Article Courtesy of  The Town-Crier On-Line

By Don Brown
Posted on Saturday, December 11, 2004

“Our Customer is a Matter of Pride” is the slogan of Transeastern Homes, but about two dozen buyers of the homes in the Victoria Grove subdivision say it’s about time they show some of that pride. Protesters were picketing their own subdivision Saturday along State Road 7 near the new Publix store, and they plan to be out every weekend until they get the attention of officers of the Coral Springs-based builder.

Organizer and Victoria Grove homeowner Brian Smith said residents inside the upscale gated community have several unanswered complaints about workmanship and homeowners’ association assessments, and they’ve taken to the street with placards in an attempt to get the attention of Transeastern, builder of the subdivision.

On Sunday, the Victoria Grove protesters moved their pickets a couple of miles south on State Road 7 to Versailles, another Transeastern Homes community. However, none of that community’s residents participated in the demonstration. “We’re going have a meeting Sunday [Dec. 12] at Victoria Grove to talk about the issues involving Transeastern,” Smith said, noting that Versailles homeowners have been invited to either of two meetings, at 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. The meetings will be held at 110 Churchill Circle. “This has been a long-brewing movement,” Smith said. “It has taken a lot to get to this point.”

Smith said complaints began coming to a head after September’s hurricanes and the discovery of the details of a long-term pest control contract. “We were over-assessed on hurricane damage. They charged 400 homes through our association $174,000 for hurricane damage, including $152,000 in landscaping alone. There was just not that much damage,” he said.

Homeowner Michelle Cajigas complained that after the hurricanes, “insurance adjusters were out telling us that a lot of the damage was the result of builder defects and not covered by our homeowner’s insurance. And they [Transeastern] are charging us for hurricane damage of trees that weren’t even planted.”

One of the homeowners’ complaints was apparently resolved, Smith said, when a 10-year pest control contract for $74,000 per year was finally cancelled when homeowners discovered that the builder had a financial interest in the pest control company.

However, Transeastern’s Southeast Division President Dan Andreacci disputes Smith’s account of the pest control company and similar allegations concerning a landscaping company. “One of the owners in Transeastern has an interest in the company,” he said. “When homeowners complained, the contract was cancelled over a year ago.”

Individual homeowners now take care of their own pest control service, Andreacci said. “We’re trying to work with these folks, and we have been for three years. Now they aren’t happy with the landscaping company, which has nothing to do with Transeastern. People will believe what they believe,” Andreacci said. “Transeastern is a reputable builder, and we build quality communities all over the state. We honor all our contracts and warranties relative to homeowners. We’ve made 600 sales at Victoria Grove, and there are only about 25 people who aren’t happy.”

Andreacci said Victoria Grove, located in Royal Palm Beach near the border with Wellington, has only 10 more homes left to build. He said the Victoria Grove homes cost between $300,000 to $500,000. The Versailles community, which is within Wellington, has a total of about 300 homes costing between $500,000 and $3 million.

The disgruntled homeowners have set up a web site at www.unhappytranseasternhomeowners.com.