24 Aug 2013 9:52 AM:
We bought our dream home in 2004 in the Murcia Region go Spain. The house was finished in 2007 one of the last ones on the urbanisation.
We were delighted with the two bath, three bed house with a pool in a 750 metre square plot. Then the problems started, cracks began to appear in the surrounding walls round the house, then into the house itself. Damp started to come up in all the rooms, plaster fell off all interior walls. The pool started to leak and tiles began falling off the pool, it cost over 3000€ to have the pool re done. We had an architect to look at the house and he did a report to say it would cost 48.000€ to put the house right. After we had the report all the floor tiles have started to crack and raise due to damp coming under the floor another 20.000€ to have damp proof and new floor tiles! The builder went into liquidation, did not pay the architect so we have no builders insurance. Now we have a leak in one of the bedrooms ceilings, tried to claim on our house insurance which we purchased through La Caixa Bank but they won't pay up as they said the roof had not been maintained! Had a quote for 1000€. On top of all that we had illegal mortgages on the house from the builder which have just been lifted, we estimate our solicitors bill for that between 7 and 8000€. Back in 2004 these houses cost 236.000€, now they are selling for 135.000€ so basically ours is worth about 50.000€ as it stands. As we are pensioners we do not have the cash for all the work that needs doing. To top it all, the three builders live on here, the famous 3 who took deposits from all those poor people and never built the houses. It is estimated the have got away with approx 90 million euros!!! Cowboy builders is to good of a name for these people, if they had done that in England they would have been locked up ages ago, It makes you wonder why they are still out and about, the whole thing stinks! While I am now having a rant we have Spanish squatters moved into a house stealing water and Electricity. We have called the Police twice in the last few weeks and nothing has been done. The president has contacted the owner who has send an e mail to say she wants them out and has not given anyone permission to move in to show the Police. The strange thing is they have keys to this house??? The builder did not give many people their spare keys as the has been mislaid. I will let you all draw your own conclusion to this. Rant over ....for now
Forum thread:
Have you been affected by a Cowboy Builder?
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