News and Events
February 13, 2008
Homeowners can sue builders over defects
The
Iowa Supreme Court ruled on Friday ruled that homeowners can sue contractors
for problems discovered long after a home is sold if the defects can be traced
to original workmanship.
The ruling involves the 7-year-old case of a Clive couple who discovered water
damage and mold in their 12-year-old home, which had been custom built for
another couple in 1995.
Today’s ruling reverses an earlier court decision that shielded the contractor,
Walters Development Co., from responsibility for problems after the home
changed hands.
“We
believe that
The Clive couple, Robert And Beverly Speight, could not be immediately reached
for reaction.
Their attorney, Harley Erbe, called the ruling “a great victory for consumers,
because the fact that many people nowadays are buying homes that were built for
somebody else, as opposed to having homes that were custom built.”
Prior to today’s court decision, people like the Speights would have been “shut
out if the home had any potential construction issues,” Erbe said.
Erbe said the Speights will continue the lawsuit against the developer, who
allegedly used defective gutters and a put a subpar roof on the house at
The Speights still live in the house. Erbe declined to say when the leaks were
discovered or whether they turned up in a pre-purchase inspection. He said it
was a “strategic decision” to sue Walters instead of the couple they bought the
house from, Philip and Nancy Rogers.
Walter Development officials could not be immediately reached for comment.
