TROTWOOD — Some homeowners say their contractor abandoned the job and left them out tens of thousands of dollars.
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Despite a lawsuit filed, they say they may never get their money back.
News Center 7 told you about this Trotwood family and their unfinished home.
They hired Pristine Custom Homes for the job but say they never finished.
We uncovered three lawsuits filed against Pristine Custom Homes with similar allegations.
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In southern Montgomery County, I-Team consumer investigator Xavier Hershovitz talked with a family behind one of those lawsuits.
“This is considered to be our dream home,” Matt Moyer said.
Moyer and Elaine Fultz broke ground on building their dream home in 2023.
They hired Pristine Custom Homes to get the job done.
“There were no red flags at the very beginning, but looking back, there started to be red flags very quickly,” Fultz said.
As time went on, they saw very little progress.
“That 12-month deadline kind of came, we began to be very concerned about it,” Moyer said.
Finally, their concerns came to a head.
“He was very slow in paying some subcontractors, and of course, obviously, that puts both them and us in a difficult position,” Moyer said.
They decided to cut ties with Pristine Custom Homes in November.
In May, they filed this lawsuit against Pristine Custom Homes and its owner Joshua Turpin.
In it, they allege that nearly all of their loan was paid out despite the home’s lack of progress.
And that there were numerous defects in the home requiring additional repairs.
“He says specifically, ‘here’s the amount of money I want to take for the countertops,’ but at that point he was not willing to provide anything. He did not purchase the countertops,” Moyer said.
They say the windows were installed improperly; their bathroom had to be torn up and reconfigured to fit their bathtub, and these barriers had to be added since their decks were never finished.
“This isn’t right, and this isn’t right,” Fultz said.
Then in May, Turpin filed for bankruptcy, putting this and the two other lawsuits he’s involved in on hold.
“It was shocking that somebody could get away with this,” Fultz said.
Last week, News Center 7 tried calling Pristine Custom Homes twice, leaving a voicemail both times.
When we tried calling Thursday, the number was disconnected.
“It has certainly damaged us significantly,” Moyer said.
They’ve hired a new builder and were able to move in earlier this year.
But in all, they estimate they’ll be out around $300,000.
They’re one of four people who have filed consumer complaints with the Ohio Attorney General’s Office.
“If nothing else, we certainly hope it doesn’t happen to anybody else again,” Moyer said.
The AG’s Office tells me they can neither confirm nor deny any investigation.
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