Day 4 of Consumer Pet Peeves - Texas Home Builders and Real Estate Agents

Posted on June 14, 2007
Filed Under Things That P*** Me Off, Uncategorized |

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This is Day 4 of my consumer pet peeves. If you missed them, here are Day 1 , Day 2 and Day 3.

I’m not really sure how to classify Texas Home Builders and Texas Real Estate agents, slightly above tow truck drivers, below used car salesmen or above them all at the top of the list.

In my line of work, I have to deal with both of these groups of people. While there are good people in both groups, like tow truck drivers, I think the good ones are the exception to the rule.

Time and time again I see people from both groups prey on consumers. If its not a Texas Real Estate agent trying to push their client to the closing table with lies and deceit, it’s a crappy Texas Builder taking short cuts to get the consumer in the home and closed quicker.

As consumers, do we get protection from these predators? No. Both have a powerful Lobby in Austin and any law designed to reign them in is normally easily defeated due to all the politicians taking their money.

Texas Real Estate agents have the Texas Real Estate Commission. You have to screw up pretty bad in order to have your hand slapped by TREC. Most of the times it’s a relatively low fine for most infractions or a warning.

On the Texas Builder side of things, they were able to get the Texas Residential Construction Commission organized under the sheeps clothing of consumer protection. All one has to do is look at the past and present commission members to see what I’m talking about. The commission is made up of a Who’s Who in the Texas Residential Construction Industry. Builders, Attorney’s for Builders, Vendors to Builders, etc. You get the picture.

No truer words were spoken than when Carol Keetan Strayhorn called the TRCC “A Builder protection commission created for Builders by Builders.”

One only has to look at their rate of finding in favor of the Homeowner in construction related complaints against Builders to see that this statement has come to pass. The complaint process, designed by the TRCC, is a very complex and drawn out process. Some have said it was designed like this to discourage many homeowners from filing complaints. Imagine that!

Have you every tried to sue a Builder in Texas?

Good luck. It likely won’t happen. The way the laws are written, (again, thank your politician who’s taking Building Lobby money), it’s virtually impossible due to all the hurdles one must get over before being “allowed” by state law to sue a Texas Builder.

The Texas Building Industry also managed to prevent Texas Builders from being sued under the Texas Deceptive Trades Practice. They have also been successful in blocking every attempt into forcing Builders to be licensed and pass a competency test. You have to have a license to cut hair and go fishing, but not to build a $500,000 home. Go figure.

The more I think about it, the more I believe they deserve the #1 spot on the Dregs of Texas Consumers list.

Tune in tomorrow, Day 5 of the 5 Days of Consumer Pet Peeves when I’ll discuss TXDOT and DPS Troopers.

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