Newport Holdings Inc. - Martin Van Wolfswinkel, President & Jared Beesley, V.P. They Lie, Lie, Lie and make promises they have no intention of keeping. Buyers Beware! Euless Texas

Newport Village At Trinity seemed to be a dream come true. We thought that Martin and Jared were telling us the truth, until we moved in and started talking with the neighbors. It has turned into a complete nightmare. Everyone here has problems with their condo's. The construction quality is shoddy and the grounds are terrible. Most of the folks here have extensive water damage from leaking doors, windows or roofs. The promised park and pool looks as though it is at least 2 years out. The grounds are full of construction debris and trash and are seldom attended to.

COST - We were originally quoted $119,000 by Martin, and obtained a loan the following day from their prefered mortgage broker Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation. We returned the following week and started trying to give Jared a down payment check for $750 to secure our unit. After repeated calls and unkept appointments by Jared, which took weeks, we became extremely concerned that all was not well. But we loved the condo and the location and persisted. Finally, after many calls to Martin, he returned a call and said Jared would meet with us to take our money. It took 3 trips to the property in one day and Jared finally arrived. It was at this time we were informed that the unit we wanted had been sold the previous day. So we picked another unit and had to wait 4 months (10 months later, the original unit is still vacent). Of course, after taking our check, he couldn't provide a copy of our contract and told me to come back the next day. Three trips later we finally got a contract and the price had changed to $123,900. We couldn't believe it and thought it was an error due to Jareds incompetence. Upon finally contacting Martin, we were informed the price had gone up. OK, we would adjust, and still thought that it was a good value for the dollar, and we would be able to monitor the construction as it progressed.

CONSTRUCTION - The units look good to the untrained eye. Closer inspection reveals shoddy fit and finish and there is a complete lack of reasonable care or natural progression of construction techniques. From the sheetrock on in the process, all the work is done by painters. Wood Floors and Ceramic Tile - Painters, Cabinets - Painters, Fences - Painters, Sod - Painters, Counters and Sinks - Painters, Anything that needs fixing - Painters. There is only 2 real painters in the whole group and they are not here often. They are for the most part laborers who make more of a mess than fix any problems.

Look For - Squeaking and uneven 2nd and 3rd story floors. Sagging roofs. Terrible wood floors with bubbles and raised ends. Leaking back doors and windows due to lack of "Z" flange on top. Extremely bad paint and tape and texture, due to thinned paint and the inability to provide trained professionals for that work. Crooked windows, we have yet seen anyone use a level here. Unacceptable fit on wood moldings, they fix that with calk - lots of calk. Cracked ceilings and walls, again cheap techniques and labor. Painted moldings are sloppy and upon close inspection look as if done by a child. Cheap pressureized wood on decks that buckle within months.

Don't Look For - Any problems to be fixed right or in a timly manner. These guys count on you to be a busy working person. Therefore, any appointments they make with you will not be kept. Oh, they will show up, just late - very late. Don't be supprised if they leave to get something and never return. You Have Been Warned.

GROUNDS - We have all been told that the pool and park would be done by the summer. Some owners were told this years ago. It's been about 5 years since construction started. We have a nice mosquito breeding pond instead. The park is a convienent place to clean out cement trucks and dump trash that the guys are too lazy to put in a dumpster, or the dumpster is full (always). There is no supervision of the project so all the workers are free to dump their tamalie and taco wrappers along with their drink bottles on our streets and yards. This place looks like a dump most of the time. Yard maintenance is a joke and only happens if a complaint is lodged or a building is completed and ready for sale. Do not buy here expecting a park, pool or lake anytime as long as it is in the hands of Martin Van Wolfswinkel.

FINALLY - It might sound like we are sorry we bought here. Amazingly, we are not. Our advice is: Do not close until you are satisfied with your unit. They will pressure you to close on their schedule and tell ya that everything will be done in time. It Won't! Do Not schedule a moving date until they have fixed everything you want done. If you do, you'll be sorry. Do Not - deal with Jared. Only believe what the current owners tell you - ask around before you buy. We believe that we have a very good value for our dollar, we bought this townhouse as an investment and don't intend to flip it. Eventually Martin will go belly up and this place will then be able to rise to it's full potential, complete with a HOA and ammenities.

Pissed off owner
Euless, Texas
U.S.A.

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