Padilla Homes Inc Padilla Homes -- Bad for El Paso -- Bad for anybody who wants to buy a home in el Paso El Paso Texas

To whom it may concern,

As is the case with much information floating in cyberspace, unless businesses are referred to web sites like this or one by chance comes across them, it is virtually impossible to know of their existence or to answer allegations raised as in the case of Bill. Having recently been referred to this site, Padilla Homes is responding 6 years after his post was made. Bill never mentions his full name and address remaining largely anonymous. Under the veil of anonymity, he protects his own reputation bent on destroying Padilla Homes. If the grievance is legitimate, then the writer of such letter should have the decency of signing his name without reservation.

This makes it easier to post a rebuttal by looking at the facts. Bills identity can be deduced with reasonable accuracy as being William Medina. There is only one William that closed on February 15, 2006. Padilla Homes built his home in El Paso, Texas. Without identifying the writer, the claims made are largely indefensible or phony at best.  

In the case of the Medinas every legitimate issue was addressed making the claims posted on this web site untrue. Of
course, there are always two sides to every story, and it is unfortunate that Mr. and Mrs. Medina chose to post this letter after Padilla Homes worked hard to address well-founded issues raised by them either by email, fax or phone
calls. In retrospect and in reviewing their file, documents exist at Padilla Homes office initialed by the customer indicating that all valid concerns were properly addressed and corrected to their satisfaction. Due to the limitations of this website, all persons wishing to examine these documents are invited to visit Padilla Homes to review Mr. and Mrs. Medinas file. Since they have chosen to voice their claims in a public forum, Padilla Homes stance is that they have forfeited their privacy rights.

In general, Padilla Homes will respond to some of the comments made by William (Bill) Medina: 


1)  It is true there was a delay in completing the construction. After Hurricane Katrina which made landfall on August 29, 2005, a shortage of sheet rock was experienced 6 months after by all builders. There was no reason for the builder to have anticipated the shortage when the contract was signed. When sheet rock became unavailable, it became impossible for the builder to proceed as initially planned. A priority for sheetrock shipments was given to areas devastated by the hurricane in order to rebuild the Gulf coast. This was widely publicized in the news media. Such delays are beyond the builders control and acceptable within the contracts scope justifying delays. In spite of the shortage and a record rainfall in the El Paso, the record shows that completion occurred 9 days after the contract stipulated with final inspection taking place on February 9, 2006. (In a letter sent to the client on January 25, 2006, the unavailability of materials is mentioned and informed the client, that this shortage pushed the completion date back by 10 days). Once final City inspections passed, the home was deemed substantially complete and ready for occupancy. This having occurred, the builder asked the client to contact their lender to order a survey and a final appraisal inspection and to prepare for closing. Closing took place on February 15, 2006. Six days between final inspections and closing is not an unreasonable amount of time. It is quite common for a lender to prepare for closing within this span of time.     

2)  The builder has nothing to do with which mortgage lender the client selects. For closing, the home buyers lender sends a packet of documents to the title company required and signed by both parties at closing. If there was a document missing after the closing, then it was a document the lender failed to provide to the title company, discovering it after the fact.

3)  The builder must be 100% funded by the lender. If for any reason the lender is short on the amount, the house will not close. Closing is not complete until full funding is received by the builder. Clients are routinely asked not to schedule closings on Fridays. If closing takes place on Friday, the money transfer from lender to builder may in all likelihood arrive the following Monday. Once received, the house is officially the buyers.

4) The final step is the rekeying of all locks to turn over the house keys to the buyer. During the construction phase the builder uses master keys to facilitate access to the home by authorized personnel. Once all punch list items are addressed and completed, and for the buyers security, the master locks are changed.

5) Receipt records show that the final electric bill paid at 6245 Viale del Sol by Padilla Homes was to February 14, 2006. Mr. Medinas claim that the electricity was under his name as of January 31, 2003 (before closing) is not true since the final inspections passed on February 9.

Utilities cannot be placed in the clients name until after final inspections pass. For example, for gas service, the utility company requires a number issued once the final inspection passes. The client needs this number to place the service under their name. The office gives this number to the client after closing.

6) In order for closing to take place on Mr. and Mrs. Medinas home, Padilla Homes had to comply with all City and code inspections, 2-10 Home Buyers Warranty, VA and Energy Star Certification requirements, in addition to an inspection made by an independent inspector whom Mr. and Mrs. Medina hired before closing. Records show that all items that needed to be corrected were done. A walk-through sheet is on record showing the clients initials to indicate that all items on the punch list were corrected to their satisfaction. Padilla Homes has never offered a 30 day inspection. There is an initial punch list before move-in, a 6 month, and a year end.

7) At no time did Mr. and Mrs. Medina use their 2-10 Home Buyers Warranty or contact the Better Business Bureau to have the builder address any of the allegations and claims raised in this posting. At no time did they make known to the builder their desire to use their option for mediation as was called for in their contract.

8) Only one letter is on record to the builder faxed via Mr. and Mrs. Medinas ERA Realty agent. Padilla Homes responded on January 25, 2006 as mentioned above. No other letters from client to builder exist.  Why then resort to placing an anonymous posting in an obscure website when so many proper channels to address any and all grievances were available and stipulated in Mr. and Mrs. Medinas contract?  A reasonable conclusion is that no valid issues existed while an intention to cause harm to Padilla Homes with this posting did. The Medinas contracted Padilla Homes to build the house for $195,000 and sold it three years later on May 26, 2009 for an assessed value of $218,507. This fact irrefutably
destroys Bills weak, unfounded, and unconvincing argument that the house was defective. A $23,507 increase in value, at a time when home values were dropping, speaks well about the construction Padilla Homes delivered. The fact
that a new buyer was willing to pay the Medinas more for the house they claim was flawed, is an indisputable confirmation that Padilla Homes did everything right and nothing was wrong with the house. This information is public record. Where then is the Rip-Off? It is highly unlikely that VA, their lender, their real estate agent, the inspector of their choice, 2-10 Home Warranty, Energy Star, El Paso Electric and the City of El Paso Building department all conspired with Padilla Homes to swindle Bill in any way. It never happened. The allegations are frivolous, but worse, they are unsubstantiated by what Bill presents in his posting. The posting is libelous, malicious and defamatory and subject to legal recourse and defense in a court of law.

Despite the difficulties the homebuilding industry is experiencing, Padilla Homes continues to work diligently to complete homes with attention to detail, integrity, quality, and customer satisfaction. While there are many satisfied customers, and regardless of a sincere effort, it is unrealistic to believe that businesses can satisfy the expectations of all
buyers. There will always be the few displeased individuals like Bill who choose the wrong recourse; but with every home built, an earnest attempt is made to satisfy each and every buyer.

Rafael Padilla