Many cottagers from the city have moved here to settle permanently. Some have built their dream home where once was a 1950’s style summer cottage. This is the true story of the construction of a dream home gone bad. The owners hired a close friend who was a builder. Relying on the good relationship they had, they did not bother to enter into a building contract with their friend. Nor did they put together detailed architectural plans to guide the friend in the construction of their home. They simply agreed with their friend to build a 2000 square foot home based on a sketch for a price of about $200,000.
Excavation began in order to prepare the site and concrete footings were poured in the summer of 2002. Basement work was then completed and the framing of the home started. Before long, disagreements arose between the parties about alleged defects in the footings and foundation and in the design and construction of the framing. Construction work stopped by December 2002. In 2003, the friend sued the owners for $100,000 for work and materials supplied. The owners counterclaimed for $250,000 to correct deficiencies and complete the construction.
There was a seven day trial. The chief building official of the township where the home was built (not in Haliburton) testified that the house met all building code requirements while it was under construction. In a lengthy judgment, the trial judge awarded the contractor friend $80,000 for the work and materials supplied despite the owner’s counterclaim for defective workmanship. The owners testified that the official was wrong but it appears from the evidence at trial that their lawyer did not provide the court with expert testimony about the defective workmanship. After the trial, the owners hired experts who provided engineering reports that indicated significant deficiencies with the structure. Based on the reports, a new building official for the township issued a Stop Work Order, an Unsafe Order, and an Order not to Occupy until the defects were remedied. Today, six years later, the owners have a judgment against them for $80,000 on top of their own legal expenses and need another $300,000 to finish the house. I am told that, next month, the local sheriff of the township is slated to auction off their dream home. They never even got to live in it.