update the Quality once we move in.