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My wife & I bought our McCar home in a Harrisburg, NC community called Magnolia Springs. We've been in our house a few months now. We signed our contract on an empty lot. I was at the homesite almost every single day taking pictures. I have nearly 600 digital photos of every phase of construction. I used these photos to put together a running list of issues that I had. Each issue had an attached photo so that there could be no ambiguity. Many of the items on the list were simply cosmetic problems, and have been quickly fixed. The remaining items have survived. They were on the final punch list at home owner orientation. They have been added to the 45 day walkthrough (which didn't take place until about 60 days). And they continue up to now.
I would say that I am very satisfied with the effort that McCar has put forth to try and make things right for us. Where I'm dissatisfied is with their ability to actually do it. The biggest problem for us (and some of our neighbors, too) is the floors. We have the armstrong laminate floors, and more than any decision we've made in this house, I wish that we had just passed on that option and got the standard vinyl and carpet. I'm certain that we could have gotten much better quality floors for the amount that we paid in the upgrade. (As an aside, I think the selection of floors that McCar has is horrible!) The problem that we have is that the floors buckle all over the place! I don't know if it's because the subfloor isn't flat, or if it's because they didn't install them with the proper spacing or that the product just sucks. I don't know. But McCar doesn't seem able to get subcontractors who know how to fix them.
McCar has been out to our house 3 times to try and rectify the problems with the floors. They are coming out again next week to rip out the entire floor and replace it. And every time they come out, not only do they not fix the problem that they were supposed to fix, they create some other problem that has to be added to the list. For example, now we have shoe-molding all over the place that wasn't put back down correctly. My 16 month old son can pull it out of the joint and turn the little pieces into seriously dangerous weapons, with exposed nails! If, after next week, McCar can't fix this problem I'm going to ask for our money back and let them put in the standard flooring. My brother-in-law just had Lowe's come out and put in solid hardwood floors into his house (not that engineered hardwood crap that McCar has) and he paid only slightly more for it than we did. I'd *GLADLY* pay what he paid to get that level of quality. My neighbors are experiencing the exact same problem.
All of that being said, my overall reaction to McCar is this: for me, they have gone to great lengths to try and make me happy. And, for the most part, they have done a good job. But there are a few areas that they just consistently seem unable to resolve. I hope, that when I am forced to escalate this, they will come through.
WE WERE THINKING OF BUYING A MCCHAR HOME IN MOSS CREEK BUT AFTER READING ALL OF THESE POSTS I THINK WE WILL LOOK AT OTHER BUILDERS THANKS EVERYBODY
Well put! You're right. I've said the same thing too....it's today's building industry. But, a McCar employee sat at my kitchen table and looked right at me and said while they, "hire subs to build their homes, at the end of the day, whose name is at the front of the subdivision"??? The subs represent the builder. Bad subs?? Bad building. Not all homes are bad. Not all neighborhoods have major issues. Mine does. This same employee (name withheld) said my neighborhood is a "hotbed of problems". So, whomever is reading can take that for whatever it's worth when looking for a builder. And, yes....the "squeaky wheel" thing most definitely works. I advocate it!!! People who don't 'squeak' enough will not be heard. I'm very 'squeaky'! As I've said before, if you look hard enough, you'll find uphappy homeowners with every builder. But, no, not every home built by my builder is flawed. It would be ridiculous to assume so. The common denominator in my neighborhood "appears" to be spec homes purchased verses prebuild. More and more neighbors that bought a spec are the ones with the major problems. Coincidence? Maybe. Doubtful. But, maybe.
My wife & I bought our McCar home in a Harrisburg, NC community called Magnolia Springs. We've been in our house a few months now. We signed our contract on an empty lot. I was at the homesite almost every single day taking pictures. I have nearly 600 digital photos of every phase of construction. I used these photos to put together a running list of issues that I had. Each issue had an attached photo so that there could be no ambiguity. Many of the items on the list were simply cosmetic problems, and have been quickly fixed. The remaining items have survived. They were on the final punch list at home owner orientation. They have been added to the 45 day walkthrough (which didn't take place until about 60 days). And they continue up to now.
