WIMAUMA, Fla. — A Hillsborough County single mother says the new construction home she paid $541,000 for has never been properly fixed — and a new estimate puts the cost of repairs at more than $215,000.
Jessica Perez bought the Wimauma home in May 2023. Three months later, concerns about the home's condition were already apparent.
"This house should have never closed in this condition," Perez said.
A pod appeared in the driveway that December so the family could store belongings while subcontractors worked through months of repairs. But the problems kept coming.
"There were seven cracks that appeared in the kitchen after they fixed the ceiling the second time," Perez said.
When asked why I was back at the home for a third time, Perez was direct.
"Because I'm still dealing with an unfinished home," she said.
A bathroom without a toilet — and a floor that won't stop moving
Perez says about 95% of her upstairs floors had to be redone. The master bathroom tile was removed in March 2024, along with an essential fixture.
When asked if there was no toilet in the bathroom, Perez confirmed there wasn't.
"It's in the bathtub behind you," she said.
When asked if this was what she expected when she bought a brand-new construction home, Perez was clear.
"No, not at all," she said.
When DR Horton sent a flooring crew back out, the work didn't go far.
"Their subcontractors stopped the work and told me, ' Don't let us go any further. There's underlying issues that need to be fixed before we can do our job properly," Perez said.
Standing directly below the master bathroom, the sound of Perez walking across the floor above was clearly audible.
Structural deficiencies, not cosmetic problems
A repair estimate from a certified general contractor describes the issues as "systemic structural deficiencies," including sagging floor systems, stress cracks and evidence of truss failure. The report says those problems require structural remediation, not cosmetic repairs.
Soon after Perez bought the home, a structural engineer wrote in a report that it was his opinion that Hurricane Ian delayed the home's rough-in, which "contributed to the components being exposed to weather for a prolonged period."
The engineer added that "it was certainly apparent that the walls, roof trusses and floor trusses had exposure resulting in some members becoming warped/bowed."
A trip to corporate headquarters and a $12,000 offer
Perez says she traveled to DR Horton's corporate headquarters in Dallas in an effort to get her problems resolved.
"I left on my birthday to go to Dallas, and I sat there because I wasn't getting any responses," Perez said.
Even after speaking with a corporate vice president, a dispute remains over what it will take to fix the home. Perez's contractor's estimate totals $215,000. A letter from DR Horton's attorney offered far less.
"DR Horton offers a single payment of $12,000 in exchange for a full release of any and all claims," the letter read.
When asked if that was fair, Perez didn't hesitate.
"No. That's a joke," she said.
Why these disputes can drag on for years
Attorney Josh Burnett, who is not involved in Perez's case, says about 75% of his cases involve new home construction defects.
"It happens all the time. That's why people come to me," Burnett said.
Burnett says builders often use the subcontracting structure to their advantage.
"The builder can say, oh, well, you know what? Yeah, we were responsible for building your home, but the subcontractor is the one who's ultimately responsible, so the builder kind of sits back and waits for the subcontractor to take care of it," Burnett said.
He says the cycle can repeat itself indefinitely.
"What the builder's also doing is saying, you know what, what we'll do is we'll send the same people who screwed it up the first time back out. With the hope that maybe they're not going to screw it up the second time," Burnett said.
DR Horton's response
DR Horton was emailed twice for this story but did not respond by deadline. When first contacted about Perez's home in 2023, a spokesperson wrote:
"Despite our regular monitoring of the construction process, our subcontractors occasionally fall short of our high-quality standards for the construction of a home, which is unfortunately the case for Ms. Perez's home."
A family waiting for answers
Perez lives in the home with her three children and her disabled veteran father. She says she hopes to spend more time focused on her family.
"At like what point do you say, OK, these subcontractors that we keep sending out are not doing the job right?" Perez said.
Share Your Story with Adam
Adam Walser has spent more than a decade fighting for what’s right in Tampa Bay as part of the I-Team. He’s helped expose flaws in Florida’s eldercare system and held leaders accountable for questionable HOA practices. Reach out to Adam with any issue you think he needs to investigate.
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