ICYMI, Dave and I are in the midst of the home build project from you-know-where. This is our third time building a new home, and if this had been our first experience, it most definitely would have been our last. It’s been “overpromise and underdeliver” from day number one, mixed with an egregious lack of communication and blatant lies from everyone affiliated with the builder.

My only outlet has been to obsessively document everything (not that it will help anything) and vent my frustrations in written form (not that it will change anything). So I guess this is really just a way for me to get some psychological relief…and hey, if this blog saves somebody else from ending up in the same situation with the same builder, all the better.

PS: There’s a tl;dr at the bottom because as we all know, concision is not my top skill.

Our Build Timeline

2/2/2021 – Signed purchase agreement, quoted an early April break ground with Aug/Sept closing.

2/8/2021 – Went to selections and were assured we were on track and would be among the first built.

3/29/2021 – I emailed asking if there was any update to the home.

3/30/2021 – Sales rep emailed back that they were waiting for permits to come back from the county.

4/8/2021 – Permits were submitted to the county.

5/11/2021 – Permits came back from the county.

6/1/2021 – We were guaranteed break ground NLT this day.

6/3/2021 – We were guaranteed updates on our property NLT this day.

6/10/2021 – Still no updates so I reached out.

6/11/2021 – Project manager emails once to schedule a call, but never provides info.

6/14/2021 – The project manager still has not responded to any emails.

6/17/2021 – Our house breaks ground.

7/6/2021 – Our house has the foundation started.

7/30/2021 – Our house has basement floors poured.

8/25/2021 – Our house starts framing. Backyard neighbor with an identical floorplan breaks ground.

9/12/2021 – Our interior framing is almost done, the roof is on. Backyard neighbor has a foundation.

10/27/2021 – The basement was not plumbed properly so the foundation had to be drilled up.

10/31/2021 – Our exterior brick started. Backyard neighbor is fully framed, roofed, and has a driveway.

11/5/2021 – We have finished exterior brick, gas inspection, and plumbing inspection.

11/10/2021 – Our house has a driveway and exterior paint.

11/12/2021 – We get a call that the project manager is no longer with Fischer, there is a new PM.

11/18/2021 – The lender tells us Fischer has bumped closing to possibly March.

12/2/2021 – Our house fails the first framing inspection because Fischer submitted the wrong permits, on top of fire-blocking and framing issues.

12/7/2021 – Fischer sends corrected permits.

12/14/2021 – Fischer had sent incomplete corrections and needs to submit AGAIN.

12/20/2021 – The house behind us has passed framing and been drywalled. 

12/23/2021 – Spoke with the project manager and he said he’d request framing inspection for 12/27.

12/30/2021 – Project manager requests framing inspection for 1/3.

1/3/2022 – Inspection fails because none of the previously documented issues were fixed.

1/3/2022 – We have another new project manager, he is going to request the next inspection for 1/6

1/5/2022 – The inspection happens a day earlier than planned, it failed because yet again none of the documented issues were resolved. Reached out to the new PM but he did not respond.

1/7/2022 – A Fischer rep finally called back and said they were fixing the issues and would reschedule the inspection for Monday the tenth. Sent a follow-up email saying Tuesday the eleventh.

1/8/2022 – No inspection was ever scheduled for Monday or Tuesday.

1/10/2022 – A neighbor says there are construction workers doing things in the house.

1/11/2022 – The inspection is scheduled for Thursday the thirteenth.

tl;dr: We started our home build project in February of 2021, with the assurance that we would be moved in by early that fall. It is now January of 2022 and our home is still months from completion because Fischer Homes has dropped the ball every single step of the way. It’s not a pandemic issue. It’s not a supply chain issue. It’s not a labor issue. It’s an incompetent, unethical builder issue.