I would say that I am very satisfied with the effort that McCar has put forth to try and make things right for us. Where I'm dissatisfied is with their ability to actually do it. The biggest problem for us (and some of our neighbors, too) is the floors. We have the armstrong laminate floors, and more than any decision we've made in this house, I wish that we had just passed on that option and got the standard vinyl and carpet. I'm certain that we could have gotten much better quality floors for the amount that we paid in the upgrade. (As an aside, I think the selection of floors that McCar has is horrible!) The problem that we have is that the floors buckle all over the place! I don't know if it's because the subfloor isn't flat, or if it's because they didn't install them with the proper spacing or that the product just sucks. I don't know. But McCar doesn't seem able to get subcontractors who know how to fix them.
McCar has been out to our house 3 times to try and rectify the problems with the floors. They are coming out again next week to rip out the entire floor and replace it. And every time they come out, not only do they not fix the problem that they were supposed to fix, they create some other problem that has to be added to the list. For example, now we have shoe-molding all over the place that wasn't put back down correctly. My 16 month old son can pull it out of the joint and turn the little pieces into seriously dangerous weapons, with exposed nails! If, after next week, McCar can't fix this problem I'm going to ask for our money back and let them put in the standard flooring. My brother-in-law just had Lowe's come out and put in solid hardwood floors into his house (not that engineered hardwood crap that McCar has) and he paid only slightly more for it than we did. I'd *GLADLY* pay what he paid to get that level of quality. My neighbors are experiencing the exact same problem.
All of that being said, my overall reaction to McCar is this: for me, they have gone to great lengths to try and make me happy. And, for the most part, they have done a good job. But there are a few areas that they just consistently seem unable to resolve. I hope, that when I am forced to escalate this, they will come through.
After reading this, I have to agree, too, that McCar did attempt to appease us as well, to a certain degree, with all our problems. And, as you stated regarding fixing one problem and creating another, that too, happened repeatedly with us. We were forever 'adding' to our list. My one year took 2 months until completion. And then, it was only because I couldn't take anymore workers in my home or my never-ending list growing. I, too, ran into repeated floor issues, and from several conversations, it appears the sentiment with the floors is common. Had mine done 3 times and they're not perfect by anymeans. But, we'll upgrade later on with quality materials. (I was told by an old neighbor, that's also a current McCar employee, that the floors on these homes are only good for ONE buffing, and, that they aren't meant to last much beyond 5 years, anyways.) Regarding your floor situation....just keep on them. Rob McCrae has posted his e-mail address on this site so if you don't get results, just contact him. He's the man. He'll get things done. It's unfortunate, though, that it has to go so far up the ladder until homeowners receive resolutions.
Hello all, just an update to my previous post from last night. I met with several McCar reps this morning in regards to my issues with my lot and I have to give credit where credit is due. They were very sincere in understanding why I was upset. Unfortunately the drainage issue is a problem that is bad for both me and the builder because it's the county that is requiring this work to be done. McCar doesn't want to do it and I didn't want it done, but neither one of us is able to put a stop to it. That being said, Adam the regional manager bascially said whatever he can do to make our yard safe and aesthetically pleasing again he will see to it that it gets done. In a situation like mine it's all about compromise and making the best ouf of a rather unusual situation. I think they went above and beyond my expectations and I left the meeting with a pretty good feeling about what was going to be done. I'll post again once all the work has been completed with an update as to how everything went.
I stand corrected. I dealt with your regional manager of construction, my apologies. That being said I still have issues with my home and lot. The main reason I purchased this home was for the large wooded lot that I thought would be perfect for my family and I. Now a good portion of it is unusable due to poor grading, the leaky septic I had last week, the standing water, and the removal of a large portion of my mature trees for the eyesore of a drainage canal that was installed and is now being torn up and rebuilt. Had I known my yard would look like it does now six months ago; I absolutely would have bought another home. I won't hesitate to contact you privately Mr. Mcrae if I don't have any luck getting these issues resolved soon. I still stand by my statements that potential homeowners look elsewhere for their new homes. I know I'm not the only unhappy homeowner in my community.
