Pulte Homes Blog.com

Approximately 6 weeks ago, I called the Pulte Homes Customer Service Representative because my heater was acting up. It would cycle on and off for about 5 minutes and then shut down, leaving my family cold. The Pulte Homes Customer Service Representative had a guy come out from Pacific Heating and Sheetmetal in Pittsburg, CA. who proceeded to blow out the lines and said it was hopefully fixed. A few days later, the same issue reoccurred, so I called the Pulte Homes Customer Service Representative who in turn called out Pacific Heating and Sheetmetal again who sent an employee who this time stated it was probably the solenoid. The repairman from Pacific Heating and Sheetmetal said he would have to order the solenoid and it would be about a week. We received a call a couple of days later saying the part was in and they could come out and replace it. We scheduled an appointment and Pacifc Heating and Sheetmetal sent someone replace the solenoid which seems to have fixed the heater.

While the repairman from Pacific Heating and Sheetmetal was here, he noticed the exhaust for the heater was leaking water. He attempted to repair the leak by adding more glue to the leaking joints and wrapping them with duct tape. Well, the day after he left, I went to inspect the work on my Pulte home and found that directly under where the repair was done, there was an area soaked with water on the sheetrock where mold had developed and had almost eaten through the sheetrock. I notified the Pulte Homes Customer Service Representative and he sent out someone to replace the moldy deteriorated sheetrock and texture the ceiling. (To this day, weeks later, it is still unpainted, which renders the bathroom in which the repair was done, unusable, for fear of moisture penetrating the unpainted/unprotected area and causing more problems in my Pulte home.)

I later went to inspect the work from the attic and to my surprise, the heater exhaust was still leaking, now directly onto the newly repaired ceiling! I immediately notified the Pulte Homes Customer Service Representative and he came over to inspect and confirm my findings. He called the heating company, which sent out a repairman a few days later. He finally proceeded to repair the leaking heater problem correctly. After the Pulte Homes Customer Service Representative had reviewed the problem, on his advice, I placed a towel and a container over the newly repaired area to minimize the damage.

This has been a 6 week ordeal !! And the fact that we have been reduced to using only 1 bathroom for weeks has been a huge inconvenience! All Pulte Homes has to do is send a painter. Why should that take weeks??!?!?

Also, a neighbor down the street had to have his heater totally replaced in his Pulte Home that is only a year and a half old. Are subpar, inferior products being used in Pulte Homes these days? Maybe I should go canvas my neighborhood and see what other problems people have been having….

And, on another note, our gas fireplace has been out for some time and 2 days ago it started making clicking noises all by itself. And no one has come to address that issue neither. And that may be a huge safety hazard!!

The Pulte Homes Customer Service Representative has told me several times he has placed work orders for the repairs, yet Nothing Happens. Is that really what Pulte Homes calls customer service?

How does Pulte Homes stay on the top of customer satisfaction? I’ll tell you how. By being as nice and polite as you can imagine, UNTIL……..

Pulte Homes has an initial survey they send out to all their customers. And to the day you fill out that survey everyone in the world is very nice and resolves issues in a very timely manner. However, once you fill out the survey, BEWARE. It will be a very long drawn out process to get anything done. And forget getting it done in a timely manner. Here is my almost 4 month journey with a brand new Pulte Home and all the issues I’ve had to deal with, so far.

Since the beginning of November I have been requesting that a faulty and shoddily repaired gutter be replaced on my Pulte Home. Today is Jan 12, 2009. Mind you, this huge error should have been repaired prior to the keys being delivered to the new Pulte homeowners (me and my wife). However, since we, the unsuspecting homeowners, didn’t find it until November, approximately 2 months after we moved in, it has been a long drawn out ordeal to get it fixed. (2 ½ months and counting).

The gutter I speak of is sitting right in front of my Pulte Home for the whole world to see. It had been dented and banged up from the inside. It had also been painted over so that tells me it was done prior to my taking possession of the Pulte Home. And the last section was pop riveted in place so now it is rusting and leaking (see pictures) where the two join together. The first attempt at repairing the gutter was a hack job at best. So, when I complained about it, Pulte Homes just came out and Bondoed it up and left it unpainted for over a month. So, when we had family and friends over for Thanksgiving, that was the first thing they saw as they pulled into our driveway. A bondoed, unpainted gutter (see pictures) on a brand new Pulte Home less than 3 months old. For those that don’t know, Bondo is a cheap auto filler used to make cheap quick repairs to automobiles. It has no place on an almost half million dollar Pulte Home, or any home for that matter.

So, back in November, this shoddy bondo repair was done to my Pulte Home. When I expressed dissatisfaction with it, I was told that the entire section would be replaced. So, I waited a couple of weeks then brought it to the attention of Pulte Homes staff again. At that time, I was told that the construction workers were off for the holidays. Fine. I again brought it to the attention of Pulte Home staff in the beginning of December. At that time, I was told it couldn’t be done because of the rains. Again, another delay. So when the rains stopped in mid December, I again approached Pulte Homes staff. The excuse this time? Construction people are off for the next couple of weeks for the holidays. I let it go to the New Year. So, Monday Jan. 4,2009, I again requested this be fixed. It was a bright sunny week and everyone should be working. What was the excuse this time? They said my Pulte Home’s gutter would be fixed that week. Needless to say, today, the second week in January 2009, almost 3 months later, it still remains unfixed.

AND, to add insult to injury, Pulte Homes has been able to almost fully enclose 3 homes in the time I have been asking this one small issue be repaired. That’s right. Pulte Homes has poured the foundation, framed, roofed, installed windows, etc and enclosed 3 two story homes 1 block from my house in the time I have been asking to have this small issue repaired.

Why is it Pulte Homes has no problem with the weather or the construction crew or the holidays when it comes to unsold Pulte homes? Because it represents money and profits to them. Unfortuneately, they already have my money. What Pulte Homes fails to realize is all those people that came to visit during the holidays and all the people who read this will hopefully think twice before buying a Pulte Home. Or, at least, know what to expect. And worse, what not to expect.

And if J.D. Powers ever contacts me about Pulte Homes………….

Previous issues and problems to be posted shortly.

If you or some you know has had or is having issues with Pulte Homes, please contact the owner of this website. I will be canvassing local Pulte Homes neighborhoods for other disgruntled homeowners.