The contract's intent, builders say,
is to ensure in writing that the house is delivered by the seller -- and
that the buyer pays on time. But the effect, critics say, is to leave
the buyer with little or no recourse in the event of a problem with the
house.
Barry Ansbacher, a Jacksonville attorney who often represents
disgruntled home buyers, said the bottom line for new-construction
contracts is this: "There's more consumer protection in buying a car
than for someone spending 10 times as much to buy a house."
Custom builders, usually small locally owned operations, generally will
permit the buyer to modify the sales contract. But production builders
-- large national companies such as Morrison that construct 80 percent
of the new homes in greater Orlando -- generally won't.
