DR Horton Terrible Builder, Worse Customer Service St. Augustine Florida

I'd like to begin by first saying thank you for reading report and I hope it is of benefit to atleast one person/family.

June 2006, my wife and I closed on a home for sale from DR Horton and the experience has been nothing short of terrible. For presentation purposes, I'll make a list for all interested to follow along with.

1. Prior to closing I instructed the closing agent to only phone me when the following things had taken place. A) I had an hour to review my settlement statement, from home (DR Horton/DHI Title (one in the same) are NOTORIOUS for putting homeowners in an escrow shortage since they control the closing, regardless of the lender. Property tax is calculated on "market value/sale price" of the home, not an unimproved piece of dirt DR Horon buys from the local seller. B) I would not attend closing until I had received confirmation that the funds were wired from my lender and RECEIVED by DHI Title (DR. Horton's other money making arm).

Surely enough on the day of closing I received a phone call at 9am for my wife and I to be at DHI Title at 2pm. At this time I requested a copy of the settlement sheet (HUD) and was provided this. Shortly thereafter it became apparent that DHI Title and their "management" had put us in an escrow shortage, plus the amount they charge for title insurance in comersuate with buying a $5,000,000 hotel in the state of Florida. After the potential escrow shortage situation was resolved, we were good to go, or so we thought.

We arrive at DHI Title at 2pm and begin signing documents and finally when the documents are signed the Title Agent gets up and walks to "fax the documents back to the lender". This process takes approximately 1 1/2 hours and the Title Agent returns to notify us "the wire from the lender has not come through yet". This becomes very suprising based on two reasons. 1. The last DR Horton home we purchased, July 2005, also had the same issues, with a different lender albeit that. I guess you pay the penalty when you don't use DHI Mortgage (Another BS profit machine for DR Horton). 2) The wire cutoff is 2pm EST. All wires received after that can't be redeemed until the next day. In plain English, you jerked us for an hour and a half because we didn't use your incompetent mortgage company but rather used JP Morgan Chase.

So, long story short (as you can tell), we finally close and get our keys.

Based upon my wife and I currently owning another home within a stone throw of our "new" residence, the moving process is slow and methodical. Finally, we get moved in mid-August 2006, approximately 20 days after closing. Prior to the move, we had some paintwork done to the interior of the home. Upon putting any sort of color to the drywall it becomes quick;y apparent that A) the company DR Horton uses to drywall is terrrible or B) Helen Keller now is in the drywall business.

On top of the drywall problems, our first evening in our "new home" was interesting to say the least. During dinner we notice an incredible amount of bugs in the house, some the size of small planes. After further investigation, we notice the french door at the back of the home does not shut properly and leaves at 1" gap between the frame for all sort of critters to get in.

After chasing some of the critters out of the home and dinner is finished, it is time to run our new, upgraded stainless steel dishwasher for the very first time. Well, after the load is almost complete, my daughther who is a year old, walks into the family room and has a puzzled look on her face. After my wife and I move over to check on her, we realize very quickly the source of her confusion. THE CARPET IS SOAKED IN A 10 FOOT RADIUS IN THE FAMILY ROOM, FROM THE DISHWASHER.

The next morning we called DR Horton 10 times, finally they were able to get the dishwasher fixed after 3 weeks of having to handwash dishes, in a new home mind you. Furthermore, they send out someone to "fix our carpet" which entailed putting a dehumidifier in our home, carving out the carpet padding and leaving us to sit for 6 weeks, before that even come back to complete the job (which still isn't done as of today)

Bottom line, DR Horton could care less about you, the consumer. They are strictly a profit driven organization and nothing more and they will treat you like garbage once you "sign on the dotted line".

My question to you DR Horton folks, would David Auld, George Seagraves and Andy Fermento, live in this type of home?? I think not. Your lender (DHI Mortgage), your title company (DHI Title) and you, DR Horton, are a joke. Stand behind your product, don't be dishonest, and follow through with your commitment to customer's, it is that simple.

John
St. Augustine, Florida
U.S.A.

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