Michael1020
New Member
- Jurisdiction
- Colorado
I recently entered into a contract with a home builder. The contract was contingent upon the sale of my current home. I had to put $35,000 down for earnest money. If our home did not sell within 60 days, we were told we would be given the opportunity to decide whether we wanted to keep the contract or back out and get our $35,000 back.
We signed the contract and then went through financial approval and finishing selections.
Yesterday, I received an email from the home builder saying congratulations on completing your contract. Due to the amount of upgrades you have chosen being over the maximum threshold, we need you to submit payment for 50% of the upgrades totaling $62,000.
This was the 1st we had heard of the need to pay for any amount over a certain threshold. Obviously, we were surprised and concerned. I asked both my wife and our realtor if that was ever disclosed during our discussions and we all agreed, it was never disclosed or discussed.
I reached out to our sales associate with the builder and conveyed the above. I said most importantly, will the $62,000 be covered by the contingency if we do not sell our home? She responded that was a great question and she had never been asked that before and would get back to me. She said don't do anything until you hear back.
I followed up today and I have not yet heard back and I am very concerned.
In the meantime, I reviewed the contract and I did find the stipulation of the upgrade threshold. I also found verbiage that makes me think that she is going to tell me that the upgrade amount is not covered by the contingency. None of this was ever discussed.
I realize that it is in the contract, but it is easy to miss in the lengthy document that it is. Not to mention, we had our realtor review the contract to help identify any of these types of gotchas and she did not see it either.
Let me provide some additional details that may be pertinent:
1. They have not yet broken ground on the house and the build is more than 10 months out (probably a year).
2. This is a national builder and I don't think they are out to scam people.
3. I really thought selling our home was not going to be an issue, but it feels like the market is changing right below our feet, so I am concerned we may not be able to sell it and I may need to execute the contingency.
4. None of the above was discussed during the purchase and if it were, it would have fundamentally changed the way we would have upgraded the house and even questioned signing the contract.
5. I have not paid the $62,000 yet.
I am trying to get ahead of this issue and get some advice on what I should be thinking about for the next steps if the builder tells me I am simply out of luck.
Thank you.
We signed the contract and then went through financial approval and finishing selections.
Yesterday, I received an email from the home builder saying congratulations on completing your contract. Due to the amount of upgrades you have chosen being over the maximum threshold, we need you to submit payment for 50% of the upgrades totaling $62,000.
This was the 1st we had heard of the need to pay for any amount over a certain threshold. Obviously, we were surprised and concerned. I asked both my wife and our realtor if that was ever disclosed during our discussions and we all agreed, it was never disclosed or discussed.
I reached out to our sales associate with the builder and conveyed the above. I said most importantly, will the $62,000 be covered by the contingency if we do not sell our home? She responded that was a great question and she had never been asked that before and would get back to me. She said don't do anything until you hear back.
I followed up today and I have not yet heard back and I am very concerned.
In the meantime, I reviewed the contract and I did find the stipulation of the upgrade threshold. I also found verbiage that makes me think that she is going to tell me that the upgrade amount is not covered by the contingency. None of this was ever discussed.
I realize that it is in the contract, but it is easy to miss in the lengthy document that it is. Not to mention, we had our realtor review the contract to help identify any of these types of gotchas and she did not see it either.
Let me provide some additional details that may be pertinent:
1. They have not yet broken ground on the house and the build is more than 10 months out (probably a year).
2. This is a national builder and I don't think they are out to scam people.
3. I really thought selling our home was not going to be an issue, but it feels like the market is changing right below our feet, so I am concerned we may not be able to sell it and I may need to execute the contingency.
4. None of the above was discussed during the purchase and if it were, it would have fundamentally changed the way we would have upgraded the house and even questioned signing the contract.
5. I have not paid the $62,000 yet.
I am trying to get ahead of this issue and get some advice on what I should be thinking about for the next steps if the builder tells me I am simply out of luck.
Thank you.