I am so sorry for your misfortune too! I have a very similar issue with McCar and my property. We also have a semi-wooded lot that needed to be graded. From day one we were given the runaround. The property is unlevel, filled with ruts and dead tree trunks. The house, well you can read about it on this forum. What I find amazing is this past week someone came out with a truck pulling some sort of contraption that has left my property worse than ever. My husband went down to inspect and found tire treads embedded in the clay. We are upset that McCar has the nerve to set on our property without our knowledge and then think they did us a favor. As far as McCrae is concerned, yes he did respond to my plight and point in the direction of people to help us, but only for what they thought they should. Like I said in my last post, I just want to wake up from this nightmare and be somewhere else. I guess the only McCar will get it, is if someone is literally hurt by their deception of building a house with "Passion".
Mike - That is very interesting. You are having the exact same problem with your floors that I am having. McCar has come out and looked at them and agreed with the problem but said that they cannot do anything further until an Armstrong rep comes out and looks at them. Then at that time they will go to higher up people to get authorization to have them replaced. This sounds like a runaround to me but they said that is the new procedure as of January 1.
WE WERE THINKING OF BUYING A MCCHAR HOME IN MOSS CREEK BUT AFTER READING ALL OF THESE POSTS I THINK WE WILL LOOK AT OTHER BUILDERS THANKS EVERYBODY
Wow! That was not at all my intention by posting what I posted. I meant to post an even handed comment, and by that I mean include the fact that I'm mostly satisfied. If I were able to go back in time, I'd probably still choose McCar. I'd just make some different decisions w.r.t. options - I'd avoid flooring upgrades like the plague.
Let me report one of the positive things that McCar did, that I still find surprising. When we went to the design center to pick options, we were told about how great a convection oven was. So, convinced, we ordered one. Unfortunately, the actual oven that we paid for was not a convection oven. It was a normal double oven. When it was installed and I complained, they explained that a convection oven was the default double oven option in Atlanta but not in Charlotte. Without prompting, they admitted the mistake and offered to give us the convection oven upgrade anyway, and we didn't have to pay the difference! We paid for a normal double oven, but they gave us the convection oven. That was a $1600 upgrade that we got for free! There are many other examples of McCar doing right by us. That's just the most prominent example that I can think of.
So, while I'm frustrated with some issues, my overall experience with McCar is pretty good. Especially in comparison to the experience of some of my friends. One of them, who built with someone I won't name, tracked his home building daily like I did and actually caught subcontractors urinating and defecating into his ventilation! He had to sue the builder to get them to rip out the ventilation system and replace it. This was *after* the drywall was up. That put a *HUGE* delay in the completion of his house. After they moved in, he discovered that a significant mistake was made in the foundation and one part of the house is several inches lower than it should be. Which means that all of his floors (basement, main, upstairs & 3rd story) are all significantly out of level! He's going to have to sue them again to get this fixed.
His experience is a complete nightmare compared to my experience with McCar, who have been nothing less that completely professional about the issues that I have. Do I have issues? Yes, of course. But I am confident that McCar is doing what they can to rectify those issues. I don't know how they'll react if it comes to my asking for a refund on the failed install of the floors, but I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.
This experience has taught me that if you want issue free construction, you better be your own general contractor. Then you won't have any issues with the GC. You might have issues with the subs, though.
Mike - That is very interesting. You are having the exact same problem with your floors that I am having. McCar has come out and looked at them and agreed with the problem but said that they cannot do anything further until an Armstrong rep comes out and looks at them. Then at that time they will go to higher up people to get authorization to have them replaced. This sounds like a runaround to me but they said that is the new procedure as of January 1.
How many people are having issues with armstrong laminate floors? I know of three families in my neighborhood (including me). I know of one other person on this forum, and I think I read someone else said that they were having flooring issues, too.
I wonder if a Charlotte "meet-up" would be a good idea so that we can all show up at McCar and pressure them for resolution.
Have they told you this one yet? "The slab subfloor is naturally flat. Concrete is self leveling when it cures. So the subfloor is definatley flat." Oh really? Well then how do you explain the puddles resting on the slab next door? They seem to end up in the same place after every rain. Coincidence?
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As I've said before, if you look hard enough, you'll find uphappy homeowners with every builder. But, no, not every home built by my builder is flawed. It would be ridiculous to assume so. The common denominator in my neighborhood "appears" to be spec homes purchased verses prebuild. More and more neighbors that bought a spec are the ones with the major problems. Coincidence? Maybe. Doubtful. But, maybe.
Forest Creek - McCar Homes
Armstrong Floor Problems?
