Left in the Lurch

Cynthia Barnett | 8/1/2007

The system incenses Calvin Brown, a lifelong Jacksonville resident. In September 2005, Brown and his wife contracted with home builder David Wesley Vickers to build a $24,000 addition on their home in east Arlington. Vickers took two payments of $7,200 but had barely begun work on the addition before filing for bankruptcy in October. Along with Brown, Vickers abandoned 50 other homeowners from whomhe had accepted thousands of dollars. “This has been a nightmare for 51 homeowners, and no one has cared,” says Brown. “The state of Florida has no teeth in its laws when it comes to contractors.”

COSTLY ADDITION: “This has been a nightmare for 51 homeowners, and no one has cared,” says Calvin Brown, with wife Beverly and (from front left) granddaughter Miara 7; son JaBari, 5; granddaughter Ta’Niyah, 9; and granddaughter Kethura, 16 (back). The Browns hired builder David Wesley Vickers to add a room onto their Jacksonville home. Vickers took $14,400 from the Browns, barely began work, then filed for bankruptcy. [Photo: Kelly LaDuke]

One problem: The state’s Construction Industries Licensing Board routinely licenses contractors with a history of bankruptcies — despite continuing problems with contractors who go in and out of business [“Home Sick,” July 2003, FloridaTrend.com]. Vickers, for example, had filed bankruptcy three times before — in 1987, 1999 and 2004, although he did not proceed with the 2004 case. This time around, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court approved a deal that leaves only $45,000 for the homeowners whom Vickers abandoned — about $900 per family if evenly divided.

Vickers’ lawyer, Edward P. Jackson, points out that bankruptcy laws prohibit discriminating against someone who’s filed in the past. Vickers got into trouble when he underbid jobs and the cost of materials and supplies skyrocketed, Jackson says, a common problem among small contractors. The DBPR has permanently revoked Vickers’ license.

For years, Florida’s home building industry has fought off most attempts to make contractors more accountable, including killing proposals that would have required licensing bonds or mandated that contractors have more money upfront. This year’s Legislature, however, tightened several requirements, allowing the Construction Industry Licensing Board to establish a minimum credit score for contractors, to require bonds for those who don’t meet the minimum and to require criminal background checks. The Legislature also ordered a review of Florida’s construction lien law due in October.

G.W. Harrell, executive director of the licensing board, says the changes will give his organization more power to scrutinize contractors before they’re licensed. Last year alone, he says, the board ordered $8 million in restitution from contractors, revoked 170 licenses and handed out $3 million from the state’s recovery fund. Increasing financial accountability might weed out some problems on the front end.

Homeowners harmed by contractors aren’t satisfied. Many want the construction lien law abolished and would like to send home builders to jail if they take consumers’ money without using it to build their homes. “There are just too many loopholes,” says Ferol Falzone-Long of Brooksville, who is trying to help hundreds of neighbors, many of them retirees, navigate the state’s construction lien and defect laws.

“This is heartbreaking for people who don’t have the money to pay off the liens or hire the lawyers,” says Falzone-Long. “They shouldn’t have to.”

Tags: North Central, Housing/Construction