Consumer Protection: Building to last
Senate Bill 5550, known as the Homeowners Bill of Rights, would protect buyers of new homes against such things as defects in materials and workmanship (for two years), defects occurring because of water leaks (five years) and structural defects (for 10 years)...Chopp has been accused of giving in to the pressure from the Building Industry Association of Washington, and his position on SB5550 has prompted seriously outcry from the House... The House speaker should get off the dime and let lawmakers vote on this bill; we think it would mean new consumer protection for home buyers.

Critics: Wetlands proposal harmful
Bill would strip local officials of oversight unless they foot funds. Environmentalists and local government officials say a bill moving through the state Legislature could severely restrict efforts to preserve a key feature of their natural resources "€” wetlands. "Developers in Florida are out of control," she said. "They are lashing out at the one thing that is trying to protect the rest of us "€” local governments."

Senate to consider homeowner bill; changes unlikely
The Colorado Senate on Monday is scheduled to consider the Homeowner Protection Act, which could put it on Gov. Bill Ritter's desk for signature later next week...Sen. Jennifer Veiga, D-Denver, who is sponsoring House Bill 1338, said late Tuesday afternoon that she has had a "number of discussions about the possibility of amending it" but noted that time was running out...HB 1338 prevents builders from inserting waivers into warranty contracts that remove buyers' rights to sue or arbitrate over shoddy construction issues, a provision in the four-year-old HB 1161, which builders supported.

Homebuilder Lobbyists Accused Of Ethics Violations
Two lawmakers filed ethics complaints against lobbyists for homebuilders on Tuesday, accusing them of orchestrating phone calls to constituents that falsely accuse them supporting a bill that would increase taxes on homes.Borodkin and Todd's complaint names William Mutch, who represents the business lobby Colorado Concern, and Steve Durham, who lobbies for the Colorado Home Builders Association.

Home buyers vs. builders in Legislature
Some home buyers are battling homebuilders over a proposed law about construction defects. House Bill 1338, sponsored by Rep. Jack Pommer, D-Boulder, is designed to give homeowners more rights to get a defective home fixed. But home builders say it will dramatically increase liability insurance premiums as well as their liability when a construction defect is discovered and a homeowner sues.

Senate committee backs home buyers' bill
A Senate committee on Tuesday backed a bill to protect the right of home buyers to sue if developers don't fix construction defects. The measure (House Bill 1338) outlaws contracts that waive the rights of home buyers to sue under a 2003 law that was backed by home builders. That law limits how much money buyers can win in court and encourages builders and owners to go to arbitration first.

Sentencing delayed in conviction of contractors
Pensacola News Journal - After nearly six hours of testimony Thursday from several victims and the owners of a company convicted of fraudulent shoddy construction work, Circuit Court Judge Michael Allen delayed sentencing until 8:30 a.m. Tuesday. Total Response Systems owners William and Anita Morrison of Missouri were convicted in October. They face a maximum of 17 and 30 years, respectively, on charges of racketeering, tampering with evidence and contracting without a license. The charges against them occurred over a nine-month period -- between November 2004 and August 2005 -- as thousands of area residents were reeling from severe damage to their homes caused by Hurricane Ivan.

Tuscan Hills plan ends in foreclosure
Mayer-Luce Development had announced it would build an 18-hole golf course hotel and high-end homes, a first for Desert Hot Springs, dubbing it Tuscan Hills in mid-2005. Now the company no longer owns the project and is being sued by 52 homeowners at its other Desert Hot Springs development, Hacienda Heights, who complain of shoddy construction work.

Predatory lending, little oversight create bad situation for homeowners, and help won't be coming soon
"We are overwhelmed, and unfortunately when people call we're telling them that we just don't have the staff to handle them," said Jim McCarthy, MVFH president and CEO. To compound the problem, scam artists looking to make a quick buck are using foreclosure and other public records to prey on panicked consumers, said Beth Deutscher, executive director of the Home Ownership Center of Greater Dayton.

Contractors come to the aid of bilked homeowners
Richard Prowse was getting ready for work one day several weeks ago when he saw a heartbreaking story in the newspaper. In the story, a local family said it lost more than $17,000 to a contractor who had disappeared after they hired him to make their house more accessible for their wheelchair-bound son. They said their home was uninhabitable because a contractor had gutted it before absconding with their money.Prowse, himself a contractor, was upset and began working the phones and printing fliers to assemble volunteers.Companies donated wallboard, kitchen cabinets, baseboards and other supplies. Contractors started showing up at Hatch and Bailey, the Stamford lumber yard where Prowse is a sales representative, to help.

Mukilteo condo owners now await a ruling on whether a contractor's insurer must pay
The court cases relate to the 96-unit Villas at Harbour Pointe condo complex on Villa Monte Drive. Residents at the complex sued after water poured in through siding, windows and sliding glass doors and damaged units, according to court files. Repair work continues to this day.The rulings mean residents still need to fight the insurance company for payment for repair work, said attorney Dan Zimberoff, who represents the condo owners association."They just want their homes repaired and lives to go on," he said. "They've been living through the litigation nightmare for five years now."

Justice says help needed for his legal bills even as firm's appeal neared
Justice Hecht solicited donors in February to pay the cost of defending himself against charges of violating judicial ethics. The state's judicial-conduct panel admonished Justice Hecht last year for using his office to promote the failed nomination of Harriet Miers to the U.S. Supreme Court. The sanction was subsequently overturned, but Justice Hecht owed $340,000 to his lawyers. Hillco PAC, an Austin-based committee whose primary funder is Mr. Perry, donated $16,000 to the justice. And the contribution came days before the Texas Supreme Court heard an appeal by Perry Homes seeking to overturn a string of unfavorable rulings.

Hecht Should Recuse Himself from Perry Homes Case and Reveal the Full List of Donors to His Legal Defense
The Dallas Morning News reported this morning that Hillco PAC, which has received more than $1 million from Houston homebuilder Bob Perry, gave Texas Supreme Court Justice Nathan Hecht $16,000 in the days after Hecht solicited contributions to cover his legal expenses...."Justice Hecht should come clean once and for all by revealing the names of everyone who is picking up the tab for his legal bills," said Winslow.  "At the very least, this calls Justice Hecht's impartiality into question.  He should recuse himself from any case involving individuals who have contributed to his personal legal defense."

Suspended, revoked -- and in charge
The man in charge of inspecting the work of homebuilders here is a homebuilder himself whose license was revoked by the state in January...McCracken has been featured in an on-going 3 On Your Side investigation of missed code violations at a home in the Ravenwood subdivision of Horn Lake.  After our own structural engineer uncovered problems at the home, McCracken admitted the city missed those problems in its inspections -- even as his boss, Horn Lake Planning Director Anita Rainey, issued a letter to the home's builder two days after our inspection, saying, "...this office has no knowledge of any code violations regarding (6284 Manchester)."

Contractor's board may be replaced by new watchdog
The seven-member board is a licensing agency for contractors. It also acts as a mediator between the businesses and disgruntled consumers. The agency documents and investigates complaints against contractors. The complaints are available to the public. Senate Bill 553 proposes to transfer the duties to the Nevada Construction Authority, which would have two additional members, a residential construction engineer and a residential construction architect or building inspector. Construction defects and contractor licensing would be reviewed by two other appointed boards. It would hire independent inspectors.