Glacier Custom Homes terminates buyer’s contract, leaves family with no home
OAK LEAF – It is a small community of friendly residents.
The small town of Oak Leaf does not find itself in the news often.
Recently however, one family who had been taking steps to become friendly residents in Oak Leaf too, found a not-so-friendly builder in the community.
Home buyers Donnell and Tracey Brundage had a disturbing story to tell about their experience with Kindred Home/Glacier Custom Homes in Oak Leaf – and the story does not end well.
The contact for the builder, Mike McKinney of Kindred Homes/Glacier Custom Homes with an address in Southlake did not return phone calls.
Oak Leaf Mayor Tom Leverentz said he could not speak further about the situation or speak to the Brundage’s because there was an attorney involved.
Leverentz did respond and said, “I spoke with our building inspector, and he said that he has not have any big issues with that builder. Most of what they [family] have listed do not fall under our inspection guidelines.”
The contract with the Brundage family to buy their new home was written on Dec. 13, 2020, with a closing sale price of $542,618 and an appraised value of $600,000.
The Horton Capital Properties, LLC b/d/a Glacier Custom Homes location where the Brundage’s home is located is at 2010 Meadow View Drive in Oak Leaf.
The Brundage family did get an attorney involved they said because the contract termination surprised them and left them homeless.
The contract termination, which was sent by McKinney by text – no phone call not even an email – read, “I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but Glacier Custom Homes/Kindred Homes has decided to terminate the sales contract with you dated 12/15/20 for the purchase of the property located at 2010 Meadow View Drive, Oak Leaf, Texas.
“Please provide your current mailing address where we can mail you a refund of your earnest money and upgrade deposits.
“I’ll send a Contract Cancellation form via DocuSign for your signature as soon as I have your current mailing address.”
According to Donnell, the builder gave no reason for the termination of the contract just days before the closing was to take place.
“We were scheduled to conduct a final walk-through originally on Monday, April 11, 2022, but they rescheduled because of what they claimed was a material delay and moved the walk-through to Monday, April 18, 2022 – they canceled that appointment,” Donnell explained.
“My family was scheduled to close originally on Friday, April 15, 2022, but rescheduled the close on the home on Friday, April 22, 2022 – they canceled that appointment as well.
“Only to cancel on April 16, 2022, with no reasoning six days before we were scheduled to close”
The Ellis County Press did learn the inspection on the new home was conducted by an outside company chosen by the Brundages and it left cause for alarm with the family as there were a number of problems the inspector found that needed to be corrected in the new home.
‘There was no clear reason at all as to what happened to our contract,” Donnell said.
“We sold our home as it was contingent that we sell our old home.
“We signed addendums knowing that there would be delays.”
The Brundage’s attorney Dennis Siaw-Lattey sent a certified letter to McKinney stating, “The Brundages met each and every obligation under the Sales Contract.
“Of that, there can be no honest argument.
“They timely paid earnest money to you and engaged meaningfully in the design and selection process.
“When necessary, they paid additional funds to you to subsidize change orders.
“As any responsible buyer of a home would do, they brought any issues they observed during the build process to your attention in a timely and courteous manner.
“Not once did they indicate they were not interested in purchasing the home.
“In fact, the Brundages communicated to you, and you were aware that in anticipation of closing on the house and moving in, they sold their home in reliance of your assurances that they would shortly be able to move into the home you contractually agreed to build for them.
“Rather than commitment and fairness, Donnell, Tracey and their two young children were met with the most callous and unconscionable act.”
Brundage listed his overall frustration in the entire situation, other than being left with no home after so many months of back and forth and said the staff does not communicate as made obvious when a home sale contract is terminated over text.
“They gave us several potential closing dates only to string us along to only terminate the contract six days before we were ‘rescheduled’ to close,” Donnell said frustrated.
“Basically, leaving us homeless. Completely poor workmanship throughout the house.
“We had a third-party inspector come in – I guess it hurt to see how poor of a job they had done so they ‘terminated for convenience,’ which is in the contract and gives them the ability to screw the customer at all costs with no reasoning.
“They sent the termination notice via a text message, and the sad part is the text was sent on Saturday, they put the ‘Available’ sign back in front of the yard that Friday – before sending the termination.”
The Brundages attorney said the family waited for the builder to satisfy its obligations under the Sales Contract by finishing the home.
“They relied upon representations by you and your representatives and chosen builders regarding anticipate closing dates, which never were met,” the attorney’s letter read to McKinney.
“You promised to complete the project in August 2021, but delayed the closing until September 2021, then again until December 2021, then again until January 2022, then again until March 2022, and again until April 2022.
“During this eight-month delay, the Brundages continued to work with you to meet the closing deadline though it was often delayed.
“In fact, you requested they sign an addendum to the Sales Contract agreeing to give you time to finish building the house in light of purported material shortages and other factors which you claim were beyond your control.
“They obliged. But you never intended to sell the Brundages the home. Just days before the closing date, you pulled the rug from under this family and canceled the Sales Contract via, among all things, a text message.”
The Brundage family was scheduled to conduct a final walk-through originally on Monday, April 11, 2022, but the builder rescheduled because of what was said to be a material delay.
The date was then moved for a walk-through on Monday, April 18, 2022 – that appointment was canceled.
The Brundage family was scheduled to close originally on Friday, April 15, 2022, but rescheduled the close on the home on Friday, April 22, 2022 – that appointment was also canceled.
“You did this knowing the Brundage family sold their home, have paid and continue to pay nearly $20,000 in rental fees while patiently waiting on you to finish construction of their home,” the attorney’s letter concluded.
“Moreover, you did this knowing that the housing market in this State has changed so drastically there is virtually no chance the Brundages’ would be able to purchase the same home for the same price. Your attempted cancellation has caused the Brundages’ and their children significant financial harm and emotional distress because they detrimentally relied upon you for two years to build this particular house and deliver this particular house while missing on opportunities to purchase other homes within the same price range which, after a meteoric rise in housing prices since December 2020, they will surely never be able to do.
“You did this knowing that you, as a seller, stood to make substantially more money by the contract you entered into with the Brundages’ in 2020 and selling the house for a premium at 2022 housing prices.
“You did this knowing it was unconscionable, cold, calculated, and focused, not on the Brundages and their children, but on the bottom line.”
The Brundage’s attorney requested Glacier and Kindred Homes allow the Brundage family the chance to meet their obligations under the contract with a walk-through of the home, and a closing as contemplated by the sales contract, as well as all repairs be completed per the independent home inspection report.
To date, nothing has been corrected – and the Brundage family still has no home.