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| Loveland Residents of Greenbriar Neighborhood Sue KB Homes For Over $6 million Building experts have discovered horrific negligence and gross building code violations - where was the City of Loveland? |
Loveland - Feb. 28, 2008
The Lawsuit
Loveland homeowners are suing national homebuilder KB Homes plus two local
construction firms are involved (as 3rd party defendants) for allegedly ignoring local
building codes while building substandard, unsafe and faulty homes in Loveland.
Experts retained on behalf of the plaintiffs have uncovered a nightmare of building code
violations along with substandard building practices, according to the lawsuit filed last
year in the Larimer County District Court by the Greenbriar Home Owners
Associations here in Loveland.
Click here to see a copy of the original court filing
Many first-time home buyers who purchased a KB Homes in Loveland in the early
2000's have seen not only their property values drop precipitously but also their homes
literally falling apart. Leaky roofs, siding falling off and even interior water pipes
freezing are just a few of the problems owners of these properties have reported to
their HOA.
The general allegations of the complaint state;
"The Paired Units Association and the Townhome Association have been seeking to
address complaints of property damage from various construction defects throughout
their communities. The damage primarily relates to improper siding installation and site
drainage but also includes, by way of example, leaking roofs, heaving and sinking
concrete, and damage to siding and trim. Upon information and belief, these damages
and others as will be proven at trial are the result of Defendants' wrongful conduct
during the construction and sale of the homes and common property."
A number of local builders and individuals have also been named in the case either as
third party defendants or as defendants. Three of the original HOA board members
appointed by the builder are also named as defendants in the lawsuit. They are being
accused of failing to act in the resident's best interest as HOA board members
appointed by the builder (Brock Chapman, David Siler and Michelle Lee) owed a
fiduciary duty to the homeowners to act in their best interest but failed.
Problems Of A City Council Controlled by Developers
While young families were struggling to pay expensive repairs caused by construction
defects in their newly constructed KB Homes, the Loveland City Council was taking
action to impose eminent domain on other property owners in order to facilitate yet
another KB Homes development off of Taft Avenue.
Distraught homeowners were unable to get assistance from the city and exhausted all
other avenues in trying to get the builder to honor warranties both implied and written.
Eventually, the HOA's representing the distraught and overly burdened home owners
stepped-in and retained Benson & Assoc. to file the lawsuit in an attempt to remedy the
crisis many people dwelling in the homes experienced from the first days they had
moved-in to their new homes.
Currently the defendants have asked to have their experts also review the properties. If
the two parties fail to reach an agreement regarding the true extent of the problem and
cost of a remedy than the matter will likely be scheduled for a court date in Spring.
Settlement Likely - Homes To Get New Siding and Possibly Roofs
Some involved in the case believe a settlement is likely in the next month. The
homeowners are looking to get new vinyl siding among many other improvements if the
suit is settled.
The Lawsuit
Loveland homeowners are suing national homebuilder KB Homes plus two local
construction firms are involved (as 3rd party defendants) for allegedly ignoring local
building codes while building substandard, unsafe and faulty homes in Loveland.
Experts retained on behalf of the plaintiffs have uncovered a nightmare of building code
violations along with substandard building practices, according to the lawsuit filed last
year in the Larimer County District Court by the Greenbriar Home Owners
Associations here in Loveland.
Click here to see a copy of the original court filing
Many first-time home buyers who purchased a KB Homes in Loveland in the early
2000's have seen not only their property values drop precipitously but also their homes
literally falling apart. Leaky roofs, siding falling off and even interior water pipes
freezing are just a few of the problems owners of these properties have reported to
their HOA.
The general allegations of the complaint state;
"The Paired Units Association and the Townhome Association have been seeking to
address complaints of property damage from various construction defects throughout
their communities. The damage primarily relates to improper siding installation and site
drainage but also includes, by way of example, leaking roofs, heaving and sinking
concrete, and damage to siding and trim. Upon information and belief, these damages
and others as will be proven at trial are the result of Defendants' wrongful conduct
during the construction and sale of the homes and common property."
A number of local builders and individuals have also been named in the case either as
third party defendants or as defendants. Three of the original HOA board members
appointed by the builder are also named as defendants in the lawsuit. They are being
accused of failing to act in the resident's best interest as HOA board members
appointed by the builder (Brock Chapman, David Siler and Michelle Lee) owed a
fiduciary duty to the homeowners to act in their best interest but failed.
Problems Of A City Council Controlled by Developers
While young families were struggling to pay expensive repairs caused by construction
defects in their newly constructed KB Homes, the Loveland City Council was taking
action to impose eminent domain on other property owners in order to facilitate yet
another KB Homes development off of Taft Avenue.
Distraught homeowners were unable to get assistance from the city and exhausted all
other avenues in trying to get the builder to honor warranties both implied and written.
Eventually, the HOA's representing the distraught and overly burdened home owners
stepped-in and retained Benson & Assoc. to file the lawsuit in an attempt to remedy the
crisis many people dwelling in the homes experienced from the first days they had
moved-in to their new homes.
Currently the defendants have asked to have their experts also review the properties. If
the two parties fail to reach an agreement regarding the true extent of the problem and
cost of a remedy than the matter will likely be scheduled for a court date in Spring.
Settlement Likely - Homes To Get New Siding and Possibly Roofs
Some involved in the case believe a settlement is likely in the next month. The
homeowners are looking to get new vinyl siding among many other improvements if the
suit is settled.
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| Vinyl Siding Problems Among the largest repair expenses will be to replace all the siding on every unit. Building paper is required by the City of Loveland under all vinyl siding but was apparently not used on any of the buildings. Below is a table of the most common architectural problems experienced on the exterior. |
| Roofing Problems According to the experts who inspected the roofing for the plaintiffs, the rake flashing was inadequate, slope in the roof valley and other fundamental roofing problems were identified.. |
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