Pulte Homes is a contracting business that stretches from coast to coast and border to border in its endeavors, a wonderful American story:
The first home Bill Pulte built more than 55 years ago, a bungalow in southeastern Michigan, stands today as a testimony to his commitment to excellence and innovation.
Pulte Homes has since grown into one of the nation's largest and most diversified homebuilders. Over the years, we’ve built more than 500,000 homes, and our experience and size benefits you at every stage of the building process. It begins with our ability to locate prime parcels of land, first-rate materials, and brand name suppliers....
You might say that our quality has five dimensions: process, materials, craftsmanship, service, and people. You’ll experience all five facets of Pulte Homes quality as you work with us to build your home, and live in that home for years to come.
http://www.pulte.com/...
Nice story, Pulte, but Melissa Calderone would agree with my premise:
MELISSA CALDERONE was ready for a fresh start when she made plans last year to move to Florida from New Jersey. Recently remarried, she signed a contract in mid-March on a house to be built in Windermere, Fla., by Pulte Homes, the nation’s largest homebuilder. The neighborhood had good schools for her three children and two stepchildren. It was also close to where Ms. Calderone’s parents lived.
Her local bank approved her for a mortgage. But then a Pulte Homes saleswoman told her that she would get a $4,000 credit toward closing costs if she took out a loan with the homebuilder’s banking unit instead. Ms. Calderone, 38, agreed. She deposited $20,000 in earnest money and set aside $80,000 more for a down payment on the $347,000 house. Her closing date, documents show, was scheduled for late summer, about six months later.
Then her troubles began. Although she had been "preapproved" by Pulte, the company ultimately denied her the loan. Then, contending that Ms. Calderone had defaulted on the purchase agreement by failing to close on time, Pulte kept her $20,000 deposit. The house went back on the market.
"They have my money and the house, which they are selling to somebody else," Ms. Calderone said. "I have no house and no deposit."
http://www.nytimes.com/...
What a sweet and simple way to pocket $20K!
It appears that Pulte pulled off another sort of scam as well:
Between 11/2007 and 4/2008 Pulte homes sales staff Ripped off unsuspected home buyers in the Orlando area in a community located near the Orlando Convention center called Vista Cay. During the time. Pulte Homes sales staff during the time that the real estate market was declining in the middle of 2007, According to Court documents recorded in public records. Pulte homes sold dozen of homes in the Orlando area at higher sales prices, paying an 8% real Estate commission plus a $50,000.00 to $70,000.00 selling bonus to the selling realtor. Now what really took place in this situation? Pulte homes sales staff assisted the buyers in getting a large portion of this money back in their pockets at closing, some of cash I feel went back into the pockets of the sales staff from Pulte. When Pulte Home supplied my Real Estate Company with a sales contract with a much lower commission to keep from raising suspensions. But after obtaining the finial HUD-1 statements provided to the Lenders such as SunTrust and Chase I found that there was sales commissions appeared to go to my company that I never received. The average commission was about $90,000.00 on a 335k purchase. Sounds a little fishy.............right? I have been a Real Estate Agent for 13 years and Mortgage Broker for at least that long as well.
http://pulte-homes.pissedconsumer.co...
The unfortunate buyer was hit by IRS for taxes for the $1mm that he never received. Nice tax write-off for Pulte though.
Holy Moles! Here's another Pulte scam:
Oct. 29--A Lathrop homeowner has filed a class-action lawsuit against the nation's largest home builder, claiming the company used a "one-stop shopping" business model allowing it to control sales, financing, ancillary services and appraisals.
The lawsuit alleges that Michigan-based Pulte Homes fraudulently propped up home prices and sales in a "house of cards" scheme that eventually caused values in its developments to plunge.
.... It claims Pulte artificially propped up sales and home sale prices through its control of the process.
http://www.allbusiness.com/...
Pulte engaged in the fraud of enticing unqualified buyers into buying homes they could not afford, causing some of Pulte's developments to become "toxic subdivisions with foreclosure signs all over the place, homes not taken care of, and no chance that the prices will go back up."
Of course,
Pulte Mortgage, Pulte's financing subsidiary, quickly sold its loans on Wall Street and therefore was not affected when buyers defaulted.
Hmmm, where have I heard that story before?
And, actually, this story could go on and on and on, but there's not enough space and time.
Just Google the words "Pulte fraud" and check out your yield.