Anyone read/hear of the story regarding new homes in Shrewsbury?  Evidently the codes enforcement didn’t do such a bang up job. The enforcement name in the article is Mike Lee, who I know was the codes enforcement for Stewartstown.  If I’m not mistaken, I believe someone told me he’s no longer handling codes enforcement in Stewartstown.  However, I do know of a problem that many of the Myers Homes in Stewartstown experienced a few years ago.  There were rampant mold problems due to drainage pipes not being connected in crawl spaces.  Something else that codes enforcement should’ve caught, IMO.

http://www.wgal.com/money/9146677/detail.html

I heard the same thing.  I feel sorry for all those people.  What really gets me, is no one is willing to take responibility.  When it boils down to it, the builder should have known better, the codes officer should have caught it, and the Township should look to make changes.  If the codes officer has the final say/approval why wouldn’t it be his job to pick up on these things?  It’s just another way to say “It’s not my job”. If it’s not his job, then to whom does it fall?  Hope the homeowners get some relief.
The Codes Officer for Stewartstown is Johnathon Snyder, (Technical Engineering??).  Worked with him last summer on a project and found him to be very helpful.  Came to the job site 3 times to answer questions about our building project.

The Township refused to help the people, stating that it was between the builder and them.  Talk about not taking responsibility for their actions!  The Township had to issue the final approval.

Actually the township only approves the plan or concept. It is up to the codes enforcement officer to approve the work and issue the occupancy permit. I would think that this would fall on the inspector from the codes enforcement office.

But then, who knows. Everyone is crafty at absolving themselves of blame when something goes wrong.

I agree the codes enforcement officer should have caught this, but I believe the builder is ultimately responsible.  If these are new homes, aren’t they covered by a warranty?

Maybe.  I know how wonderful a new home warranty works. It doesn’t.  Just as the codes enforcement officer can pass the buck, so can the builder.  They build loopholes into their warranties, and then dispute the hell out of any claim.  We had a flood in our house last year.  It was 4 years old at the time.  The pipes in the kitchen ceiling froze, busted, flooded and caused the entire ceiling in the kitchen to collapse.  After an inspection it turns out that the pipes (on an exposed wall/ceiling) were never insulated.  Just so happened that it was cold enough for a long enough period of time that they managed to freeze.  Four months and over $10K later we were back to normal.  But over a year later and the builder is still refusing to reimburse our insurance company anything.  Their statement:  They figure we had to be at fault somehow.  Hoe do you like that one!  And it goes against us as a claim.  Any other company now wants to charge us a ridiculous amount for homeowners insurance.  Anyway, codes enforcement should have inspected that the pipes weren’t insulated.  Doesn’t the codes enforcement office report to the township/borough?

I think what you’ll find is that code enforcement folks will tell you they are free of responsibility—same as the police department.  It can cause problems, but most of the time, the government has decided that it bears no responsibility or obligation to provide specific services.  (For example, you can’t take the cops to court for not having prevented a crime.)

Funny how that works…

You never know what the courts will say, but my opinion is that responsibility should rest with the builders—they’re the ones that actually had their hands on the problem.

After further reflection, yes, the builder should be responsible. They are required to build to a certain set of codes and standards. The Codes Enforcement Officer is there to ensure they comply. The CEO does not catch everything.

In this case, it sounds like the builder took some short cuts, violated some building codes. The inspector missed it. I am sure the CEO has a clause in their contracts with the townships that absolve them of responsibility except for in extreme cases of negligence.

As for the township, they are not liable since all they did was approve the original plan. They hire the CEO, but they do not manage them day to day.

The builder was supposed to follow the rules. I hope they nail the builder. I went though this in Virginia with Ryan Homes for my townhouse. There was a partial overhang on the third floor that was settling off the rest of the house due to lack of support under it. It caused extensive dry wall damage. The refuse to do anything since they built to code. They would not honor their warranty either since they deemed it normal settling. It was poor construction but since it was up to code, there was no way to fight it.

IMHO, if we (the people in the respective boroughs/townships) are paying the salaries of these CEO’s, and it is their responsibility to keep the builders in check.  Otherwise, the builders can and will do whatever they want.  Believe me, I agree with you that it is the builders fault for providing crappy work, but I think there should be some responsibility on the CEO as well.  If there isn’t, why bother paying his salary?

This I am not positive of, but I believe that they are actually paid a percentage of the permit fees, not a salary from the jurisdiction.

That is correct. They make money on the fees, not a salary. They are not employees of the municipality. They are selected to represent the municipalities interests, much like the solicitor. They are somewhat independent. The municipality puts them on a “retainer” of sorts for a year or so at a time.

So basically, the more permits they push through and approve, the more money they make.  Sounds like a bonafide scheme to me.  What incentive does a CEO have for forcing a builder to correct the problem?  None.  But they’ve got incentive for passing the permits and getting on to the next one.  Money.  Instead of just the municipality, shouldn’t the CEO also have the homeowner’s interests in mind?

Bobby102 - 03 May 2006 01:14 PM

Maybe.  I know how wonderful a new home warranty works. It doesn’t.  Just as the codes enforcement officer can pass the buck, so can the builder.  They build loopholes into their warranties, and then dispute the hell out of any claim.  We had a flood in our house last year.  It was 4 years old at the time.  The pipes in the kitchen ceiling froze, busted, flooded and caused the entire ceiling in the kitchen to collapse.  After an inspection it turns out that the pipes (on an exposed wall/ceiling) were never insulated.  Just so happened that it was cold enough for a long enough period of time that they managed to freeze.  Four months and over $10K later we were back to normal.  But over a year later and the builder is still refusing to reimburse our insurance company anything.  Their statement:  They figure we had to be at fault somehow.  Hoe do you like that one!  And it goes against us as a claim.  Any other company now wants to charge us a ridiculous amount for homeowners insurance.  Anyway, codes enforcement should have inspected that the pipes weren’t insulated.  Doesn’t the codes enforcement office report to the township/borough?

What a nightmare!  I don’t know if it would do any good or not, but you could file a complaint with the PA Attorney General’s Bureau of Consumer Protection http://www.attorneygeneral.gov/complaints.aspx?id=451 You can file online.  I had a small problem that I could not get resolved with the company, so I filed a complaint.  It took about 2 months before I heard from the Consumer Protection Bureau, but when I did, the matter was resolved 2 days later.

A CEO is required to carry an Errors and Omissions policy.

Mike Lee is CEO for East Hopewell Township. He was appointed because at the time he was the only one that completed the required courses.

Marge - 03 May 2006 11:47 PM

What a nightmare!  I don’t know if it would do any good or not, but you could file a complaint with the PA Attorney General’s Bureau of Consumer Protection http://www.attorneygeneral.gov/complaints.aspx?id=451 You can file online.  I had a small problem that I could not get resolved with the company, so I filed a complaint.  It took about 2 months before I heard from the Consumer Protection Bureau, but when I did, the matter was resolved 2 days later.

Luckily, the insurance company has hired an attorney and they are fighting the battle.  Still, what a pain in the tail!

Errors and Omissions policies are held by real estate agents and real estate inspectors also, much of it bogus.  Try collecting.